Interim Report - Report No 316, June 1999

Case No 2010 (Ecuador) - Complaint date: 02-FEB-99 - Closed

Allegations: Murder of a trade union official, quelling of protest movements and intimidation campaign against other officials

1. 448. The complaint is contained in a communication from the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) dated 2 February 1999. The Government sent its observations in communications dated 15, 23 and 25 March, 20 April and 13 May 1999.
2. 449. Ecuador has ratified the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), and the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

A. The complainant's allegations

1. 450. In its communication of 2 February 1999, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU) points out that it has been informed of the disappearance and subsequent murder of Saúl Cañar Pauta, national secretary of issues related to population and youth of the Ecuadorian Confederation of United Class Organizations of Workers (CEDOCUT).
2. 451. According to the ICFTU, Cañar Pauta disappeared on 26 November 1998 in a district south of the city of Quito after having been arrested by eight unidentified men in two blue Toyota jeeps, identical to the vehicles used by the national army. These men, who referred to each other by their military grades, mistakenly connected him with the Group of Peoples' Forces (GCP), according to the complaint lodged on 1 December 1998 by the president of the CEDOCUT demanding that the authorities carry out an in-depth investigation to ascertain that Mr. Cañar was alive and that there should be an end to the death squads' actions against trade unionists and trade union officials.
3. 452. The ICFTU adds that on 7 December the body of Mr. Cañar was found at Latacunga (100 km from Quito, on a bridge crossing the Yanayacu River); his body bore signs of torture and his hands were tied behind his back; some of his body had been burned and it appeared that he had been drowned. His death and the circumstances surrounding it are alarming indications of what a serious disintegration of political and social life might imply in Ecuador given that in addition to this crime, since the present administration took office, there have been disturbing signs of an authoritarian attitude towards social unrest and the legitimate demands of Ecuadorian social organizations to express their disagreement with the economic measures taken by the new Government.
4. 453. The ICFTU points out that during the demonstrations, protest actions and the general strike held on 1 October 1998, declared by the trade union movement at the national level, about 300 workers were arrested (and subsequently released); there were several wounded and three workers killed as a result of the brutal way in which the national police and army quelled the demonstrations; furthermore, the police and army also placed troops in the indigenous communities and in major cities throughout the country. Immediately after the strike in October, the Ecuadorian Confederation of Free Organizations (CEOSL) complained that a campaign was being carried out to discredit and intimidate its president, José Chávez Chávez, who was threatened with legal action by the Minister of the Interior for declarations he made to the press on the eve of the national strike.
5. 454. Furthermore, the CEOSL points out that according to the magazine "Caretas", published in Colombia, Carlos Castaño, the famous leader of the Colombian paramilitary, boasted in an interview he made to this magazine that he had trained 38 persons of Ecuadorian nationality in combat practices with a view to launching an offensive against the labour activists.

B. The Government's reply

1. 455. In its communications dated 15, 23, 25 March and 13 May 1999, the Government states that given the importance it attached to the respect of human rights, it was grateful for the communication sent inasmuch as it had revealed the concern that Mr. Saúl Cañar Pauta's death had caused amongst various international organizations. In this respect, the Government states that it had immediately handed over an in-depth investigation of this case to the criminal investigation department -- headed by the Eighth Criminal Prosecutor of Pichincha -- and that the preliminary report of this investigation had, upon completion, been sent to the Second Magistrate of the Cotopaxi Criminal Court (the Government sent a copy of the report as an annex). For their part, civil groups set up a special committee called "Peace and Life", made up of representatives from human rights and workers' organizations, the Peoples' Attorney and civil groups, which conducted an investigation with their own sources (the Government encloses a preliminary report of this committee). Similarly, the Minister of the Interior took it upon herself to establish a dialogue with this committee so that as objective an analysis as possible might be made of the findings of the various sources looked into with a view to casting light on the truth.
2. 456. The Government states that the most relevant conclusion of the committee set up by civil groups is that any possibility that the matter might have been a state crime has been definitely ruled out and that the State and Government were in no way responsible or involved; the Government feels that it is vital that those organizations concerned in this case should be informed of this matter. This murder has nothing whatsoever to do with the Ecuadorian State and the Government has decided to continue with inquiries in order to identify, locate and arrest those responsible for the crime, their accomplices and accessories after the fact and to punish the guilty parties. Similarly, the Government rejects the insinuations and assertions made by the complainant which cast a doubt on the legally established order in the State of Ecuador and considers them extremely irresponsible and totally unfounded; it points out that the false evidence given and the fanciful assumptions made by certain national trade union organizations lodging this complaint do not bear up in the slightest to the investigations officially carried out. According to the Government, trade union officers did not provide information during the investigation on the possible authors of the crime.
3. 457. The Government states that it acts with total transparency because it believes in upholding respect for human rights in Ecuador in accordance with the international Conventions ratified by Ecuador and that it has sent the documents relating to the measures taken during the investigation.
4. 458. In its communication of 20 April 1999, the Government states that a national strike was held on 1 October 1998 to protest against the economic adjustment measures it had taken, all of which led to acts of violence, vandalism, rampage and aggressions against persons who did not participate in the protests. Less than 100 persons were arrested in the whole country, not 300 as alleged by the complainant. Those arrested were individuals which incited the perpetration of acts of vandalism, destruction of vehicles, theft from individuals who were not taking part in the national strike, looting of all kinds of stores, and destruction of public and private property. Those detained, who were neither trade unionists nor workers, were released without any problem. All these measures of detention were taken with the sole purpose of avoiding a further aggravation of the protests.
5. 459. The Government adds that Mr. Jorge Annibal Mena died in Trinitaria, a small town in the Province of Guyaquil. This is where social violence, caused by persons armed with all sorts of objects, erupted to a peak. All the residents of that sector, including those without any trade union link, participated spontaneously into the protests which culminated in acts of extreme violence and looting, during which the police and armed forces intervened to put an end to violations of public and private property. That is when a stray bullet mortally wounded Mr. Mena who was going home, as explained by his family; Mr. Mena was not taking part in the strike; his death was a most unfortunate accident, without any particular culprit. Mr. Javier Bone, who was not a union member, died in the City of Esmeraldas; he was mortally wounded during a violent protest, while in that same city, a bank was pilfered and a church stoned, which indicates the true nature of these protests; he was killed by a stray bullet, an unfortunate fatality during a situation of general violence. A third person died in the city of Manabi, when the hand grenade of a protester was confiscated, leading to the death of policeman José Bowen Menéndez. In these chaotic circumstances, trying to blame trade unionists or the Government for these most regrettable incidents does not serve any purpose. The Government adds in conclusion that the state of chaos and violence was neither initiated nor repressed by the authorities, which merely controlled it reasonably, while trying to protect the safety of persons, as well as public and private property. The Government attaches press clippings to support its statements.

