by the El Reportero’s wire services

The government of Mexico expressed today in a statement its concern about the serious events that occur in Ecuador and called for respecting the rule of law and human rights.

‘Mexico strongly condemns all forms of violence, reiterates its commitment to the right to free demonstration and rejects the use of excessive force by the State, which must be used exceptionally and always governed by the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality and responsibility ‘, emphasizes the text.

In the communiqué issued by the Foreign Ministry, the Mexican executive urges the parties to avoid violence and favor dialogue as the only way to find solutions.

‘In that sense, it expresses its concern about the criminalization of opposition actors, since this does not pay in the resolution of the conflict’, it adds.

The statement also expresses its solidarity with the Ecuadorian people and joins the position of various international actors to accompany a peaceful solution.

For more than a week, hundreds of thousands of Ecuadorians have expressed their rejection of a group of economic measures by the Lenin Moreno government that laces the pocket and quality of life of a large majority.

Through various demonstrations and with a national strike started yesterday, protesters demand the repeal of the ‘pack’, a term to name the unpopular measures applied by the administration of Moreno.

Stand out among the approved provisions, the elimination of the fuel subsidy and reduction of labor rights (salary cuts and vacations for the public sector), which affect large majorities.

In addition, others such as the reduction of tariffs, elimination of the advance of the income tax, reduction of the tax on the exit of currencies, which benefit the well-off classes of the South American country.

No more IMF is another of the demands in the mobilizations starring indigenous organizations, workers, students, academics, women, youth, and more social sectors, against what they consider recipes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Last March, Ecuador signed an agreement with the IMF for 4.2 billion dollars, which will be paid for three years, provided that the Government adheres to an economic program established in the agreement.

The program requires an adjustment of about six percent of the Gross Domestic Product and other cuts that include the dismissal of public sector employees, increased taxes and rebates to public investment.

Nicaragua invests in infrastructure with support from regional bank

Nicaragua will invest millions of dollars in completing and improving the country’s road infrastructure and drinking water distribution with support from the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), which, as was confirmed today, granted huge credits for these purposes.

The financial entity approved the allocation of 333,874,540 dollars to partially finance a new phase of the Road Improvement and Expansion Program, a construction plan assumed by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure.

The second loan amounts to 251,470,000 dollars, which will be used to finance part of the project for the Improvement and Expansion of Potable Water and Sanitation Systems in 7 Cities, to be executed by the Nicaraguan Company of Aqueducts and Sewers.

The total amount exceeds 585 million dollars.

Supreme Court judge resigns in Mexico pending investigation

President Andres Manuel López Obrador explained Friday that the resignation of Supreme Court Justice Eduardo Medina is due to an investigation into assets held abroad.

Last night, Medina unexpectedly presented his resignation which still has to be accepted by the Senate, without giving his reasons.

The resignation comes a few months after an investigation against Medina for alleged money laundering by the Financial Intelligence Unit was revealed.

In 2015, then-President Enrique Peña Nieto (2012-2018) proposed Medina join the Court, after which his candidacy led to a social media campaign against the approval of his appointment.

But on March 11 of that year, the Senate approved his integration into the Court by 83 votes, for a period that should end on March 9, 2030.