This is lifted from the SH BB. It sounds like a Soto/Reuters hatchet job again to cast more clouds over the situation.

Read it for what it's worth.

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MONTECRISTI, Ecuador, June 20 (Reuters) - EcuadoreanPresident Rafael Correa will bolster his authority this year ifvoters approve a new constitution extending state control overthe economy and opening the way for his possible re-election.

If ratified in a referendum, opponents fear the new constitution could stunt much-needed investment in SouthAmerica's No. 5 oil producer and undermine key institutions already susceptible to political interference.

The constitutional changes hint at leftist Correa'slong-term plans for the OPEC member, where controlling the economy -- and therefore cash flow to the military -- is key tosurvival after his three predecessors were toppled by street protests and congressional turmoil.

Correa, a popular former economy minister who says he wants to wrest power from corrupt elites, already has foreign investors jittery over his drive to renegotiate oil and miningdeals. He pledges to annul some foreign debt, which he brandsas "illegitimate" deals signed by past governments.

Alberto Acosta, head of the government-controlled assembly rewriting the constitution, told Reuters it will allow the state to take a majority stake in oil and mining deals though it is still unclear how that will happen.

"We have to regain the state's role in those sectors," said Acosta, a close Correa ally. "We would like joint ventures ...with a state majority stake, but there could be exceptions."