At least one demonstrator has been killed in anti-government rallies in Ecuador’s capital Quito. According to the Confederation of Indigenous Peoples (CONAIE), a regional leader was hit by a tear gas grenade on his head and was fatally injured. The Ombudsman of Ecuador confirmed the man’s death yesterday. There were also four other people killed, he wrote without further details on Twitter.
The body of the killed demonstrator was placed in a cultural center in Quito. Eight policemen were forced by indigenous protesters to carry the coffin into the hall. The government of President Lenin Moreno demanded the release of the officials.
The indigenous peoples protest – as do unions and students – against the removal of subsidies that kept fuel prices low. The government of Moreno had decided the measure to redevelop the state budget under the terms of a loan from the International Monetary Fund.
