Noboa Cracks Down On Protests While Pushing Rewrite Of Constitution
In mid-September, President Daniel Noboa announced the removal of Ecuador’s long-standing diesel subsidies. The decision — an unpopular measure that, when previously attempted in 2019 and 2022, sparked Indigenous-led protests that nearly toppled two governments — once again triggered mass demonstrations and a national strike, though this time on a more limited scale. The Noboa administration responded with violent repression, resulting in widespread human rights violations, the deaths of three protesters, and hundreds of arrests and injuries.