Ecuador referendum would strengthen presidential powers, especially over media, judiciary

New York Times
In Print: Sunday, May 8, 2011

CARACAS, Venezuela — Ecuadoreans voted on Saturday in a referendum that includes sweeping measures aimed at strengthening the power of President Rafael Correa, especially over Ecuador's independent media and the nation's judiciary.

Campaigning ahead of the vote further polarized the Andean country, which went through a decade of political instability before Correa was elected in 2006, emerging as the country's strongest leader in decades while drawing criticism for his consolidation of power. Correa, a left-leaning economist, pushed for the referendum after he survived a chaotic police rebellion in Quito in September and his approval ratings climbed. He and his supporters described the revolt as a coup attempt.

That rebellion, during which Correa opened his shirt and dared police officers to kill him, accentuated tensions between the president and critics, including some in the news media.

Included in the 10 measures of the referendum is a controversial proposal to create a state body to regulate media content.

The president's critics say other measures are intended to weaken Ecuador's judiciary. They would allow citizens to be detained longer without charges being filed against them; the appointment of judges by a commission influenced by Correa supporters; and the creation of a so-called Transitional Judiciary Council, expected to be dominated by the president's supporters, to speed certain judicial reforms.

Some voters in Ecuador, however, said they were voting out of their admiration for Correa, (of because they are stooopid) an ally of Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez.