President Correa's Abuse Of Power In Ecuador

Ecuador is a democratic country that is drifting towards authoritarianism. Freedom House assigns Ecuador “partly free” and rates them a three out of seven on the freedom scale. Problems holding the government back from reaching the status of free and a “one” rating are hiding in the structural make up of Ecuadorian governmental system. Operating under a presidential republic gives the majority of the power to President Correa. Their legislative branch is unicameral, elected by proportional representation. This presents a problem because of the fragmentation in congress. While more citizens are able to align themselves with a party that bests suit them, this has caused gridlock in congress resulting in President Correa bypassing the branch and abusing more power than is allocated to him. Arguably the most dominant abuse of power has been the limitation of freedom of the press under the Correa administration. They have openly …show more content…
Much of his legitimacy is based on his charisma as a leader. His ability to be re-elected and promote his party (Aliza Pais Movement) has resulted in a monopoly of the power leader back to Mr. Correa. Campaigning on the belief that he was going to get rid of the corruption that Ecuador had endured for so long proved to be effective. After he gained his position, changes to the constitution have ensured Correa and his party will be in power for a long time. In the last election, the party was able to win fifty percent of the vote for the legislative branch, and turn that into holding 100 of the 131 seats in the branch. The arguemtn could be made that Correa is promoting values and policies the country desperately needs, however it is at the cost of the democracy as he continues to abuse his power and stand by faulty legitimacy that is leading Ecuador towards