Power struggles between gangs
The government puts in 800 armed policemen
[이미지출처=EPA연합뉴스]
[아시아경제 김수환 기자] In three major prisons in Ecuador, South America, violence broke out between gangs, killing at least 60 people.
According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 23rd (local time), riots broke out in three prisons in Cuenca in southern Ecuador, Guayaquil on the Pacific coast, and in the central city of Ratakungga, killing 62 inmates and injuring several people. Edmundo Moncayo, head of Ecuadorian correctional authorities, said 33 inmates were killed in Cuenca prison, 21 in Guayaquil and eight in Ratakungga.
After the riots, government officials put 800 armed police officers in these prisons.
According to government officials, two rival gangs conspired in advance to take the lead in the prison and then fought, resulting in such violence.
NYT said, “A number of dead bodies were found, and the prison floor was a sea of blood.”
Ricardo Camacho, a former prison director, said, “I didn’t even know in my dreams that this would happen in our country,” and “It’s really a shock.”
Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno instructed the Ministry of Defense to strictly control weapons, ammunition and explosives around the prison.
In Ecuadorian prisons, where there are far more actual inmates than capacity, riots have been a problem in the past. In particular, it is known that the ability to respond to riots has declined as the prison budget has been cut due to the lack of finances in the Ecuadorian government.
In December of last year, a quarrel between criminal gang members broke out in the prison, killing 11 people and injuring 7 others, killing 51 inmates.
NYT said, “The problem of prison violence in Ecuador is caused by multiple factors,” and said, “We need to address the persistent budget shortage of the Ecuadorian government.”
Meanwhile, Ecuador is known to be close to Peru and Colombia, the world’s largest cocaine producers, and drug crimes are constantly taking place. In particular, claims have been raised that the Colombian government has stepped up crackdown on drug distribution over the past few years, and that drug organizations are moving their territory to Ecuador.
Reporter Kim Soo-hwan [email protected]