Subsidy elimination plan to be announced today; Assassination was a ‘political crime’; Gov’t ignores illegal mining, group says; Cuenca plays in Brooklyn

The government said Thursday that it will provide full details of its plan to eliminate subsidies for Extra and Ecopaís gasoline Friday, June 14.

In an interview on Radio EXA, Finance Minister Juan Carlos Vega said that the subsidy would be phased out during the remainder of the year, with total elimination expected before December. He said prices could rise in increments of between 20 cents and 30 cents a gallon but said more information is forthcoming. He added that a similar subsidy phase-out is being planned for diesel fuel and but said it would be carried out in 2025.

According to the environmental group Napo Ama la Vida Colectiva, 65 illegal gold mines are operating in Napo Province. Many of them operate with heavy equipment.

Ecopaís and Extra currently sell for $2.46 and $2.72 a gallon. The current international market price is $3.26, Vega says.

Vega argued that the gasoline subsidy is “highly inequitable” since more than 50% of automobile owners have household incomes of at least $3,000 a month, considered middle class by national standards. “The claim that eliminating the subsidies would hurt the poor population the most is bogus and a political distraction,” he says. “In fact, 10% of households in Ecuador have two vehicles or more.”

Vega added that there are no plans to eliminate the subsidy on LP gas.

Assassination was a ‘political crime’
A National Assembly report says that the assassination of former presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was a “political crime.” Although the murder was probably carried out on orders of narco-trafficking gang leaders, the report says there is “overwhelming” evidence that some elected officials were involved. “Villavicencio’s investigations as a journalist were generating extreme discomfort among some officials and they openly expressed an interest in silencing him,” the 99-page report read.

It added that Villavicencio had discovered links between local and national elected officials to crime organizations and had turned over his findings to prosecutors. Prior to his candidacy for president, Villavicencio headed the National Assembly’s Parliamentary Anti-Corruption Committee and had, according to the report, “made a number of Assemblymembers nervous about his findings.”

In particular, the report noted that former Assemblyman Ronny Aleaga, currently a fugitive from justice, had promised gang leader Leandro Norero that he would “shut up” Villavicencio by discrediting his investigations.

Government ignores illegal mining, group says
Illegal mining activities are expanding rapidly in Napo Province and the government is doing nothing to combat it, says the environmental group the Napo Ama la Vida Colectiva. “The operations are generating between $7 million and $14 million a day and are polluting our rivers and waterways,” says collective president José Moreno. “We have knocked on many doors in Quito and they promise action but nothing happens,” he says.

In addition to the environmental damage, Moreno says international criminal groups are involved in the mines. “This activity is part of the criminality the country is fighting in the coastal provinces,” he says. “If we are serious about confronting the gangs and cartels, the government must also confront these illegal mining operations.”

Morenos says that 2,025 hectares have been damaged by an estimated 65 illegal mines in Napa Province, with most of the damage occurring in Carlos Tola and the Tena cantons. “These mines are working in the river basins or on riverbanks, and the chemicals used go directly into the drinking and agricultural water of downstream communities,” he says.

Cuenca football team will play in Brooklyn
Deportivo Cuenca will play a friendly match against Brooklyn FC in the United States on July 13. The game will be played at Maimonides Park in Brooklyn, New York.

The team office said Wednesday that the game is intended to allow Cuenca fans living in the New York area to see the team in action. “There are about 50,000 people from Cuenca and Azuay province living in Brooklyn and Queens and the game gives them opportunity to come out and support the team,” the statement said.

The statement continued: “Due to the sponsorship arrangement, the game will also provide additional income for Deportivo Cuenca.”