Sharjah24 – AFP: Indigenous and rural Ecuadorans blocked roads in several provinces Wednesday on the second day of protests against soaring fuel prices amid a countrywide state of emergency.
On Tuesday, 37 people were arrested and five police officers, a journalist and at least one demonstrator were injured in the largest protests since conservative President Guillermo Lasso took office in May.
Two soldiers who had been held by protesters since Tuesday were released Wednesday night after intervention form the Red Cross.
"Out with Lasso, out!" the protesters demanded Wednesday, as they blocked key roads.
Ecuador's public safety department said there were also roadblocks in the provinces of Imbabura, Cotopaxi, Tungurahua and Chimborazo.
Protesters in Cotopaxi were subjected to "strong repression," march organizer the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie) said, with its president Leonidas Iza warning that "more violence will anger people."
On Tuesday, protesters had disrupted traffic in five of Ecuador's 24 provinces and vowed to continue voicing their anger at the new center-right government's economic policies.
For an optimal experience, please
