Fernando Villavicencio, Ecuadorian presidential candidate, assassinated
Fernando Villavicencio, Ecuador's presidential candidate known for his firm rejection of criminal gangs and drug trafficking, has been shot dead in Quito after a political rally. The crime comes just a week before general elections and amid a wave of drug-related violence that has gripped the South American country for several years.
The attack, allegedly carried out by hired assassins, has been described by the current Ecuadorian president, Guillermo Lasso, as a "political crime" that seeks to "sabotage the electoral process". Lasso, who has indicated that the elections will go ahead but with additional security measures, has blamed members of "organised crime", assuring that "the full weight of the law will be brought down on them".
For the moment, the authorities have arrested six people allegedly involved in the murder in two neighbourhoods of the equatorial capital. The attack has also left nine people injured, including a candidate for the National Assembly and two policemen. In addition, one of the alleged criminals was shot dead by security personnel.
Following the crime, Lasso declared a state of emergency in the nation for 60 days.
Villavicencio, 59, was one of the eight candidates for the 20 August elections. A journalist by profession and a former trade unionist, Villavicencio emerged as one of the great rivals of former president Rafael Correa, whom he accused of corruption on several occasions. These accusations cost him an 18-month prison sentence for allegedly insulting the then president, although he managed to avoid prison by taking refuge in the United States.
Upon his return to Ecuador, Villavicencio continued to denounce Correa's corruption, this time in relation to irregular oil contracts with China. Finally, the former president was found guilty of corruption by an Ecuadorian court and sentenced to eight years in prison for the "2012-2016 bribery case".
Villavicencio, for his part, continued to fight against political corruption, as well as criminal gangs and drug trafficking. In fact, during an interview with EFE in May, he revealed that he was seeking to become president to "confront and defeat the mafias that have co-opted the state and have society on its knees". Villavicencio also highlighted the need for a "brave" government that fights the mafias "with the law and with weapons".
"We have a criminal economy financed by drug trafficking, illegal mining and resources from overpricing and bribes from corruption in the public sector," he told the news agency.
Recently, the candidate had publicly denounced that a leader of a local criminal group linked to the Mexican Sinaloa cartel had threatened him. Still, Villavicencio said he would continue campaigning throughout the country.
Villavicencio, who presented himself as a "journalist, writer and social activist", also worked for Petroecuador for a time, focusing on the impacts of the oil industry on Amazonian communities. He also focused on several occasions on the links between politicians and drug traffickers, referring to the "narco-state" and the "political mafia". "It is not possible for drug trafficking to establish itself in a society and subjugate it without the collusion and connivance of political power", he reflected during an interview with CNN in May.
Americas Coordinator: José Antonio Sierra.