Fernando Villavicencio was in Peru when he was persecuted by the Rafael Correa regime

He Peruvian government strongly condemned the assassination of the Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio after a political rally.

In a statement shared on the Foreign Ministry’s social networks, he rejected all acts of violence and intimidation that affect the development of democracy in the region.

The 59-year-old journalist and presidential candidate in Ecuador was assassinated on Wednesday after a rally in Quito.

Roberto Pereyra, legal adviser for the Press and Society Institute (IPYS), recalled that Fernando Villavicencio was in Peru in 2017 after revealing acts of corruption during the administration of Rafael Correa. In addition, he remembered him as a very good investigative journalist in his work.

“Fernando Villavicencio, faced with an imminent warrant for his arrest and imprisonment, entered Peru in April 2017 and asked for support from IPYS, which at that time had a program to protect journalists at risk in Latin America. He took advantage of it and was here protected. He was given asylum and a home for food, as well as advice to request political asylum before the Foreign Ministry, something that finally happened, ”he told RPP.

Pereira explained that the journalist revealed cases of corruption during the government of former President Rafael Correa. This caused him to be legally persecuted in Ecuador and forced him to escape.

“He published books basically denouncing the oil export contracts that Ecuador had in the Rafael Correa period and a series of negotiations that he described as illegal, overshadowed by corruption,” he said.