Ecuador's president promises to punish his enemies after day of chaos

[CHIMO]

Source: guardian.co.uk

Ecuador remained in a state of siege tonight with the military in charge of public order and President Rafael Correa promising to punish his enemies a day after a police rebellion triggered mayhem.

Charred tyres, debris and the whiff of teargas lingered in the capital, Quito, and other cities that bore the brunt of Thursday's anarchy, leaving a polarised country nervous and uncertain about the political and economic repercussions.

Correa emerged triumphant from the uprising and vowed to "purge" those responsible for protests that left him battered, shut down the airport and motorways and shook the institutions of state.

The leftist president said there would be "no pardon or forgiveness" for those involved and promised "a deep cleansing of the national police".


Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/oct/01/ecuador-president-punish-enemies-day-chaos

[DJ13]

1. This wont end well

[drdtroit]

6. Yeah, brillant, enlighten us. n/t

[DJ13]

12. The same reduced salaries and benefits that caused the cops to get pissed

will still be in effect.

[Mike Marble]

25. And those riotous cops will be looking for new careers.

Too bad for them.

[Skink]

2. the new Chavez.

[bitchkitty]

3. What a dumb-ass remark.

I don't suppose you'd like to attempt to explain it? I mean, in a coherent manner?

[Skink]

4. why don't you point out the flaws?

[drdtroit]

5. You know nothing of Ecuador obviously,

except what you read in the corrupt MSM.

[Skink]

8. The CIA messed up big time.

[drdtroit]

9. And got caught. n/t

[boppers]

10. The Ecuadoran Police are a CIA front?

Do tell. Are Greece's government employees also a front?

[Skink]

11. Yeah they are on the payroll.

[Socal31]

18. Oh jesus...

give it up already.

[bitchkitty]

7. Oh, PUHLEEZE.

The new Chavez? Explain that, genius.

[1955doubledie]

14. He don't wanna.

He's already made that clear.

[ronnie624]

19. He meant it as an insult.

But President Correa would, no doubt, be flattered. Chavez will probably be recorded by history, as being considered a great leader by a sizable majority of Venezuelans. He has lead a revolution that has brought vast improvement to the lives of the working class of Venezuela, even with the most powerful and violent political forces on earth arrayed against him. He has brought radical change to Venezuelan society, while being peaceful, reasonable and measured in his actions and reactions to his violent political enemies. There's plenty to admire about Chavez, and I'm certain Correa would agree.

[Judi Lynn]

17. And Fox News tells their audience Hugo Chavez is the new Hitler, apparently.

I always thought the "new" someone only applied when the "old" one was gone, didn't you?

Some can't respond when the first comment is so imbecilic there's no possible way to give it meaning.

[Judi Lynn]

15. Don't hold your breath. We get a lot of comment from people who have no grasp of the subjects

they're attempting to discuss: heavy tv news information gatherers. If it can't be explained to them in 10 words or less, it just doesn't matter, and you're qualified to give the world your opinion!

There are more and more of these Einsteins stuffing themselves into these threads, and they all represent the same point of view, of course!

[EFerrari]

24. I think Skink is picking up on something that is happening

in these reports. They're starting to describe Correa as they describe Chavez. Next, it's going to be "Correa, leftist firebrand, friend of Fidel" -- watch. :)

[Judi Lynn]

13. Five killed amid Ecuador attempted 'coup'

Five killed amid Ecuador attempted 'coup'
At least five people died and dozens of police and civilians were injured amid protests in Ecuador's capital.

By Ben Westwood in Quito
Published: 10:52PM BST 01 Oct 2010

Ecuador's police chief resigned on Friday and the country remained in a state of emergency one day after an uprising by officers who held President Rafael Correa for more than 10 hours.

Army special forces stormed the hospital where Mr Correa was being held and rescued him after a tense standoff .

A defiant Mr Correa condemned the police rebellion as an attempted coup.

"We will never accept negotiation under pressure, but only dialogue," he said, later adding: "The coup attempt may have roots out there, we have to find them and pull them up."

Mr Correa called the renegade policemen "cowards", claiming they had not even read the law they were opposing, and vowed that there would be "no pardon or forgiveness". The new law would reduce their benefits and limit salary increases.

More:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/ecuador/8038081/Five-killed-amid-Ecuador-attempted-coup.html

[Judi Lynn]

16. More from this right-wing paper, referring to the disputed changes in their benefits:

Ecuador is a politically unstable country and has seen seven presidents in the past 13 years, with three overthrown in coups.

Mr Correa, a close ally of Venezuela's Left-wing President Hugo Chavez and Bolivia's President Evo Morales, is pushing through a "citizen's revolution" in a nation where 35 per cent of people live below the poverty line.

He has increased social security benefits, introduced a minimum wage and invested in health, education and transport.

He has also doubled police salaries, but a budget deficit has forced cuts, among them police bonus payments, a decision which triggered the current crisis.

More:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/ecuador/8038081/Five-killed-amid-Ecuador-attempted-coup.html

[Downwinder]

20. They must have taken lessons from Wall Street.

On how to fight for their bonuses. Bonuses are no longer gratuities. Now they are entitlements.

[Judi Lynn]

21. Crazy! They were making around $150.00 monthly until recently, now they're making over $650.00.

Quite a leap, all things considered.

Now they're getting grabby about their bonuses? Mad enough to shoot at the elected President? Something stinks about this.

[dipsydoodle]

23. Wording is odd in some reports

They make it sound like he was "in" hospital. According the BBC's TV news he only went into the hospital to escape from the police and he stayed there until rescued by the military.

I found this little gem yesterday and had a laugh with EFerrari about it. She'd said in one of her posts on the subject that it took 11 hours for Pres Correa to be rescued.

Dear Mr Bechtel............ http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/world/latin-america/water-privatization/ecuador/letter-to-bechtel-concerning-guayaquil-ecuador/

Of course it was Pres Correa who re-nationalised the water supply amongst other things.

[Judi Lynn]

22. Former Daily Post journalist caught up in Ecuador coup attempt

Former Daily Post journalist caught up in Ecuador coup attempt
Oct 2 2010 by Eryl Crump, Daily Post

A BACKPACKER caught up in an attempted coup to oust the president of Ecuador is on his way home this weekend. Journalist Roland Hughes has spent months travelling around South America, and was in Ecuador when the trouble began on Thursday. He got stranded in the country as airports and highways were shut in the capital Quito because of rebel blockades.

Soldiers rescued President Rafael Correa from a hospital where he had been surrounded by police, who also assaulted and tear-gassed him. Mr Correa and his ministers said the revolt was an attempt to overthrow him and not just a protest over a new law which would cut benefits for public servants.

At least three people, two police officers and a soldier, were killed and dozens injured, said Irina Cabezas, the vice president of congress.

Roland, from Meliden, Prestatyn, told the Daily Post he heard gunfire and saw blazing piles of tyres from the roof of his hostel. He said: “It was as though everything had stood still, and everyone was preparing for the worst.

“Shops shut and some were looted, trams had stalled on the streets, and everyone seemed to feel we were in it for the long run. As much as I had enjoyed being in Ecuador, I wasn’t really ready to spend months here.

“You sensed the tone of the protests could change at any moment, and the fact there was so much disinformation floating around made it all the more edgy.

More:
http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/2010/10/02/former-daily-post-journalist-caught-up-in-ecuador-coup-attempt-55578-27384284/