“Our fight continues”: members of movements, neighborhood leaders, teachers and relatives of inmates murdered in prisons joined a meeting for human rights

Relatives of people murdered in prisons, inhabitants of popular sectors where there have been evictions, members of unions of educators and social movements in favor of gender diversity and the promotion of the rights of vulnerable groups came together to march along the Avenida de 9 de Octubre, during the morning of this Saturday 10.

This morning, they used signs, shouts and drums to walk from the Centennial Park, on Lorenzo de Garaycoa street, and go to Rocafuerte square, on Pedro Carbo street, on the occasion of the 74th anniversary of the declaration of human rights promoted by the United Nations.

“Long live human rights!” was the cry repeated by Billy Navarrete, the main leader of the Permanent Committee for the Defense of Human Rights (CDH), during the tour. Among those present, they also presented various messages in favor of the fulfillment of rights in society.

At the end of the passage through the blocks of the avenue, Navarrete went up to a platform to emphasize several of the struggles and proposals promoted by the Committee. There he indicated that some 550 people died from clashes in prisons, one of the scenarios where rights problems are evident, according to social actors.

Among those present were representatives of the Committee of Relatives for Victims of Justice in Prisons, who demanded reparation and justice for the victims of prison massacres that have been registered since 2019 to date.

“The Government has confessed its inability to guarantee rights, and these are responsibilities that this and the previous Government must respond to. We will not forget the human rights violations that are being perpetrated, a responsibility of the State and the Government in particular,” said Navarrete.

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Navarrete said that a comprehensive policy is necessary that starts from the articulation of its entities, especially security, with the incursion of the voice of civil society and academia to have a “consistent” proposal without appealing only to states of exception or converting informers to social leaders.

In addition, it maintained that the involvement of human rights defenders immersed in popular sectors is essential to participate in the construction of sustained policies; and in parallel, as an organization, continue the fight for justice, equality and dignity regarding the 40 years of existence of the CDH.

In the midst of the police guard at the meeting, he maintained that guarantees have also been ensured for the work of police officers and regretted the loss of life of uniformed officers in the hands of criminal organizations. “We care about all lives; no life is indifferent to us, and worse when they arise from criminal events, ”he pointed out.

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On the stage, various social actors and organization leaders expressed their thoughts on the fight to defend citizens’ rights.

Ana Morales, from the Committee of Relatives for Justice in Prisons, reaffirmed that they expect justice and comprehensive reparation for rights violated as victims of the loss of spouses, children and parents in the conflict between gangs that operate in prisons run by the Government.

She narrated the difficulty of overcoming the ravages of living the experience of having to fire family members who are victims of massacres, and she believed that justice should be done in these cases.

“For a mother, receiving news on social networks or outside prisons with a piece of paper attached is inhumane, but that is the treatment of the State for us, the relatives. We are human beings; have some empathy. We are parents, and family is family, ”she said and questioned what program the Government proposes for those children and other relatives who were left with traumas due to the events that occurred in prisons.

Among the relatives of murdered prisoners, the requests for justice, truth, comprehensive reparation, the right to life and the non-repetition of massacres were replicated.

Likewise, women leaders from neighborhoods participated, such as Nueva Prosperina and Socio Vivienda, where they receive the support of the Committee and live with social problems, evictions and crime.

“Our fight is still on. Our rights are irrefutable; they do not expire until the day we die,” said Karina Luna, Socio Vivienda common attorney, before those present. She emphasized that they suffer from the dilation of the processes for the delivery of deeds in the area.

The teachers union accompanied this tour. They asked for the reaffirmation of rights to decent working conditions and quality education and warmth.

Before the march, the regional meeting of defenders was held in the auditorium of the Casa de la Cultura Núcleo del Guayas, located on Avenida 9 de Octubre and Pedro Moncayo. There, the challenges faced by the members of the Network of Human Rights Defenders and their host communities in the current context were analyzed. (YO)