Thirteen Pachakutik legislators are unwilling to submit to ‘abuse’ by Leonidas Iza

The group of thirteen legislators from the Pachakutik bench replied in writing to the president of Conaie, Leonidas Iza, where they reject his claim to judge them for alleged damage caused by their actions in the National Assembly, where it also involves the coordinator of the movement, Marlon Santi .

In the letter to more than reject the intention of the indigenous leader, the assembly members, remember that it does not give him the power to exercise jurisdictional functions, typical of the ordinary sphere, and that as president of the Conaie, he cannot undermine the legitimate authority in the exercise of the assembly members and less exercise, judging functions against the assembly members.

The letter is signed by the assembly members: Guadalupe Llori, president of the National Assembly, Rafael Lucero, bench coordinator, Ricardo Vanegas, Efrén Calapucha, Jessica Castillo, Rosa Cerda, Celestino Chumpi, Isabel Enríquez, Gisella Molina, Edgar Quezada, Sofía Sánchez , Consuelo Vega and Cristian Yucailla. The name of the leader, Marlon Santi, also appears.

PK assembly members clarify to Leonidas Iza that he does not have competence and jurisdiction to apply indigenous justice to them

“Your attitude, Mr. Leonidas Iza, president of CONAIE, is totally wrong, absurd, illegal, arbitrary and illegitimate; every time it assumes functions that it does not have, by trying to sanction us by applying indigenous justice, without having competence or jurisdiction; since these attributions are born of the Law ”, it is highlighted in the fifteen-page document. They also insist that in no part of the Conaie statute gives it powers for the application of indigenous justice.

“This is the sole responsibility of indigenous communities, so we are not willing to submit to the abuse of a president of the Conaie, who wants to make a political arena at the expense of our exercise as assembly members, trying to undermine our responsible work that we have done for seven months approximately ”, underlines the document.

They reject, due to form and substance, the performance of Leonidas Iza, as president of the Conaie, since it is causing irreparable damage to indigenous justice; on the grounds that “he uses it irresponsibly, to obtain personal political profits.”

On December 17, the assembly members of the Pachakutik movement were notified so that they must go and make use of their legitimate right to defense, in the assembly of the peoples and nationalities of the Conaie, to be held in the Otavalo canton, this Tuesday, December 21, 2021, at 09:00. The objective is to resolve the “llaki” (damage) conflict, supposedly caused by the legislators and the national coordination of the movement.

According to the communication sent by Iza, the assembly members and leaders of the Pachakutik National Executive Committee demonstrated an unethical, immoral, incoherent attitude, disloyal to the political and ideological project, which breaks with all community discipline and contravenes the effective exercise of the collective rights.

On December 15, nine legislators who agree with the leader of Conaie, Leonidas Iza, declared rebellion before the coordination of the bench, Rafael Lucero, and said that they mark autonomy with the government of Guillermo Lasso.

Nine assembly members of Pachakutik declare in absentia and mark total autonomy from the government of Guillermo Lasso

Without foundation

The assembly members who signed the official letter in response to Leonidas Iza, consider that the president of Conaie does not have the power or competence to judge them. Indigenous jurisdiction is the right to be judged by its own authorities, in accordance with its rules and procedures, within its territorial scope, in order to guarantee respect for coexistence.

That in reference to the classification that should already be exposed in its request, it only makes an allusion to the misnamed “llaki”, not clarifying on what a possible sanction is based, nor what would be the circumstance or reason under which such assertions, being therefore a non-typified cause.

This does not mean that all conduct of the authorities called to appear should be acquitted by the president of the Conaie, for any act of reprehensible origin, the indigenous jurisdiction not being competent to hear this fact.

That Conaie has the objective of consolidating indigenous communities, peoples and nationalities, the fight for indigenous land and territories, the fight for education; Therefore, the legislators ask at what moment, within this line of ideas, is Conaie considered as a court that, without having jurisdiction, intends to impose sanctions on national authorities, on their elected dignitaries, not only by communities, peoples or indigenous nationalities, if not, by the Ecuadorian population.

In addition, they indicate that Conaie, a social organization that strictly fights for the rights of indigenous communities, peoples and nationalities and has its own statute that governs them organically. There is no ordinary legal norm, nor in the Conaie, that empowers the president of the same to summon an authority, nor dignitary (assembly members), to appear before it.

“You, Mr. President of the Conaie, are abusing your authority to make us uneasy as authorities elected by popular vote, with your claim to indigenous justice,” reiterates the statement from the legislators. (I)