QUITO, (Reuters) – The administration of Ecuadorean President Daniel Noboa has asked lawmakers to weigh an increase in value added tax (VAT) to finance efforts to combat crime gangs, as the armed forces increased operations in violent areas on Friday.
A dramatic spike in violence this week – including the on-air storming of a TV station, the hostage-taking of 178 prison staff by inmates and the kidnapping of police officers – appears to be a response by gangs to Noboa’s plans to tackle a dire security situation, the government has said.
Noboa, who took office in November, has declared a state of emergency and named 22 gangs as “terrorist” organizations.
A total of eight prison staff have been released since late on Thursday, prisons agency SNAI said in a statement on Friday.
Three were being held in Azuay prison in Cuenca, where 21 hostages have also been attended to by the Red Cross. Three were released from a prison in Canar province, while two others were freed in Esmeraldas.
Remaining hostages number 170 – 155 are prison guards and 15 are administrative staff.
The death of an inmate at a prison in El Oro province is being investigated, SNAI added.
The government has said operations to free hostages taken at least seven prisons are ongoing, but there has been scant information about their status, leading to criticism by their families and union.
“We want answers,” chanted family members protesting outside the headquarters of the Cotopaxi provincial government.
“For six days we haven’t heard anything about them, we don’t know if they’ve eaten, if they’ve drunk water, if they’ve been mistreated,” said relative Monica Tito. “Mister President help us, free them!”
Videos purporting to show prison staff being subjected to extreme violence, including shooting and hanging, have circulated on social media, but the government has said no hostage has been killed and that some videos had been altered.
Reuters could not independently verify the videos.
Security has worsened in tandem with serious economic troubles, as the country grapples with domestic liquidity problems, limited options for foreign financing and tens of billions in external debt.
Noboa’s tax proposal, sent to the national assembly late on Thursday, would raise VAT by three points to 15%. The bill is classed as urgent and must be approved within 30 days.
The measure would not be levied on basic food products, medicine, public utilities, transport, health or education costs or rented housing, among other things, the government said in a statement.
“The current security crisis in Ecuador underlines the urgency to increase potential tax collection for the state,” Noboa said in a document shared with the assembly. “Increasing VAT will give the state a constant source of income.”
