The alarming rise of violence against Ecuadorian journalists

Introduction

Ecuador extends state of emergency

As previously reported by the CIVICUS Monitor, Ecuador has faced escalating insecurity since January, prompting the declaration of a state of emergency. A series of violent incidents, including explosions in major cities, a prison break involving a high-profile criminal leader, and targeted attacks on journalists, have destabilised the country. In response, President Daniel Noboa declared a state of emergency, which was extended for an additional 30 days on 7th March 2024 through Executive Decree No. 193.

On 21st April 2024, President Daniel Noboa secured approval for joint military-police operations and extradition reforms in a referendum aimed at tackling violence, though two non-security proposals were rejected. High abstention, violent incidents, and opposition in the Assembly pose challenges to implementing the measures. On 22nd May 2024, Noboa declared a state of emergency in seven of the country’s 24 provinces for the “internal armed conflict.”

While the government had insisted that security forces must operate within the bounds of legal standards and human rights, concerns persist over the potential for abuse and the long-term implications for fundamental freedoms. The Regional Foundation for Human Rights Advice (Inredh), a human rights organisation, reported cases of extrajudicial executions, enforced disappearances and widespread use of torture. Among these cases is the death of 19-year-old Carlos Javier Vega, whose family claims he was killed during a routine military checkpoint. His story echoes the experiences of countless others whose lives have been upended by state operations under the state of emergency.

Additionally, Afro-Ecuadorian, Indigenous and Montubio communities have faced disproportionate impacts, a grim reflection of long-standing inequalities. Human rights defenders argued that the state’s militarised approach has exacerbated social divisions, criminalising poverty and perpetuating racial and ethnic discrimination.

The international community has raised alarm over Ecuador’s apparent deviation from established human rights and international humanitarian law. The Rule of Law in Armed Conflict (RULAC) does not classify the situation in Ecuador as a non-international armed conflict (NIAC). A NIAC requires organisation and intensity, determined by factors such as command structures, operational capacity and sustained hostilities. While Ecuador's violence raises concerns, insufficient evidence prevents its classification as a NIAC under international humanitarian law.

Mexico and Ecuador clash over embassy raid

On 5th April 2024, the National Police burst into the Mexican Embassy in Quito to detain former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas, who had been at the embassy since December 2023. This incident occurred just hours after Mexico granted him diplomatic political asylum. In response, Mexico condemned the actions as a violation of international law, announced the severance of diplomatic relations with Ecuador, and withdrew its accredited personnel. Conversely, Ecuador defended its actions, alleging abuse of diplomatic privileges by Mexico and contesting Glas’s status as a political refugee, citing his prior convictions for corruption.

On 15th April, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) condemned Ecuador's breach of the Vienna Convention, urging respect for diplomatic missions and compliance with precautionary measures protecting Glas’s rights under international conventions.

Expression

Attacks on journalists

During the first four months of 2024, the press freedom organisation, Fundación Periodistas Sin Cadenas, recorded 92 attacks against journalists. These included serious incidents, such as nine death threats, reflecting the precarious state of press freedom in the country. The attacks targeted 21 women, 32 men and 39 media outlets. January saw the highest number of attacks (43), followed by 20 in March, 17 in April, 12 in February and 12 in March. Some of these cases are summarised below:

• On 11th March, while covering a story, Alexandra Moyano, a journalist with Radio Novedades and Ecos TV in Cotopaxi, received a phone call warning that if she continued criticising the governor of her province, she would “wake up with flies in her mouth.” Moyano had faced months of persecution, with initial threatening calls in February including insults and threats of sexual violence.
• On 20th April, an unidentified man on a motorbike fired nine bullets at the premises of the newspaper Prensa La Verdad, in the canton of Milagro, Guayas province. Security footage captured the incident, and the police confirmed finding evidence of nine bullet impacts at the site.
• On 27th April, directors of a cable television channel received an extortion pamphlet demanding $80,000 to prevent harm to the channel’s director and its staff. The threatening note claimed that the directors were “being watched.” As a result, presenters reduced their on-camera presence, and the channel scaled back its news broadcasts.

Escalating violence against journalists highlights organised crime’s grip on press freedom

Between January and February 2024, civil society organisation Fundamedios documented 58 attacks on journalists, many linked to organised crime. These aggressions include threats, armed attacks and deliberate obstruction of journalistic work. Reporters investigating corruption, drug trafficking and citizen security have been particularly targeted, underscoring the high stakes for those seeking to expose wrongdoing.

Additionally, in its first quarterly report for 2024, Fundamedios recorded 65 aggressions against freedom of expression and the press, with state agents as the primary aggressors. While overall attacks have decreased compared to previous years, the resurgence of state-led aggressions raises concerns about the role of public officials in suppressing journalistic freedoms. Local authorities, including mayors, have been implicated in obstructing press activities, further illustrating the strained relationship between government actors and independent media.

