Freedom to Assemble Lifted for Free Flow of Goods in Ecuador

President Alfredo Palacio of Ecuador declared a state of emergency today in nice provinces, responding to Indian opposition to signing a free trade agreement with the United States. The state of emergency suspends constitutional guarantees to publicly assemble and grants police and military extended powers to arrest. The Interior Minister stated suspending public freedoms was necessary "to guarantee the free flow of goods and persons (and) permit citizens the right to work." Ecuadorian farmers, many of which are Indian, say the ability for the U.S. to flood Ecuador with subsidized agricultural goods will decimate their livelihood and hurt the Ecuadorian economy as a whole.