Andean Group - March 2008 (ISSN 1741-4466)

On 3 March Ecuador's National Constituent Assembly resumed work on drafting the articles for the country's new constitution. This got off to a halting start in February when the assembly could not agree on the structure of, or preamble to, the new Magna Carta. In addition to the lack of consensus between the ruling party's majority bloc, Acuerdo Paí­s (AP), and non-government assembly members, external events have been distracting at best and disastrous at worst, hindering progress on the new constitution which the asambleí­stas have only until May to complete.

Of the ten groups or 'tables' that comprise the assembly, tables two and three got to work on debating the electoral and judicial functions, and table one on fundamental rights and constitutional guarantees. The president of table two, Virgilio Hernández, said that at this point they are working on definitions.

The proposal is that the electoral function be autonomous, independent of the other branches of government, and made up of two entities which would be called the National Electoral Council when in full session. Its members' terms would not coincide with political (ie electoral) terms, and members would be selected according to merit.

While the national assembly debates these and other goals - such as a more efficient and independent judiciary - the rest of the country faces more immediate problems. Severe flooding since the end of January has affected about a quarter of the total population, killing at least 23 people and rendering almost 300,000 homeless. 85% of the country's rice crops (the local staple food) have been destroyed by the waters, and President Correa declared a national state of emergency on 20 February.

• Oil pipeline

On 28 February a landslide caused by flooding broke the SOTE pipeline used to transport most of the crude oil extracted by state-owned oil company Petroecuador from the jungle to the Pacific coast. The landslide forced a section of the pipeline to be temporarily closed down, interrupting oil exports. An initial evaluation carried out by the ministry for mining and petroleum's environment agencies showed that the Coca and Quijos rivers have been contaminated in the Amazon, as well as 20,000 square metres of land. Local residents have been told not to drink the water and tankers with 48 hours' supply of drinking water have been taken to the areas.

In addition, the country has been in political uproar since 1 March over an armed Colombian incursion into national territory (see pages 1-2). As if this were not enough to contend with, the constituent assembly is having to manage a delicate balancing act over regional demands for autonomy, especially from Guayaquil.

Regional autonomy

On 22 February several hundred citizens from Guayaquil travelled to the seat of the constituent assembly in Montecristi to hand in the "Declaration of Guayaquil" drawn up by the city's mayor and President Rafael Correa's principal opponent, Jaime Nebot, in collaboration with business lobbies, social organisations and universities. Among other things, it calls for the establishment of autonomous communities which can choose the powers they want to be devolved from central government.

Despite the articulate and conciliatory response of assembly president, Alberto Acosta, upon receiving the document in Montecristi, it is hard to imagine how such proposals could be incorporated into the new Magna Carta when their vision of the country's future is so different from that of President Correa.

Not wanting to be left behind in its historic rivalry with Guayaquil, the capital also presented a 12-page "Quito Proposal" to the city's mayor, Paco Moncayo, on 27 February, which he is due to hand in to the constituent assembly after Easter. The proposals for the constitutional reforms were drawn up in consultation with various social sectors, including business groups, academics, students, trade unionists, neighbourhood leaders, and women's organisations.

The proposals do not echo Nebot's call for autonomy but do call for a decentralised state. They make some important suggestions, notably the establishment of a bicameral legislative and no indefinite re-election for the head of state, who should only be able to serve one six-year term. Deputies, too, would only be allowed serve three-year terms, meaning that the composition of congress would change halfway through the president's term.

It is not clear how the constituent assembly is going to incorporate all these demands into the new constitution. Certainly it will be impossible to keep everyone happy, but Correa should be wary of alienating his hometown of Guayaquil, since that is where most of Ecuador's money is. The constituent assembly has advanced little with rewriting the constitution in its first three months, partly because the government also requires it to approve legislation. Progress most recently stalled due to a chicken-and-egg debate over whether the introductory summary of the constitution should be written before or after the full version is complete.

Bribery scandal

The assembly itself has come under scrutiny due to allegations of vote-buying. These first came to light on 22 January, when the executive claimed to have discovered a scheme to bribe AP delegates in order to prevent the constitution from being approved. The scandal took on momentum when the briber (a lay citizen, Cao Muñoz) and the interior minister, Fernando Bustamente, accused opposition delegate Julio Logroño from the Partido Sociedad Patriótica and former president Lucio Gutiérrez of being the brains behind the plot. Both Logroño and Gutiérrez denied knowing Muñoz.

Muñoz then released a video from prison, showing him discussing the bribery scheme with Logroño. Logroño tried to save face by claiming, surreally, that he had in fact been participating in an undercover investigation at the request of military intelligence, specifically Captain Patricio Martí­nez. This involved him recording his meeting with Muñoz in order to expose vote-buying within the constituent assembly. The armed forces have denied the existence of any such investigation.

• Assembly investigation

A multi-party committee of five assembly delegates is investigating what has become known as the Logroño Case. Logroño has been called before the committee to answer for himself in Montecristi on 5 March. AP delegate and member of the committee, Mauro Andino, stressed the importance of a thorough investigation in order for the constituent assembly to retain its credibility. "We must not follow the example of the national congress, which lost its prestige through this kind of corruption story," he asserted.