On November 5, 2022, members of the National Police prepare to patrol the streets of Duran, a city adjacent to Guayaquil, Ecuador. As part of the government’s “open battle” against drug trafficking, special police forces continued to transfer imprisoned criminal gang leaders who had unleashed terror throughout Guayaquil on Friday, November 4, 2022. / Photograph by RODRIGO BUENDIA/AFP courtesy of Getty Images
CNA Newsroom, 7 November 2022, 16:15 (CNA).
In response to the government’s efforts to recover control of the jails in Ecuador, drug trafficking gangs have launched a series of deadly attacks, including the use of vehicle explosives, in which five police officers have been killed.
In an effort to quell the violence, the president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, extended the state of emergency that has been in place in the provinces of Las Guayas and Esmeraldas since November 1 to the province of Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas on November 4.
For 45 days, the state of emergency suspends the rights to freedom of organization and assembly, inviolability of the home, and personal correspondence. In addition, the orders of November 1 and 4 impose a curfew from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
In a statement released on November 5, the bishops of Ecuador urged criminal groups to abandon violence and embrace conversion.
“The power and money that you now possess as a result of so many shady businesses and mafia-style crimes are blood money… Convert; it is yet possible to avoid hell. This is your fate if they continue on this path, they threatened, citing Pope Francis.
In addition, they urged politicians and social actors to prioritize the wellbeing of the people over political interests. “Political and social measures are crucial if the mafias are to avoid recruiting the poor,” the bishops stated.
After expressing their solidarity with the relatives of the victims, the prelates stated, “Each of us will have to answer not only to history but also to God for our deeds.”
“Now is the time for national unity, to reestablish the social compact that binds us together, and to combat our shared enemy, organized crime… “that strives to destroy our most precious resource, our children and youth, and that finds fertile ground in a world where poverty and injustice seem to have no end,” the bishops stated.
The bishops of Ecuador have designated November 6 as a day of prayer in all parishes, chapels, and oratories to beseech God for peace and an end to violence in the country.
The bishops requested the following prayer be delivered on that particular day:
“All-powerful and benevolent God, Lord of the cosmos and human history. Everything you have made is good, and your compassion for mankind, who repeatedly abandons you, is boundless.
“We came today to beseech you to safeguard Ecuador and its inhabitants with peace by banishing destructive waves of violence, restoring friendship, and bestowing upon your creatures the gifts of trust and forgiveness.
“Giver of life, we also pray for those who have perished as victims of heinous crimes,” Grant them compensation and eternal happiness. May they intercede on behalf of anguished and unfortunate Ecuador.
“Jesus, Prince of Peace, we pray for those harmed in attacks by criminal gangs: children and youth, women and men, the elderly, innocents, and random attackers. Heal their bodies and hearts; may your consolation empower them. Keep their resentment and desire for revenge at bay.
“Holy Spirit, the Comforter, please comfort the bereaved families of innocent victims of violence and drug trafficking. Wrap them in the cloak of your Divine Mercy. May they find the strength and courage in you to continue being brothers and sisters to others, bearing witness with their lives to your love.
“Move the hearts of the violent so that they recognize the immorality of their actions and return to the path of peace and goodness, respect for life, and human dignity.
“God, Eternal Father, mercifully hear this plea above the din and desperation in Ecuador. Trusting in your unlimited mercy and the intercession of your Most Holy Mother, we turn to you with great hope, pleading for the gift of peace and requesting that you remove the scourge of violence from our midst. Through the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.”
This item was originally published by CNA’s Spanish-language news partner, ACI Prensa. CNA has translated and altered the document.