- Title: "Police did not use lethal force," says Ecuador's Interior Minister
- Date: 15th October 2019
- Summary: QUITO, ECUADOR (OCTOBER 15, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** ECUADOREAN INTERIOR MINISTER MARIA PAULA ROMO AT START OF NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ECUADOREAN INTERIOR MINISTER MARIA PAULA ROMO, SAYING: "We are at a moment of greater calm, recovering some normality in the country. In recent days, as mentioned a minute ago, several things converged in Ecuador. Not only in Quito but in Ecuador. We had a protest regarding an economic decision, but that protest came together with an attempt to destabilise an attack, not only the government, but also democracy in the country." GENERAL OF ROMO DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ECUADOREAN INTERIOR MINISTER MARIA PAULA ROMO, SAYING: "Because in this effort to regain calm, we also have to rebuild trust and we also have to rebuild the truth and one of the triggers of violence in recent days was the amount of false news that circulated regarding the actions of the national police. And we are not sitting here this morning to defend the actions of the police, for better, for worse, each of their acts will speak for themselves. The police and their work during these days have sustained what was an attempt at democratic destabilisation and they have also responded to violent protests." ROMO DURING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) ECUADOREAN INTERIOR MINISTER MARIA PAULA ROMO, SAYING: "In all cases the police acted with deterrent force. In no case, anywhere, in no context did the police use lethal force. The police used dissuasive force and the police used dissuasive tools such as CS material, for example, which is part of that same deterrent force. In no case, the police used a force out of proportion or material that is not within what is certified, qualified and updated and authorised to be part of that force and the police have the power to do so. Investigations regarding what happened, of course, we will evaluate all the police procedures in this case once the emergency is over." END OF NEWS CONFERENCE
- Embargoed: 29th October 2019 17:50
- Keywords: Ecuador Interior Minister Maria Paula Romo protests clashes economy
- Location: QUITO, ECUADOR
- City: QUITO, ECUADOR
- Country: Ecuador
- Topics: Government/Politics,Editors' Choice
- Reuters ID: LVA001B17M3WN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: LIVE U QUALITY
Ecuadorean Interior Minister Maria Paula Romo said on Tuesday (October 15) that police did not use lethal force but "deterrent" force after days of violent protests against the IMF-backed measure, returning fuel prices to prior levels until a new measure can be found.
Romo told the news conference, 1,330 people had been arrested - 57 of which were foreigners. She added 1,507 people received medical attention and 435 policemen had been injured with six people killed. Romo also said there were no people missing and 202 policemen had been held against their will. Finally, 132 roads and highways were blocked around the country.
President Lenin Moreno on Monday (October 14) officially scrapped his own law to cut expensive fuel subsidies.
The signing of the decree is a blow to Moreno and leaves big questions about the oil-producing nation's fiscal situation. But it represents a win for the country's indigenous communities, who led the protests, bringing chaos to the capital and crippling the oil sector.
The clashes marked the latest in a series of political convulsions sparked by IMF-backed reform plans in Latin America, where increased polarization between the right and left is causing widespread friction amid efforts to overhaul hidebound economies.
(Production: Leonardo Benassato, Geraldine Downer) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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