Regarding the recent events in Libya, Rafael Quintero, Undersecretary for Asia, Africa, and Oceania, reiterated Ecuador’s disagreement with disrespect for the territorial integrity of that country. He expressed Ecuador’s insistence that international conventions be complied with, that human rights in Libya be respected, and that no attempt be made to take the Libyan case as the model for future interventions in other countries.
“Who controls the government must be determined by the Libyan people and not by a military alliance invading the country with thousands of Western bombs, in order to share out, in the finest colonial tradition, the oil-rich territory of a country — that is absolutely unacceptable,” Quintero declared.
Quintero in addition said that the Ecuadoran ambassador to Egypt would be instructed to intercede at any moment to protect the life of Henry Pillajo, the Ecuadoran cameraman working for TeleSur, who is known to be still in Tripoli.
Quintero emphasized that the foreign military forces must exit Libya, as they have acted to the detriment of the sovereignty of that country, disregarding even the opinion of the regional organizations of Africa. He added that Ecuador will play its role in international organizations to discover what has happened in Libya since the beginning of the attack by the most powerful military alliance of the West.
The original statement “Ecuador manifiesta su preocupación por Libia y los derechos humanos” was published on the Web site of the Ecuadoran Foreign Ministry on 22 August 2011. Translation by Yoshie Furuhashi (@yoshiefuruhashi | yoshie.furuhashi [at] gmail.com).
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