Jaime Hurtado

Jaime Ricaurte Hurtado González (7 February 1937 – 17 February 1999) was an Ecuadorian politician of African descent. He was aligned with the Democratic People's Movement (MPD), a deputy in the Ecuadorian parliament in 1979 until his assassination in 1999.

Biography Childhood Born in the abandoned parish of Malimpia in Quinindé, a canton of Esmeraldas, one of the many forgotten areas of the country. It was a February 7, 1937, his parents were Esteban Hurtado and Pastora Gonzalez, who were illiterate.

His life was made in the country. There he lived and worked his first years. In the midst of the agricultural labors he performed with his parents and siblings, he wove his dreams and hopes. It was also dedicated to the cultivation of banana, cane and coconut. At the age of 10, he began his studies in the city of Esmeraldas at the "21 de Septiembre" School after having dedicated himself to helping his parents. although at school he continued to do so, dedicating himself thus when he finished the school day to clean the shoes and later to help his parents in the small bar that they administered until dawn.

Sports Activity He studied high school in the "5 de Agosto" College of the province's capital, an institution that granted him a scholarship to finish his studies at the "Eloy Alfaro" School, in the city of Guayaquil, where he developed an intense sports activity in basketball and athletics .

He was selected from basketball by the province of Esmeraldas, in the college "Eloy Alfaro". He developed his physical qualities with great success in the athletic activity. Represented to the province of Guayas by several occasions. He won the gold medal in triple jump, javelin and discus throw, 110 meters hurdles and 1,500 meters flat. As a basketball player, he joined the Atlétic and Emelec clubs.

University life His higher studies were carried out at the University of Guayaquil, where he started and actively participated in politics. He was president of the Association School of Law, and a candidate for the Presidency of the Federation of University Students of Ecuador, FEUE.

Political life In 1966, he joined the Marxist-Leninist Communist Party of Ecuador (PCMLE), reaching the Central Committee and the Political Bureau of the PCMLE, he would be a prominent figure alongside the indigenous activists Dolores Cacuango and Tránsito Amaguaña also with the priest Leónidas Proaño in the social struggles against the military dictatorships of Ramón Castro Jijón, Clemente Yerovi, José María Velasco Ibarra, Guillermo Rodríguez Lara and Alfredo Poveda, from his first years as a union leader, he stood out as a staunch defender of the communist and socialist movements in Ecuador, it would be evidenced in his support of the student leader Milton Alfredo Reyes, the Guerrilla del Toachi and the group ¡Alfaro Vive, Carajo!. He participated in the founding of the Popular Democratic Movement (MPD) in 1978, first serving as a candidate for vice president in a duo that was not allowed to participate in the elections. The National Electoral Council (CNE) recognized the legal status of the MPD. Later, the MPD obtained its recognition, and he was elected a national deputy in 1979. After the return to democracy, he was the first legislator of Afro-Ecuadorian ethnicity. although he identified himself as a leader of the left-wing socialist and the Ecuadorian communist front, its trajectory was marked by constant confrontations with the center-left and center parties, given the policies of President Jaime Roldós led him to establish a firm opposition to his mandate, aligning himself with Assad Bucaram, León Febres-Cordero, Otto Arosemena and Carlos Arosemena who led the opposition to Roldós' government, However, his relationship with these congressmen was ambiguous and conflictive. In Congress, he alternated moments of support and disagreement, evidencing a critical stance that was not subordinated to circumstantial alliances. As an opponent of the regime of Jaime Roldós Aguilera and Oswaldo Hurtado, he was described by the former as one of the "patriarchs of the compromise." during the term of President León Febres-Cordero, he led multiple complaints against the regime, pointing out serious human rights violations. Among his main accusations are the actions of the Death Squads, the death of the teacher Consuelo Benavides, the persecution of the group ¡Alfaro Vive, Carajo!, and the forced disappearance of the Restrepo brothers. He also denounced the corruption scandals and embezzlement of public funds involving members close to the president, such as Joffre Torbay, Xavier Neira, and Ramiro Larrea. Meanwhile, from the Social Christian Party, he was accused of being part of a media campaign orchestrated by Abdalá Bucaram, who was self-exiled in Panama, and of turning the Restrepo brothers case and kidnapping of Cordero into a political spectacle.

