Ecuador: Presidential candidates must put human rights at the center of their proposals
21 March 2025
On the eve of the last presidential debate scheduled for March 23 and ahead of the April 13 presidential elections, Amnesty International published today an open letter addressed to the presidential candidates Luisa González and Daniel Noboa (available only in Spanish).
“Faced with the possibility of change offered by the start of a new presidential term, we invite you to put human rights at the center of your public policies, particularly on issues that we consider pressing for the country: public safety, the prison situation, the risks faced by human rights defenders, and the protection of the environment in the face of climate change,” said Ana Piquer, Americas director at Amnesty International.
“This weekend, thousands of people in Ecuador will pay attention to your public policy proposals and priorities during the presidential debate. From our organization, we hope to hear answers to the following questions: In the face of allegations of forced disappearances and extrajudicial executions in military operations, what will you do to guarantee that your security policies respect human rights? In the face of reports of possible acts of torture committed in prisons, what will you do to address the prison crisis? Given the stigmatization, criminalization, and attacks faced by human rights defenders, will you prioritize the development and implementation of a protection policy? In the context of the hydroelectric crisis and the continued gas flaring, will you change your approach to protecting the environment and mitigating climate change?”
“Amnesty International will be attentive to your proposals and will continue to ensure respect for the human rights of all people in Ecuador, regardless of the outcome of the electoral contest.”
More:
https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2025/03/ecuador-candidaturas-presidenciales-derechos-humanos/
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The current President, Daniel Noboa's father Álvaro Noboa, is mentioned in this information from Human Rights Watch concerning treatment of his workers:
May 21, 2002 8:00PM EDT | News Release
Ecuador: Escalating Violence Against Banana Workers
Banana workers in Ecuador are facing an onslaught of illegal firings, violence, and intimidation as they try to exercise their rights to organize and strike, Human Rights Watch said today.
The violence has been concentrated at the Los Álamos plantation group on Ecuador's southwestern coast, where at least ten striking workers were shot on May 16 by assailants. Los Álamos is owned by the Noboa Corporation, whose owner, Álvaro Noboa, is a leading presidential candidate in Ecuador's October elections.
"The efforts to stop unions on the banana plantations have been going on for a long time, but now we're seeing a descent into pure thuggery," said Carol Pier, Labor Rights and Trade Researcher for Human Rights Watch. "The Ecuadorian government has a responsibility to prevent this kind of violence."
On April 25, Human Rights Watch released Tainted Harvest: Child Labor and Obstacles to Organizing on Ecuador's Banana Plantations, a 114-page report that detailed impediments to unionization and the widespread use of hazardous child labor on Ecuador's banana plantations.
In early March, workers from the Los Álamos plantation group petitioned the Ministry of Labor to recognize their recently-formed union. Shortly thereafter, approximately 124 Los Álamos workers were illegally fired, among them over a dozen union organizers. Although some workers were eventually allowed to resume their posts, others, including the union organizers, are still out of work.
In late April, the Ministry of Labor recognized three trade unions formed by the workers from Los Álamos, a positive step towards respecting workers' right to organize.
According to Ecuadorian workers' organizations, however, three more union activists were reportedly illegally fired on May 2. On May 6, largely in response to the firings, the workers of the Los Álamos plantation group declared a strike. Though a workers' organization allegedly requested police protection for the striking workers, none arrived until violence erupted.
At approximately 2:00 AM on the morning of May 16, between 200 and 400 hooded, armed men entered the Los Álamos plantation group, where workers living on the plantations were sleeping. Reports indicate that the hooded men banged on workers' doors with rifle butts, dragged roughly eighty of them from their homes, hit many with rifle butts, insulted them, looted their homes, and told many that they would be killed and dumped into the river. The hooded men also fired at at least one striking worker, injuring him critically and causing the subsequent amputation of his leg. Approximately six hours later, about six policemen reportedly arrived at the plantations.
"These actions, the illegal firings and the anti-striker violence, are blatant union-busting tactics and serious human rights abuses," said Pier. "They must not go unpunished."
The armed men remained on the Los Álamos premises throughout the day on May 16 and into the early evening, at which time they allegedly told all striking workers to leave the premises by 6:30 PM or be forcibly evicted. Shortly after 6:00 PM, with the workers showing no sign of leaving, the armed men allegedly began shooting, critically injuring one worker and injuring several others and a policeman. Reports indicate that at 8:00 PM, police reinforcements finally arrived and arrested approximately twenty of the armed thugs.
According to reports, the injured worker whose leg was later amputated needs blood transfusions, which he was allegedly initially denied because his employer failed to make mandatory Social Security payments as required by Ecuadorian law. To ensure that the injured worker received the necessary care, a workers' organization signed as guarantor.
"This is an example of what happens when you have weak labor laws and even weaker enforcement," said Pier. "Workers should not be threatened, beaten, or shot for exercising their constitutionally protected and internationally recognized human rights."
More:
https://www.hrw.org/news/2002/05/21/ecuador-escalating-violence-against-banana-workers
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