Quito, October 7 (RHC)-- Thousands of Indigenous peoples stemming from both the north and south of Ecuador have reached the capital city Monday night, as reports from across the country show that security forces are violently enforcing the decreed state of exception.
A few hours earlier, military personel placed inside the presidential palace evacuated all press members that were waiting for 16h00 local time press conference from President Lenin Moreno, whose whereabouts at the moment are unknown as well as those of the vice president.
According to the National Indigenous of Ecuador (CONAIE) around 20,000 people from various Indigenous communities are part of the march which demands President Lenin Moreno to reverse the neoliberal economic austerity package announced last Wednesday.
"We have completely closed the dialogue with the government, there is no dialogue until we reach the capital ... We are not here to negotiate behind the people's backs. The people have risen and that is what we are going to respect," Conaie’s President Jaime Vargas said.
Meanwhile, the Constitutional Court issued a ruling endorsing the state of exception in Ecuador. Social media users have denounced extreme violence coming from military and police forces across the country.
In the southern outskirts of Quito in Santa Rosa, one of the military tanks the government deployed to face the Indigenous march was neutralized by the demonstrators, protesting Moreno's neoliberal economic measures. The armed vehicle was pushed down a ramp and set on fire.