The Guarantee Commission plans to meet on November 5 to know and approve the report on Pandora Papers
Some 204 amnesty requests are still waiting for the Commission on Constitutional Guarantees, Human Rights, Collective Rights and Interculturality of the National Assembly to hear about the request made by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie).
On September 21, Conaie presented to the president of the legislature, Guadalupe Llori (Pachakutik), a list with the cases of indigenous and peasant leaders who are being prosecuted for issues of defense of nature, violent protests of October 2019 , defense of community territories and indigenous justice.
Conaie asks the National Assembly for amnesty for 260 leaders defending nature and prosecuted for the protests of October 2019
Six weeks have passed and the Constitutional Guarantees Commission, chaired by José Cabascango (Pachakutik), still does not know of the cases, nor does it define a work schedule for the preparation of the report that must include the analysis on a case-by-case basis, according to the files. presented by the leaders of Conaie.
According to the regulations that govern the National Assembly, the plenary session may issue a resolution declaring amnesty for political crimes or crimes related to politicians. These political crimes are those committed or allegedly committed by one or more persons against the organization and operation of the State, motivated by the purpose of collective social vindication in a political-social context of internal unrest or social conflict. To grant amnesty you need at least 91 votes.
Assemblyman Cabascango assures that the Legislative Administration Council (CAL) sent some letters with the amnesty requests, but that he still does not know the table because within the planning is the preparation of the report for the first debate of the Youth Law and then the humanitarian support reform project.
The commission of the plenary session of the Assembly to open an investigation into Pandora’s papers, which supposedly would involve the President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso, with companies and capitals in tax havens abroad, delayed the work regarding the amnesty requests, Cabascango stated.
This was corroborated by the legislator Mario Ruiz (Pachakutik), who said that the amnesties are presented in the commission, that the technical team analyzes each case to verify that the requirements are met, but that unfortunately due to the Pandora Papers case the theme.
The petitioners are trade union leaders, environmentalists and workers’ leaders who at the time were prosecuted for opposing mining extrativism or for opposing any other public policy, said Ruiz, who said that the list of applicants for amnesties does not include dangerous people or criminals, but politically persecuted for their convictions in favor of nature, workers and peasants.
According to the information in the National Assembly, there are 135 cases of amnesties for issues related to the defense of nature; 46 for violent protests in October 2019 and burning of the State Comptroller General; 14 cases for defense of territory; 6 for water defense; 2 for indigenous justice issues; and 1 for land problems.
Cabascango said that the CAL made a qualification of the applications after a report from the Legislative Technical Unit (UTL), where no observation was presented, so it is known that they are qualified and what is needed is to process that information.
Édgar Quezada Patiño, member of the Guarantee Commission and legislator of Pachakutik, pointed out that at the moment the information of all the amnesty applicants is requested, and after the Pandora Papers case, the more than 200 requests will be addressed.
He clarified that the debate has not yet begun at the table, but that most of the applicants are related to those prosecuted and sentenced for the protests of October 2019 and for cases of defense of nature.
Pandora Report
The president of the Guarantee Commission, José Cabascango, will convene on November 5 next to know and approve the report on the investigation carried out regarding the journalistic investigation called Pandora Papers, which supposedly would involve the President of the Republic, Guillermo Lasso Mendoza.
Pandora Papers is a leak of files published on October 3 simultaneously in several countries of the world, which includes names of politicians, artistic characters and businessmen as shareholders of companies whose capital and assets are in tax havens. In the investigation, the first president is appointed.
This investigation started after a request made by the plenary session of the Assembly. During the investigation, the commission summoned the head of state and his family, who excused themselves from attending, although President Guillermo Lasso invited Carondelet to the commission, so that his version could be received, but this was not accepted by the table, whose president He stated that he does not take home versions.
Cabascango expressed concern that public officials did not provide any information in this investigation, which, he said, will be recorded in the report, as well as the absence of the president, which constitutes an obstacle in this process, he added.
Commission of Constitutional Guarantees of the National Assembly does not obtain information on Pandora’s papers
According to the Pachakutik legislator, the president had all the investigation and could, within the framework of the defense, provide information and contrast all the documentation that the commission has. Apart from the complaints published in the press, he did not want to reveal what other information arrived and that it is in the process of verification.
Paola Cabezas, delegate of the Union for Hope bench before that commission, assured that they have information about this case, that information came from Panama regarding a company whose assets and capital are in tax havens and that would be related to the head of state.
What they expected from the president and his relatives, Cabezas said, is to contrast the information that the table has on the case and they could even deliver the information in a confidential manner. (I)
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