- Title: Indigenous leaders hail victory after president repeals austerity decree
- Date: 14th October 2019
- Summary: QUITO, ECUADOR (OCTOBER 14, 2019) (REUTERS) GENERAL VIEW OF EVENT WITH INDIGENOUS LEADERS INDIGENOUS LEADERS ON STAGE AT RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PRESIDENT OF CONAIE (INDIGENOUS BODY), JAIME VARGAS, SAYING: "Decree 883 has been repealed. It's been confirmed for this afternoon or tomorrow if possible. Prices for fuel, diesel, public transport, price increases on staple goods will have to normalise (from tomorrow). That means the fight has not just been for indigenous people but for all Ecuadorans." LEADERS AT RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) INDIGENOUS LEADER, LEONIDAS IZA, SAYING: "The demands that were presented during this struggle should be fulfilled. There's no going back, not even a milimetre. We are waiting, the whole country is waiting for decree 883 to be abandoned. Similarly, the Ecuadoran people are keeping an eye out, for the resignation of (Interior) Minister (Paula) Romo and (Defence) Minister (Oswaldo) Jarrin from the government." VARIOUS OF MEDIA AT EVENT (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) INDIGENOUS ACTIVIST, ANDRES TAPIA, SAYING: "More than 1,000 detained, more than 1,000 injured. Officially there have been seven deaths from the indigenous moments but there's more to be investigated. There are still people we haven't located, families that have been separated, groups that came in from the Amazon and who have not yet been located. We haven't yet quantified the seriousness of it all. There are a series of open wounds, companions." INDIGENOUS LEADERS AT EVENT
- Embargoed: 28th October 2019 22:14
- Keywords: Ecuador indigenous leader fuel subsidies repeal austerity President Lenin Moreno Quito
- Location: QUITO, ECUADOR
- City: QUITO, ECUADOR
- Country: Ecuador
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Civil Unrest,Editors' Choice
- Reuters ID: LVA001B12MUYV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:Indigenous activists rallied in the Ecuadoran capital of Quito on Monday (October 14) after President Lenin Moreno announced he would repeal an austerity decree.
The government announced that they will form a commission with indigenous leaders to pass a new law they can agree on, officials reported.
Ecuadoran indigenous leader Jaime Vargas said on Monday that gasoline and diesel prices and transportation fares must return to levels that were in effect before the government's now-cancelled plan to slash fuel subsidies.
President Lenin Moreno's decision to end a decades old fuel subsidy ignited the unrest. He has said the measure was necessary to reduce the country's fiscal deficit after he signed a multi-billion dollar loan deal with the International Monetary Fund.
(Production: Cristina Munoz) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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