World

Bolivia

Peru

Trinidad &
Tobago

Venezuela

Institutional
links

Services
& Products

Welcome back on
26 -29 August,
ONS 2008

Bridging the energy gap
is ONS 2006 theme,
from 22-25 August,
in Stavanger, Norway

Centre for
Global Energy
Studies

 

 

 

 

Ecuador begins work to rewrite constitution

 

 

 

MONTECRISTI, Ecuador
Petroleumworld.com 11 30 07

Ecuador's constituent assembly launched the rewrite of the country's constitution Thursday aimed at enshrining political and social changes sought by socialist President Rafael Correa in South America's most unstable country.

Correa, an economist by training who supports much of the anti-liberal economic policies of his Venezuelan ally President Hugo Chavez, is putting on a political show of force at the event. The 130-member assembly is dominated by his supporters, who want to fire the current opposition-led national legislature.

The assembly is expected to work for six months, and the final document is to be put to a referendum in 2008. Correa aims to increase the role of the state in the economy, and broaden social policies in the impoverished country.

Chavez was scheduled to be at a launch ceremony in this southwestern city later Thursday.

Ecuador is one of Chavez's regional allies, along with Cuba, Bolivia and Nicaragua. Bolivia and Venezuela also are seeking to rewrite their constitutions.

Chavez himself awaits a referendum December 2 on a more far-reaching plan to alter Venezuela's constitution to bolster his power.

The proposed changes would do away with presidential term limits, gag the press during "emergencies" and turn Venezuela into a "socialist economy," in what some critics have slammed as an elected dictatorship.

Chavez's closest allies however say it will simply give him the time to get done the work he seeks to do.

Story from AFP 29 1707 GMT 11 07

Copyright© 2007 Petroleumworld. All rights reserved.

 

 

Send this story to a friend

Your feedback is important to us!

We invite all our readers to share with us
their views and comments about this article.

Write to editor@petroleumworld.com

Any question or suggestions, please write to:
editor@petroleumworld.com

Best Viewed with IE 5.01+
Windows NT 4.0, '95, '98 and ME +/ 800x600 pixels

Contact:editor@petroleumworld.com/phones:(58 412) 996 3730 or 952 5301
www.petroleumworld.com-Editor:Elio Ohep /Publisher-Producer:Elio Ohep.
Contact Email: editor@petroleumworld.com
Legal Information. CopyRight © 2002, Elio Ohep.- All rights reserved

This site is a public free site and it contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner.We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of business, environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have chosen to view the included information for research, information, and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission fromPetroleumworld or the copyright owner of the material.