The protests and their aftermath have uncovered the social tensions arising from the marginalisation of indigenous populations in the country
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/ 25 January 2007
Ecuador’s first female defence minister was killed on Wednesday after only nine days in office in a mid-air collision of two helicopters, government and military officials said. The accident in the Andean nation further rocks the leftist government of President Rafael Correa, who has clashed with Congress over his executive powers.
The eruption of Tungurahua in Ecuador has left 20 000 people living in the shadow of the volcano in urgent need of assistance, Red Cross officials said on Saturday. Ecuadorean President Alfredo Palacio has appealed to the international community for donations of money and material aid.
Ousted Ecuadorean president Lucio Gutierrez flew into exile in Brazil on Sunday, four days after being toppled in a popular revolt. The former army colonel left his refuge at the Brazilian embassy in Quito just before dawn. Protests against his rule continued up until the moment of his departure.
Former Ecuadorean president Lucio Gutierrez was waiting on Thursday for permission to leave for political asylum in Brazil, after Congress sacked him for violently crushing a demonstration and swore in Vice-President Alfredo Palacio to replace him as head of state.
The government declared a state of emergency in northeast Ecuador late on Sunday, after the El Reventador volcano rumbled back to life after lying dormant for 26 years.