C O N F I D E N T I A L QUITO 000407
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL:(##)
TAGS: PGOV, SENV, PHUM, EAID, ECON, EC,
SUBJECT: ECUADORIAN NGOS RESIST GOE MOVES TOWARD GREATER CONTROL
Reftel A: Guayaquil 125, B: Quito 225
Classified by Ambassador Heather Hodges. Reason: 1.4 b and d.
1. (SBU) Summary: The GOE has taken steps in the past year to
expand its regulation of NGOs in Ecuador. It also attempted to close
a prominent environmental NGO in March 2009, in a move many believed
was politically motivated. The NGO community is attempting to
organize in response to these measures and hopes to work with the GOE
to shape regulations that do not hinder their effectiveness. End
Summary
2. (SBU) The GOE has taken steps in the past year to assert greater
control over NGOs by raising capital requirements, expanding the
government's investigative capability, and insisting that NGOs'
potentially sensitive internal information be publicized in an
internet registry. The GOE has also attempted to expand the range of
NGOs it can regulate, by claiming authority to supervise both those
that receive public funds as well as NGOs whose work the government
decides has an impact on the public interest. The government's moves
have had a significant impact on religious organizations as well
(Reftel A).
GOE Asserts Goal is Transparency
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3. (C) Ramiro Rivadeneira, Undersecretary for Judicial Affairs at
the Ministry of Government, told us that the GOE sought to improve
the public's access to NGO information. Rivadeneira said the GOE's
main objective was to centralize the public registry of NGOs in an
internet database. He said that the process of organizing this had
revealed many NGOs registered under incorrect GOE ministries.
Rivadeneira also suggested that some NGOs and religious organizations
have splintered into smaller groups that have abused the parent
organization's not-for-profit status. (Note: The Embassy has heard
anecdotal reports of this from other sources. In a recent meeting, a
U.S. religious figure told the DCM that he knew of religious NGOs
that had been set up for the sole aim of raising money for the
personal use of the NGO's founders. End Note.) Rivadeneira denied
that there was anything authoritarian or restrictive about the
government's intentions, and said the GOE's moves were simply
intended to eliminate this abuse and to organize an increasingly
chaotic situation with thousands of poorly-understood NGOs operating
in the country. Rivadeneira said the GOE planned to engage in
dialogue with both NGOs and religious groups to create new regulatory
laws.
4. (C) The government initially sought to implement its expanded
authority through Presidential Decree 982, which was issued in March
2008. NGOs in Ecuador have criticized this decree for allowing the
Government a wide range of discretion in enforcing regulations and
expanding its powers to close non-compliant NGOs. The decree states
that if NGOs "repeatedly violate the provisions of the ministries,"
the government may shut them down. The NGO Grupo FARO's executive
director voiced concern about the decree to POLCOUNS last spring.
Some observers argue that the GOE measures are vague and
unconstitutional, saying they violate guarantees of freedom of
expression and due process. In December 2008, the Ministry of
Economic and Social Inclusion (MIES) began drafting a new law that
would expand even further the government's regulatory powers,
particularly over NGOs that do not accept public funds. The NGO
community is attempting to organize in an effort to moderate aspects
of the new law and to remove the elements of Decree 982 that it
believes are unconstitutional.
GOE Attempts to Shut Down Prominent NGO Accion Ecologica
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5. (SBU) The NGO's efforts have taken on a new urgency following a
GOE effort in March 2009 to dissolve a prominent environmental NGO
called Accion Ecologica. On March 2, the Ministry of Health (MOH)
revoked Accion Ecologica's government certification, claiming that it
had not "fulfilled the mission for which it was founded." Without
government certification, NGOs are not able to operate legally within
Ecuador. Accion Ecologica is one of the most outspoken critics of
the GOE's environmental policies, and was particularly critical of
the recently passed mining law (septel). It was widely believed that
the GOE was "sending a message" to the broader NGO community through
its action.
6. (SBU) Accion Ecologica representatives said they were "perplexed"
by the move and called it "political persecution." The MOH denied
this, saying that it was just moving Accion Ecologica to the more
appropriate Ministry of the Environment (MOE). The MOH claimed that
Accion Ecologica "did not coordinate its work with the government" as
it was supposed to, and said that six other NGOs had also been closed
in 2008 for being registered with the wrong ministry. Others have
disputed this assessment, however, saying that the MOH did not
provide appropriate notification, and that the likely six month
recertification process placed an unreasonable burden on Accion
Ecologica, which would have to cease operations during this period.
Critics of the move pointed out that the Ministry of Environment did
not exist when Accion Ecologica was founded 20 years ago, and that
its registration with the MOH had previously never been a problem.
7. (C) A lawyer who works with Ecuadorian NGOs told EconOff that
Accion Ecologica could have challenged the government's move in the
courts, and she was certain it would have won. She noted, however,
that a court battle would have lasted at least a year. Accion
Ecologica instead attempted to keep a low profile and negotiate a
compromise with the government. The negative press coverage, public
outcry, and support from international NGOs eventually forced the
government to suspend the revocation on March 21.
8. (SBU) EconOff encountered a range of views about the GOE's
actions. One lawyer EconOff spoke with suggested that proposed law
would severely limit the independence and effectiveness of the NGOs.
She felt a unified effort by the NGO community was necessary to
prevent the GOE from overreaching. Another environmental lawyer was
more sanguine about the GOE's actions, however, noting that the GOE
had proposed similar regulations several times before, but it had
never succeeded in limiting NGO independence. While differing on the
seriousness of the threat, both lawyers expressed optimism that the
NGOs could use the drafting of the new law by MIES to build bridges
with the government and perhaps eliminate unconstitutional provisions
from Decree 982.
Comment
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9. (C) Given the Correa government's limited tolerance for dissent
(Reftel B), its obsession with bringing everything in line with state
planning, and the negative precedents elsewhere in the region, we do
not take NGO concerns lightly. The Embassy will continue to monitor
carefully whether GOE actions impose significant restrictions on NGO
independence.
Hodges