Ecuador names new cabinet, ousted leader gets asylum
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-04-22 09:29

Brazil granted asylum to Ecuador's ousted president Lucio Gutierrez on Thursday as his successor named a new Cabinet in an attempt to restore political stability after a week of violent protests.

Gutierrez, the third president of the Andean nation toppled amid popular unrest in eight years, was still holed up in Brazil's embassy residence in Quito, where he fled on Wednesday after angry crowds stopped him from leaving the country.

A state prosecutor has issued an arrest warrant for Gutierrez over the deaths of two people killed during the protests by his opponents, who accused him of abusing his power and stacking the Supreme Court with allies.

President Alfredo Palacio (L) shakes hands with his new Foreign Affairs Minister Antonio Parra Gil at Carondelet Palace in Quito, April 21, 2005. Brazil granted Ecuador's ousted president Lucio Gutierrez asylum as his successor named a new Cabinet in an effort to restore political stability after a week of violent protests. [Reuters]

A Brazilian foreign ministry spokesman said Brazil was negotiating to get Gutierrez out of the country.

President Alfredo Palacio, who was vice president before Gutierrez was fired by Congress, named seven new ministers including defense and foreign affairs posts to try to restore order to the Andean nation.

But his appointment of Rafael Correa as Economy Minister left a nervous emerging debt market unsure of whether the new minister would follow the former president's fiscally responsible policies.

Washington said early elections could be one possibility to help end the crisis. The Organization of American States postponed till Friday a special meeting to discuss Ecuador and whether the Congress had a right to oust the president.

CONSTITUTIONAL SOLUTION

Still, U.S. officials were cautious when asked about recognizing the new government, but said they were working with Quito authorities to help ensure a constitutional solution.

"There needs now to be a constitutional process to get to elections, if that is what is in the future," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told Fox News.

Ecuador is South America's fifth-largest oil producer and the region's No. 2 exporter of crude to the United States behind Venezuela, but state oil firm Petroecuador said production and shipments were unaffected by the turmoil.

Quito's international airport reopened on Thursday and Ecuadoreans went to work, but schools remained closed in a sign that many were still jittery over political tensions and the future of their new president.

"Everyone is a lot calmer... (Palacio) can do a lot if he gets the right people for his cabinet," said communications company employee Mayte Almeida. "But if he doesn't, then we're straight back to where we were."

Palacio said he would consider calls by protesters for elections but would first propose constitutional reform. His new minister for the government, reacting to Rice's comments, asked that she "not make demands on internal politics."

Street protests erupted in Quito a week ago after the Supreme Court decided to drop corruption charges against former President Abdala Bucaram, a key political ally of Gutierrez.

Opposition congressmen, who branded Gutierrez a dictator for meddling with the court, said he effectively abandoned his post by failing to carry out his duties. Military commanders withdrew support for Gutierrez when he refused to quit.

Bucaram, who was ousted by Congress in 1997, fled Ecuador after Gutierrez fell, his associates said Thursday.

Congress named Palacio to serve out the rest of Gutierrez's four-year term, which expires in January, 2007. Even as vice president, Palacio was an open critic of Gutierrez for not doing enough to help Ecuador's impoverished majority.

But some analysts said Palacio's position still appeared weak since many of the demonstrators on Wednesday had demanded early elections.

"Palacio's tenure as president is uncertain because he lacks a political base, has little popular support and has practically no experience in politics," said Jose Cerritelli, an emerging markets analyst with Bear Stearns.

Gutierrez helped topple President Jamil Mahuad in 2000. He was elected in late 2002 with support largely from the poor. But many were disappointed by the free-market line his government followed and his popularity slumped.

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