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OHCHR / ECUADOR HUMAN RIGHTS
STORY: OHCHR / ECUADOR HUMAN RIGHTS
TRT: 01:34
SOURCE: OHCHR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: SPANISH / NATS
DATELINE: 12 JANUARY 2024, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND / FILE
File - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
1. Wide shot, exterior, Palais Wilson
12 JANUARY 2024, GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
2. Med shot, OHCHR spokesperson Marta Hurtado speaking
3. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“We are closely monitoring the situation in Ecuador. At least 12 people have died in recent days, including two police officers. In addition, some 150 correctional officers and 20 administrative workers have been taken hostage by inmates in seven prisons in the country.”
4. Med shot, Hurtado speaking
5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“We understand that the Prosecutor's Office has opened several investigations and we call for them to be quick, transparent and independent, and to guarantee that those responsible are held accountable in accordance with international standards.”
6. Med shot, Hurtado speaking
7. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, urges that any emergency measures taken to address the violence be proportionate and limited to what is required by the security situation. Any restriction of rights must respect the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality and non-discrimination.”
8. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Marta Hurtado, Spokesperson, Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR):
“The powers granted to the armed forces for public security tasks must be exceptional, limited in time and subordinate to civil authorities, to whom they must be accountable. The authorities must also address the structural causes and origins of violence in the country.”
File - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
9. Close up, exterior, Palais Wilson
Human rights spokesperson Marta Hurtado today (12 Jan) said the emergency powers granted to the armed forces in Ecuador for public security tasks, “must be exceptional, limited in time and subordinate to civil authorities, to whom they must be accountable.”
Reading a statement in Geneva, Hurtado said the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) is closely monitoring the situation in Ecuador, where “at least 12 people have died in recent days, including two police officers. In addition, some 150 correctional officers and 20 administrative workers have been taken hostage by inmates in seven prisons in the country.”
The spokesperson noted that the Prosecutor's Office has opened several investigations and called for them to be “quick, transparent and independent, and to guarantee that those responsible are held accountable in accordance with international standards.”
She said High Commissioner Volker Türk has urged that “any emergency measures taken to address the violence be proportionate and limited to what is required by the security situation,” and added that “any restriction of rights must respect the principles of legality, necessity, proportionality and non-discrimination.”
Hurtado said authorities must also address “the structural causes and origins of violence in the country.”
The South American country has been rocked by deadly gang attacks following the apparent prison escape of a prominent gang leader this past weekend. Several police officers also have been abducted.
The crisis prompted President Daniel Noboa to declare a 60-day state of emergency on Monday.
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