Ecuador’s leader trapped after ‘coup attempt’

Rafael Correa, Ecuador’s leftwing president, was trapped inside a hospital on Thursday after accusing the opposition and sections of the country’s security forces of an attempted coup.

While Ernesto González, head of the oil-producing nation’s armed forces, gave his full support to the president, disgruntled police officers refused to let Mr Correa leave the hospital where he had sought refuge after being hit by tear gas.

“They’ve basically kidnapped the president,” said Ramiro Crespo, political and economic analyst at Quito-based Analytica Securities.

Mr Correa had gone to talk to police officers who were protesting against a proposed cut in their bonuses and curtailment of promotions, but after constant heckling the president declared: “I don’t care if you kill me, I won’t back down.”

As the president left the protest surrounded by bodyguards, demonstrators shot a teargas canister towards him. Mr Correa sought refuge in the hospital, where later attempts to land a rescue helicopter were thwarted.

Police also seized buildings in Guayaquil, a business centre, and Cuenca. Some 700 passengers were stranded by the riots, Philippe Baril, airport chief, told local radio.

Armed forces were attempting to disperse rioters with tear gas, but there were widespread reports of looting.

Members of the president’s own party have opposed the austerity measures, prompting him to threaten to dissolve parliament and rule by decree until new elections, which is allowed under Ecuadorean law.

Using a telephone Mr Correa said on national television that protesters were trying to knock down his door and that he feared for his life. “It is a coup attempt ... whatever happens to me I want to express my love for my family and my homeland,” he said. From an open window, he yelled to the protesters: “If they want me, here I am.”

As Ricardo Patino, his foreign minister, pleaded with thousands of protesters in Quito’s central plaza to support the president who remained trapped in the hospital, Mr Correa said he was considering dissolving parliament and calling snap elections to restore order.

Mr Patino also appealed to the international community for support, saying “faced with the unfortunate events that occurred this morning by some sections of the security forces, we categorically reject any attempt to destabilise the democratic order”.

Ernesto González, the head of Ecuador’s joint chiefs of staff, gave his full support to the president, who is a close ally of Hugo Chávez, Venezuela’s radical president.

“We will take whatever action the government decides is appropriate,” Gen González said.

Civil society groups joined the government in vowing to free Mr Correa, before marching on the hospital where he was cornered by protesting police officers.

The government declared a state of emergency and the Organisation of American States held an emergency meeting.

The US expressed strong backing for Mr Correa, with the state department urging a “rapid and peaceful restoration of order”.

Diego Borja, director of Ecuador’s central Bank, went on television to plead for calm and prevent a run on deposits by a populace that still bears the scars of the late 90s collapse of its banking system. “Your money is safe,” Mr Borja sad, “But be careful making big deposits.”

Mr Correa is believed to have been injured slightly when he was jostled by protesters as he sought to calm the situation.

Mr Correa, a US-educated economist who came to power on promises to reduce poverty and deliver better social services, more than doubled expenditure in his first term to more than $21bn.

He is the first Ecuadorean leader in three decades to win two successive terms in office, but he has had a tense relationship with the US, foreign investors and multilateral lenders, particularly after defaulting on foreign debt and seizing oilfields owned by Perenco, of France.

Ecuador’s recent political history has been notoriously unstable. Three presidents were forced out of office in the decade leading up to Mr Correa’s election in 2006.