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Rare foreign press interview with the Indigenous candidate Pérez in Ecuador's election in a week's time. He wants all mining stopped. End extractivism. IF it ends up as Pérez v Arauz in round 2 then he is who the anti-imperialists will be working against. https://www.swissinfo.ch/spa/candidato-indígena-a-presidencia-de-ecuador-plantea-reestructurar-deuda-externa/46330538
"Their government," he added, referring to his adversaries. "It will be as always, made up of men, males, people from the economic elites, and they will never appoint an indigenous representative, unless it is to folklorize and decorate the cabinet a bit." https://www.elnuevoherald.com/noticias/mundo/america-latina/article248759135.html
"Without Pérez, [Indigenous Ecuador organisation would survive]; If Correa disappeared tomorrow, his entire movement would be orphaned, without leadership and without a credible opportunity to reinvent itself. Dispersion, polarization, re-polarization." https://nuso.org/articulo/dispersion-polarizacion-o-re-polarizacion/
Yaku's TikTok campaigning is pretty, pretty, pretty good.
Background in English on Ecuador's election. Correista Arauz is pro destroying the Amazon and says that women and gays must wait until the “rights of all people, especially the poor, are secured and respected.” https://cuencahighlife.com/no-matter-who-wins-the-presidential-election-ecuador-is-poised-for-a-sharp-turn-to-the-right-or-left/
“We’re from the ecological left that defends the rights of people and nature and understands indigenous communities.”
https://americasquarterly.org/article/yaku-perez-the-new-face-of-ecuadors-left/ "A survey of a dozen analysts conducted by AQ ranked Pérez further to the left than Arauz."
https://americasquarterly.org/article/yaku-perez-the-new-face-of-ecuadors-left/ "A survey of a dozen analysts conducted by AQ ranked Pérez further to the left than Arauz."
"Correa is Chavez, Arauz is Maduro." Ouch. The tankie left are cherry picking polls for Arauz whilst making the same hysterical 'they're plannin'a coup!' claims they made before Bolivia's last election. And of course ignoring Yaku. https://twitter.com/andrebernal26/status/1356336302661230594
Rather obvious narrative setting going on here.
More narrative setting and not a single mention of Yaku Perez. Not one word about the Indigenous leftist. They erased him.
Polling is all over but all of it shows a 3 man race and not what the anti-imperialists are reporting to the world - our man vs the neoliberals. Yaku is appealing well outside just an Indigenous base.
Background on Arauz from @BrenOBoyle https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/andres-arauz-correa-proxy-or-new-leadership-for-ecuador/?utm_content=bufferf876e&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/andres-arauz-correa-proxy-or-new-leadership-for-ecuador/?utm_content=bufferf876e&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer
The fact to centre here is that Yaku Perez wants to save the Ecuadorian Amazon and Andres Arauz does not. That Perez is in the top 3 is remarkable. That anti-imperialists are trashing him & the left politics he represents is par for the course.
Other ways to frame this election are available:
"On one side, an expansion of extractivism and authoritarianism. On the other, a ground breaking move towards a more democratic and ecological future for Ecuador." https://writersrebel.com/yaku-perez-the-indigenous-water-defender-who-might-be-ecuadors-next-president/
"On one side, an expansion of extractivism and authoritarianism. On the other, a ground breaking move towards a more democratic and ecological future for Ecuador." https://writersrebel.com/yaku-perez-the-indigenous-water-defender-who-might-be-ecuadors-next-president/
Add Tribune and Labour Outlook to the UK left outlets that are flat out ignoring Yaku Perez for this inevitable victory narrative. And this French bloke. And MintPress News. Meanwhile Correa is reinforcing his total opposition to abortion during the actual campaign in Ecuador.
Here's Correa using abortion as a wedge issue against the Indigenous leftist who threatens the inevitability narrative.
If Perez gets through to the second round expect a lot more of this sort of thing.
"Yaku emerges as a potential alternative to go to the second round, if he is able to lead a real mobilization of many disgruntled voters fed up with polarization and a corrupt political class." https://www.opendemocracy.net/es/tensas-elecciones-en-ecuador-ante-un-futuro-incierto/
The elections are happening in a general condition of apathy with some surveys showing 60% undecided. In such circumstances the hawking of the Arauz (Correa) inevitability narrative is extremely misleading. https://www.opendemocracy.net/es/tensas-elecciones-en-ecuador-ante-un-futuro-incierto/
'RT to ignore the Indigenous leftist and to amp some baseless conspiracies while you're at it'
Rafael Correa thinks that women are having abortions because of too much "frenzied sexual activity". This is a side of the progressive hero you don't hear much about from, er, progressives. https://twitter.com/hpaulcordovav/status/1357477012328361984
"Abortion due to hedonism"?
Correa is doing this for electoral advantage as a wedge issue because he thinks he'll gain more votes for his guy than lose votes for his guy. This is the Correa who when President called feminist, LGBT, union, green activists "the infantile left." https://twitter.com/pauloCanning/status/1357992218397724673
Rafael Correa has always been this guy. https://twitter.com/Blabbeando/status/582016268863160320
In the background to Sunday's Ecuadorian election is the question "about which power Ecuador aligns with." @matyoukee investigates. https://dialogochino.net/en/trade-investment/39714-ecuadors-election-influenced-by-us-china-frictions/
"These times in which everything is a farce, the post-truth times, in which historical social struggles are distorted, in which even the most beloved symbols are manipulated." 'Hedonista' (
) is talking about, among others, the 
at Arauz's closing rally. https://twitter.com/KarinaML17/status/1357711287036346370
) is talking about, among others, the at Arauz's closing rally. https://twitter.com/KarinaML17/status/1357711287036346370