After the end of the León Febres-Cordero government, they would again participate in the 1988 Ecuadorian presidential elections with the Efraín Álvarez Fiallo duo. During this period, he established himself as one of the main opponents of President Rodrigo Borja. From the Democratic Left and centrist parties, they harshly questioned Hurtado for his ambiguous political stance and for his support of the opposition led by the Social Christian Party and the Ecuadorian Roldosista Party. He would also take part in union demonstrations and MPD supporters, supporting the historic indigenous mobilization of 1990, in which Communities across the country demanded recognition, rights, and dignity from the Borja government, and firmly denounced the legislative pact between the Social Christians and the Roldosistas who sought to pardon former President León Febres-Cordero of acts of corruption and crimes against humanity during his administration, in exchange for not prosecuting Abdalá Bucaram, then exiled in Panama. sought to encourage impeachment proceedings against Alfredo Adum and the president's son Abdalá Bucaram in the management of customs, as well as opening an investigation by the Attorney General's Office for the repressive role of the "Pepudos", the personal bodyguards of the president's sons, Despite trying to save his life, the three shots he received to the head and chest caused his death minutes after the attack.

Confrontation and accusations The allegations of his assassination led to the involvement of then-President Jamil Mahuad and his presidential cabinet, since before his assassination, despite having been part of the opposition that led to the overthrow of Abdalá Bucaram, and having denied support for businessman Álvaro Noboa candidate of the roldosismo in the 1998 elections, In addition, the justice commission presented anomalies in the surveillance of the subjects known as Milanta and Victorino, the police in a press conference, did not give clear details about the identity of these people, a report from border security Colombia claimed that these two suspects had left Ecuador with the support of the police after Hurtado's death; this version, supported by the MPD, was denied by the government.

Testimony of Washington Aguirre The unknowns surrounding the investigation began with the testimony of one of the suspects in the murder, Washington Aguirre. He stated that Jaime Hurtado was murdered on the orders of individuals known as Milanta and Victorino, alleged members of the FARC, after a failed collaboration with him. paramilitary group, this version was accepted by the government, but was rejected by the MPD, the members of the MPD publicly denounced the rise of the case, when the disappearance of the crime motives in the Machángara River was reported, that the vehicle Suzuki Forsa was abandoned and that the bullets used by the convicted were bullets 9mm caliber, exclusive to the State security forces. During his time as a congressman, Jaime Hurtado had conducted an investigation involving Medardo Cevallos Balda. This occurred after Hurtado presented a report from the narcotics police of Manabí about the infiltration of public companies such as the fishing company Pesca Fresca and Aislantes Plumavit for drug trafficking in the cities of Manta, Portoviejo and Guayaquil. In addition, Hurtado had pointed out that Cevallos Balda had a strange relationship with Fabián Alarcón, Jamil Mahuad, Guillermo Lasso, Jaime Nebot, Sixto Durán-Ballen, León Febres-Cordero and his cabinet, and having a relationship with General José Ramón Jiménez Carbo, who is accused of being linked to the Ecuadorian drug cartel "Los Reyes Magos." the persecution of the minister of César Verduga who requested political asylum in Mexico after receiving death threats following his investigation into the "Los Reyes Magos" cartel,

In contrast, Medardo Cevallos Balda denied the accusations, claiming that they were a smokescreen and slander against him, receiving support from the president's cabinet Jamil Mahuad, given the scandals, he announced that he would continue a trial for libel against MPD and Lenin Hurtado for damage to his public image, and in 2017 the Inter-American Court implicated Cevallos in the death of Marco Bienvenido Palma, however these accusations could never be proven since they were not obtained the evidence nor a search by the authorities and the Attorney General's Office, preceded by lawyer Mariana Yépez and politician Washington Pesántez, who did not continue with the complaints filed by the MPD against Medardo Cevallos Balda. did not continue with the process, leaving Jaime Hurtado's death without finding those responsible. During the investigation, several of those allegedly involved managed to evade justice in the country. Christian Steven Ponce managed to escape justice by fleeing the country shortly after being arrested and was captured in upstate New York in February 2007 when he was driving a car and was not wearing a seat belt.

On December 15, 2010, another of the alleged perpetrators, Henry Gil Ayerve, was detained in Colombia and extradited to Ecuador. In 2019, 20 years after the death of Jaime Hurtado, Washington Aguirre, who escaped from prison, was arrested in the city of Rome under a false identity. Here, members of the Popular Unity, current MPD, sought to have him extradited to Ecuador, with the support of Interpol. Here, Aguirre publicly expressed that 60% to 80% of what was declared in his version had been omitted, where the DEA and the police were linked to the crime. Despite the collaboration of the media, the process for Aguirre's extradition could not be carried out. To date, the intellectual author of the crime has not been discovered and the investigation process has ended. Jaime Hurtado's murder is still considered mainly by the sector. of the Popular Unity and left-wing parties as a state crime.