Ecuador and Mexico A Break in Relations and a Propaganda Strategy

Democracy Watch News

Roberto Diaz @RRomanen &@dieresis_u on X, reports about the break of international relations between Mexico and Ecuador, and the effect it had in the Latin American region and internal politics struggles in both countries.

#LatinAmerica #Mexico #Ecuador #LatinAmerican #Democracy #DanielNoboa #AMLO #America #Geopolitics

Recorded April 27th 2024.Duration 7:19

On the night of Friday, April 5th, the Mexican embassy in Quito was raided by the Ecuadorian police, after Mexico granted political asylum to former Ecuadorian vice-president Jorge Glas. This action by the Mexican embassy was made after the Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa declared Mexican ambassador Raquel Serur persona non-grata, Ecuador’s government urged her to leave the country in the quickest time possible. The Mexican embassy was left under control of chief of mission Roberto Canseco, who was physically subdued by Ecuadorian police forces during the raid. Consequently, Mexican President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador ordered the formal rupture of relations with the South American nation.

In response to this event, several countries came out in support of Mexico and condemned President Noboa's actions, which openly violated the Vienna Convention, where diplomatic missions of any country are declared as extensions of the respective countries and are granted immunity from the host country laws. The list of supporting nations includes Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Cuba, Honduras, Panama, and Peru; the latter had already severed diplomatic relations with Mexico in 2023. Additionally, there was a formal rupture of diplomatic relations with Nicaragua and Venezuela. In the northern hemisphere, the United States and Canada also spoke out against the raid on the Mexican embassy, as did the European Union, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Russia.

What reason did President Noboa have for raiding the embassy? The protocol for international political asylum, as outlined in Article 3, states that the granting country cannot provide asylum to an individual who is being prosecuted for common crimes in the requesting country. —That would be the legal justification for the raid. —However, the same article states that the evaluation of charges against the asylum seeker is the exclusive responsibility of the granting state. Therefore, the raid could not be justified, and on April 11th, the Mexican government formally filed a lawsuit against the Ecuadorian government in the International Court of Justice.

Meanwhile, in Ecuador, the majority party in parliament, the RC party Citizen Revolution distanced itself from agreements with the ruling coalition regarding security matters, following the attacks by criminal gangs in Quito, where criminals seized a television station and the University of Quito. As a result, Noboa's government lost its majority in the National Assembly.

The arrest has sparked speculation on social media and among various analysts, suggesting that the event was used as a political maneuver to sway the outcome of the referendum held on Sunday, April 22nd. Voter turnout reached 73% of the population, with a 60% approval rating for security reforms; 9 out of the 11 reforms proposed. Reforms regarding arbitration and hourly hiring were rejected by the population.

In 2025, Ecuador will have a new electoral process, where President Daniel Noboa will seek his reelection. He was elected only to cover the remaining term of his predecessor Guillermo Lasso's, after Lasso dissolved the congress and called for extraordinary elections. In a movement called as “Muerte Cruzada”

In Mexico, on the other hand, Ecuador's blow against Mexican diplomacy was favorably received by the Mexican opposition, such as Senator Lilly Tellez from the PAN party, who posted a statement on X, expressing her standing on Ecuador’s side. Also was opposed by Mexican politicians such as Gerardo Fernandez Noroña, who filed a complaint with the Attorney General's Office against Daniel Noboa for the crime of kidnapping.

President Lopez Obrador also stated in his daily press conference that no charges would be brought against Ecuador 's Minister of Government, Mónica Palencia, who holds Mexican nationality, for the crime of treason.

Although the economic impact is minimal for Ecuador and Mexico, the influx of thousands of Ecuadorians into Mexican territory paints a bleak picture for migrants who may not have access to consular representation or defense in Mexico until bilateral relations are restored once again, further complicating the passage of migrants through Mexican territory.