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Policewoman in the city of Manta monitors the curfew: violence escalates in prisons and on the streets
Photo: Dolores Ochoa / AP
During prison riots in Ecuador, inmates in several prisons have taken a total of 96 security forces hostage. This was announced by the prison authority Snai on Monday. All hostages were "in good shape," it said. In addition, inmates in 13 prisons are currently on hunger strike.
On Sunday, six inmates were killed and eleven others injured in clashes at Guayas 1 prison in the port city of Guayaquil. In addition, the mayor of the coastal town of Manta had been shot.
Ecuador's prisons are chronically overcrowded
Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso then declared a state of emergency and nightly curfews. In the coastal provinces of Manabi and Los Rios as well as in the city of Duran near Guayaquil, the state of emergency applies for 60 days. The curfew will vary during this period. This was announced by the government on Monday.
Ecuador is struggling with prison unrest and waves of violence throughout the country due to structural problems: In the chronically overcrowded prisons, there are repeated bloody clashes between rival drug gangs. Since the beginning of 2021, more than 420 detainees have been killed in such fighting. "We cannot deny that organized crime has permeated the state, political organizations and society itself, it is a problem that has been brewing for more than a decade," President Lasso said after a meeting of the security cabinet.
With its location between the major drug producers Colombia and Peru, Ecuador is a major hub for drug smuggling to the United States and Europe. Rival gangs with ties to international drug cartels are fighting for control – including in prisons. This has led to a significant increase in violence in Ecuador.
has/AFP/Reuters