On 25th March 2024, the Special Rapporteurship for Freedom of Expression (RELE) of IACHR raised alarms about the escalating violence against journalists in Ecuador during 2024. Organised crime groups and state agents are at the forefront of these attacks, endangering press freedom in a country already grappling with severe socio-political challenges. The RELE also called on the Ecuadorian state to investigate these crimes, punish perpetrators and strengthen protections for journalists. The continued threats have a chilling effect on investigative reporting, limiting public access to critical information and undermining democratic accountability.

Journalist forced into exile

On 26th April 2024, the Journalists’ Protection Coordination Platform (Mesa de Articulación para la Protección de Periodistas, MAPP) reported that a journalist, whose identity remains confidential for security reasons, received a death threat via telephone after publishing content of local interest. This incident compelled the journalist, who covers current affairs and crime in their city, to go into self-imposed exile.

This case marks the fourth such instance in the first four months of 2024, contributing to a total of 13 journalists forced into exile between 2023 and 2024. The MAPP, established in September 2023, is a coalition of civil society actors, media outlets and communication workers in Ecuador, dedicated to creating effective networks to address imminent risks to journalists' lives and freedoms.

Peaceful Assembly

Protests against mining leave 46 injured

In late March 2024, violent clashes between Indigenous communities and military forces in the Andean town of Palo Quemado, Cotopaxi province, resulted in 46 injuries, including nine civilians and 37 police and military personnel. The protests, driven by opposition to a large-scale mining project, also caused significant damage to private property and disrupted water services after protesters reportedly attacked a distribution pipe.

The protests erupted during the information phase of an environmental consultation process led by the Ministry of the Environment, a prerequisite for granting the necessary operating licences. However, residents have rejected the consultation process, expressing deep concerns about the environmental and social consequences of the mining activities.

The conflict centres around a 2,222-hectare mining project owned by La Plata, a subsidiary of the Canadian company Atico Mining Corporation. The project, which targets zinc, copper, silver and gold, plans to use underground mining techniques. Palo Quemado is one of three towns directly impacted by the project.

Indigenous and peasant march highlights growing anger against narco-violence

On 9th February 2024, thousands of Indigenous people and peasants took to the streets of Latacunga, a city in the Andean province of Cotopaxi, to protest the escalating narco-violence that is tearing through the country. Chanting slogans and carrying banners, protesters called out state inaction in the face of rising crime and highlighted the role of Indigenous justice in combating the terror inflicted by drug cartels.

Agustín Cachipuendo, a leader of the Indigenous and Peasant Movement (MIC) and part of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), addressed the protesters, calling for respect for Indigenous justice: “We demand respect for the Indigenous justice that we apply in the communities to criminals who invade our lands.”

Amazon communities protest unfulfilled environmental court ruling

On 13th March 2024, hundreds of people, predominantly Indigenous women from the Amazon, gathered outside the Constitutional Court to demand enforcement of a 2021 landmark ruling requiring the removal of approximately 400 gas burners, known as "lighters," used in oil extraction. Despite the Sucumbíos Provincial Court recognising that the lighters breach environmental rights and harm public health, the ruling remains unenforced, leaving affected communities in a state of uncertainty.

These towering lighters, which burn excess gas from oil wells, release smoke and flames that pollute the air, water and soil. Residents of Sucumbíos, Orellana, Pastaza and Napo provinces have endured these effects for years, with vulnerable populations, particularly children, bearing the brunt of the damage.

Other developments

Indigenous organisations condemn mining policies

Indigenous organisations in Ecuador, including the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon (CONFENIAE), the Shuar Arutam People (PSHA), the Shuar-Achuar Interfederal Committee and the National Anti-Mining Front, expressed opposition to the government’s mining policies under President Daniel Noboa. Key concerns focus on the impact of mining activities on Indigenous territories, environmental degradation, and violations of collective and cultural rights. The organisations also oppose ongoing negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Canada and Ecuador, which they argue disproportionately benefit transnational corporations at the expense of Indigenous rights and environmental protections.

On 29th February 2024, the Shuar Arutam People (PSHA) filed a formal complaint with the British Columbia Securities Commission against Solaris Resources Inc. This complaint alleged that Solaris failed to disclose material information to shareholders concerning the Warintza Mining Project, which overlaps PSHA’s ancestral and legally recognised territory. PSHA emphasised that the project has proceeded without obtaining free, prior and informed consultation and consent, as mandated by Ecuador’s Constitution and international instruments, including the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and International Labour Organization Convention No. 169.

The PSHA represents 47 communities with collective land titles covering 232,500 hectares of the Cordillera del Cóndor, a region integral to their cultural and physical survival. The lack of adherence to free, prior, and informed consent provisions, combined with the environmental risks associated with mining, raises significant concerns about violations of Indigenous people's rights to self-determination, land, culture, and an adequate standard of living, as protected under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UNDRIP, and other international human rights frameworks.