In less than a year, two mayors and four councilors have been murdered in Ecuador. Another 30 local officials have received threats or attempts on their lives.

The Government is carrying out a risk analysis on the 221 mayors in the country. But the process is progressing slowly, and only 30 have been given police protection. 'There are not enough resources to respond to all the protection requests we have,' says the Minister of Government, Mónica Palencia, who is also mayor of San Vicente, in the province of Manab. 'My wife no longer wants to sleep there, she is afraid that they will return,' says the mayor of Balzar, Galo Meza, who suffered an attack in his house. 'We have requests for armored cars with a level of protection even for rifles. We understand what each of our authorities wants and requires,' says the Minister of Government, who also is mayor of the city of San Vicente, which is on the seashore. City councils have autonomy and manage institutions convenient for drug trafficking. “I feel in danger every day, says Ligia Caiza, mayor of Carlos Julio Arosemena Tola, an Amazonian city. The mayors cannot face the insecurity crisis because they do not have the resources either, says the president of the AME. As an extreme measure, AME has called a peaceful march on April 10 to protest against the delays that have been constant since 2023 and that have triggered a crisis in the payment of suppliers, unpaid salaries, and work stoppages. The announcement generated an immediate reaction from President Daniel Noboa, who described the measure as political opportunism, pointing out the managers as being close to the government. The government maintains a debt with the municipalities of 1.3 billion dollars for almost three unpaid months.’ he adds.