C. C. The Committee's conclusions

• The Committee's conclusions
  460. 460 The Committee notes with concern that in this complaint the complainant organization has alleged: (1) the disappearance and subsequent murder of Saúl Cañar Pauta, trade union official of the CEDOCUT; (2) the arrest of 300 workers (subsequently released), injuries sustained by a number of workers and three murders as a result of police and army repression during protest movements and the general strike on 1 October 1998; (3) the campaign to discriminate and intimidate the president of the CEOSL, threatened with legal proceedings by the Ministry of the Interior because of his statements to the national press on the eve of the abovementioned strike; and (4) the training by a well-known Colombian paramilitary leader of 38 Ecuadorian nationals in combat practices with a view to launching an offensive against labour activists, according to information contained in a magazine.
  461. 461 The Committee deeply regrets the murder of the trade union official Saúl Cañar Pauta, whose body bore signs of torture. The Committee notes the Government's statements to the effect that: (1) the criminal investigation department had carried out an in-depth investigation (submitted to the judicial authority) and that another parallel investigation had been carried out by a special committee of civil groups called "Peace and Life", which had completely ruled out any possibility that this crime might be attributed to the State or the Government; (2) the Government has taken the decision to identify, arrest and punish those responsible for this crime as well as their accomplices and accessories after the fact. The Committee requests the Government to do all that is necessary to ensure that this investigation is completed in the very near future. In these circumstances, the Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of developments in the judicial inquiries and trusts that these will quickly help to identify and punish those responsible for the murder.
  462. 462 As regards the allegations concerning the arrest of 300 workers, subsequently released, and the consequences (several people injured and three persons killed) of the repression by the police and armed forces during the protests and general strike of 1 October 1998, the Committee notes that, according to the Government: (1) less than 100 persons were arrested and none of them were trade union officials or workers, but rather individuals who had committed reprehensible acts, such as thefts, destruction of property, etc.; (2) the detainees have been released; and (3) of the three persons who died, one did not participate in the strike; the second one was not a worker and was killed, like the first one, by a stray bullet; and the third one died when a hand grenade was being confiscated from a protester, which caused the death of a policeman. The Committee deeply regrets the acts of violence and the ensuing deaths which resulted from the protests, and asks the Government to ensure that judicial investigations are commenced and to transmit the texts of the judgements which will be issued concerning these deaths.
  463. 463 The Committee regrets to note that the Government has failed to reply to the other allegations submitted by the complainant organization: (1) the campaign to discredit and intimidate the president of the CEOSL, threatened with legal proceedings by the Ministry of the Interior because of his statements to the national press on the eve of the abovementioned strikes; and (2) the training of 38 Ecuadorian nationals in combat practices by a well-known Colombian paramilitary leader with a view to launching an offensive against labour activists, according to information in a magazine. The Committee urges the Government to send it immediately its observations on these allegations.

The Committee's recommendations

1. 464. In the light of its foregoing interim conclusions, the Committee invites the Governing Body to approve the following recommendations:
   • (a) Regretting deeply the murder of the trade union official Saúl Cañar Pauta, the Committee requests the Government to keep it informed of developments in the judicial inquiries and trusts that those guilty of the murder will be quickly identified and punished.
   • (b) The Committee requests the Government to ensure that judicial investigations are commenced and to provide it with the texts of the judgements which will be issued concerning the deaths resulting from the events of 1 October 1998.
   • (c) The Committee urges the Government to communicate immediately its observations on the allegations to which it has failed to reply, i.e.: (1) the campaign to discredit and intimidate the president of the CEOSL, threatened with legal proceedings by the Minister of the Interior because of statements he made to the national press on the eve of the abovementioned strike; and (2) the training of 38 Ecuadorian nationals in combat practices by a well-known Colombian paramilitary leader with a view to launching an offensive against labour activists, according to information in a magazine.