Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa celebrated victory yesterday after winning what he said was a “crushing victory” in a constitutional referendum aimed at broadening his powers.
Initial official returns, reflecting just 5 percent of the ballot, indicated 65-percent popular backing for the new basic law. But they were supported by unofficial exit polls showing that Correa’s proposal had won between 66 percent and 70 percent of the vote.
“The new constitution has had a crushing victory,” Correa said in opposition stronghold Guayaquil, on the Pacific coast. “It’s a historic moment that transcends by far the people who by luck or accident have been involved in this process.”
PHOTO: AP
Organization of American States General Secretary Jose Miguel Insulza, in a statement, congratulated Correa “on very strong support granted by Ecuadoran people.”
In a bid to avert unrest, Correa asked the opposition and all “no” voters to remain calm and issued a call to unity.
“We extend them our hand. Let them acknowledge defeat and let’s strike out together in the new direction the great majority of Ecuadorans, as well as all Latin America, are setting: a society with more justice, much more equality and without so much ... misery,” Correa said.
Correa earlier had voiced hope for a solid “yes” vote, as he strives for what he calls a “21st century socialism” to more closely align Ecuador with leftist allies Venezuela and Bolivia, making it the latest South American country to chart a leftward course.
Passed by a Constitutional Assembly on July 24, the new Basic Law would strengthen the government’s hold on the economy of this small nation of 13.9 million people — half of whom live in poverty — which is based chiefly on oil exports and money sent home by its emigrants.
The proposed constitution is inspired by the leftist majorities in power in Venezuela and Bolivia and their repudiation of the neoliberal policies of the 1990s, but falls short of nationalizing the country’s national resources as Bolivia and Venezuela have done.
The constitution’s 444 articles expand presidential powers in an attempt to end political instability in a country that in the last 10 years has sent three presidents packing before their terms were up.
The new constitution would allow the president to run for two consecutive four-year terms, dissolve Congress and call early elections.
Correa, 45, has already announced his intention to run for reelection in February next year, if it is approved, in which case early elections would be convened by the Constitutional Assembly.
The new constitution would also close down all foreign military bases in Ecuador, forcing the US to move its regional anti-drug operations, run for nearly 10 years from an air base in the port city of Manta.
Archeologists in Peru on Thursday said they found the 5,000-year-old remains of a noblewoman at the sacred city of Caral, revealing the important role played by women in the oldest center of civilization in the Americas. “What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman,” archeologist David Palomino said. The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for more than 30 years until becoming an archeological site in the 1990s. Palomino said the carefully preserved remains, dating to 3,000BC, contained skin, part of the
‘WATER WARFARE’: A Pakistani official called India’s suspension of a 65-year-old treaty on the sharing of waters from the Indus River ‘a cowardly, illegal move’ Pakistan yesterday canceled visas for Indian nationals, closed its airspace for all Indian-owned or operated airlines, and suspended all trade with India, including to and from any third country. The retaliatory measures follow India’s decision to suspend visas for Pakistani nationals in the aftermath of a deadly attack by shooters in Kashmir that killed 26 people, mostly tourists. The rare attack on civilians shocked and outraged India and prompted calls for action against their country’s archenemy, Pakistan. New Delhi did not publicly produce evidence connecting the attack to its neighbor, but said it had “cross-border” links to Pakistan. Pakistan denied any connection to
TRUMP EFFECT: The win capped one of the most dramatic turnarounds in Canadian political history after the Conservatives had led the Liberals by more than 20 points Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney yesterday pledged to win US President Donald Trump’s trade war after winning Canada’s election and leading his Liberal Party to another term in power. Following a campaign dominated by Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, Carney promised to chart “a new path forward” in a world “fundamentally changed” by a US that is newly hostile to free trade. “We are over the shock of the American betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons,” said Carney, who led the central banks of Canada and the UK before entering politics earlier this year. “We will win this trade war and
Armed with 4,000 eggs and a truckload of sugar and cream, French pastry chefs on Wednesday completed a 121.8m-long strawberry cake that they have claimed is the world’s longest ever made. Youssef El Gatou brought together 20 chefs to make the 1.2 tonne masterpiece that took a week to complete and was set out on tables in an ice rink in the Paris suburb town of Argenteuil for residents to inspect. The effort overtook a 100.48m-long strawberry cake made in the Italian town of San Mauro Torinese in 2019. El Gatou’s cake also used 350kg of strawberries, 150kg of sugar and 415kg of
RSS