International
Ecuador declares the Mexican ambassador persona “non grata” by comment by López Obrador
The Government of Ecuador announced that it decided to declare the Mexican ambassador in Quito, Raquel Serur, persona “non grata”, in response to statements by the Mexican president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, about the murder of former Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio and the apparent electoral consequences of that crime.
The Foreign Ministry of Ecuador, in a statement, invoked the principle of “non-intervention” in the internal affairs of another country and the Vienna Convention to take the diplomatic measure that implies the departure of the ambassador’s country.
In addition, he indicated that the South American nation is still experiencing the “mourning” for the shooting crime of Villavicencio, which occurred in August last year, when the then presidential candidate was leaving an electoral political rally in a busy neighborhood in northern Quito, in broad daylight.
In a press conference in his country, the Mexican president commented on the consequences of Villavicencio’s assassination in the context of last year’s presidential elections in Ecuador, which gave the victory to the current president, the businessman Daniel Noboa.
López Obrador said that, according to his criteria, the crime of Villavicencio harmed above all Luisa González, the presidential candidate of the Citizen Revolution movement, led by former progressive governor Rafael Correa (2007-2017), an opinion that has also been shared by several electoral analysts in Ecuador.
The Mexican ruler assured that there is social responsibility in the context of situations of violence and said that the media do not escape from it either.
“In the context of the recent and very unfortunate statements of the president of Mexico,” the Ecuadorian Government “has decided to declare the Mexican ambassador ‘persona non grata’ in Quito,” by invoking “article 9 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations,” said the Foreign Ministry in Quito.
He assured that “Ecuador is still mourning” for the murder of Villavicencio, a crime that “caused shock in Ecuadorian society and attacked democracy, peace and security.”
“The country continues to face transnational organized crime that threatens the State, its democratic institutions and its population,” he added.
He also emphasized that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will maintain its “firm commitment to permanently ensure respect for the dignity and sovereignty of the Ecuadorian State and the fundamental principle of non-intervention in the internal affairs of other States.”
Villavicencio was shot at gunnail on August 9, 2023, at the exit of an electoral rally in Quito when there were eleven days left before the first round of the extraordinary general elections.
The murder of Villavicencio raised the wave of violence that has plagued Ecuador for about three years to unprecedented heights, so the country became one of the most violent in Latin America, with 45 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2023.
On January 8, President Noboa decreed a state of emergency at the national level due to the high levels of insecurity, and declared a situation of “internal armed conflict,” for which he renamed 22 organized crime groups as “terrorists.”
The spiral of violence in Ecuador was unleashed just after Noboa announced its decision to implement a plan to regain control of prisons, many of them dominated internally by groups of criminals, whose rivalries have left more than 450 prisoners killed since 2020 in a series of prison massacres.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
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