QUITO: Leftist Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa scored a big political victory late Saturday when early official returns and private exit polls showed voters had approved his controversial reform proposals in a national referendum.
The National Election Council announced, after a quick count of the votes, that the 10 measures put on popular vote had received approval ranging from 44.9 to 50.7 percent.
According to data released by the Santiago Perez polling firm, the initiatives received even stronger supper popular from 61 to 64 percent of the vote.
A Cedatos Gallup survey gave the reforms 57 percent approval, with 43 percent voting against them.
Correa was quick in claiming victory, "Today we made an important step toward peace, democracy and a new motherland," an elated Ecuadoran leader told reporters, "The truth and the Ecuadoran people have been the winners in this."
He said his data showed the official proposals had won by at least a 20-percent margin, insisting the plebiscite was "a vote of confidence" in his in his government.
Even a controversial proposal aimed at ending bullfighting, a popular sport in Ecuador, appears to have passed, with 47.9 percent of voters giving it a thumbs-up and only 40.1 percent voting no.
Ecuador is one of Latin America's foremost bullfighting sites, hosting an industry that brings in some 50 million dollars per year. Some 30,000 jobs depend directly on the sport, industry officials say.
If the exit poll results are officially confirmed, the referendum will mark a sixth major political victory for Correa in his four-year rule.
The proposals included measures bolstering Correa's authority, giving him added powers to regulate the country's judiciary and news media organizations.
Correa is hoping to amend the constitution to restrict investment in local media. Critics say the move is a veiled attempt to muzzle dissent.
The effort is also aimed at preventing media from investing in banks, and vice versa. The 2008 constitution passed during Correa's term has already barred banks from owning media outlets.
The referendum also authorized a council to regulate violent, sexually explicit and potentially discriminatory content. Media workers have expressed outrage at the proposals because it would hold individual journalists criminally responsible for such violations.
The referendum also included a proposal to revamp what Correa sees as a "corrupt" and "ineffective" judiciary.
In the heavily indigenous town of Otavalo, bus driver Jacinto Guerrero voted "yes" on all ten questions, even though he acknowledged not fully understanding what they were about.
"I voted 'yes' because I support Correa," said Guerrero, "He's a president that wants to change things."
Jose Castaneda, 74, also voted 'yes' because he said he is a poor Ecuadoran who benefited from Correa's social programs.
"I got up early and walked for an hour to vote. I support the president," he said.
Opposition leaders acknowledged their defeat, but insisted the president's victory was only transitory.
"Authoritarian governments are always temporary," declared Gustavo Larrea, an ex-member of the Correa cabinet and now leader of an opposition front. "In the end, democratic forces will win."
The head of the Organization of American States (OAS) team of vote observers, Enrique Correa from Chile, said the balloting was being conducted peacefully and with no indications of fraud.
Comments
Comments are closed for this article.