Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) has joined some of his Republican colleagues in the Senate to call for President Joe Biden (D) to hold former President of Ecuador Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado accountable for his various crimes of corruption and violations of human rights.
The senators wrote that the Legislative Branch is attempting to make progress regarding relations with Ecuador and that holding the former Ecuadorian president is a good way to maintain those relations.
“Congress is pursuing bipartisan legislative efforts to deepen bilateral relations with Ecuador, which has made significant progress since 2017 to strengthen its democratic institutions and promote economic growth. We believe you should reinforce these bipartisan measures by immediately holding accountable the former President of Ecuador,” wrote Sen. Rubio and his colleagues.
After mentioning Correa’s bribery conviction, they would go on to mention, “Mr. Correa also has a proven record of violating internationally recognized human rights while in office. According to Freedom House, Mr. Correa ‘oversaw attacks on judicial independence, press freedoms, and other civil liberties’ during his presidency. In 2018, Mr. Correa was indicted in a criminal case for ordering the kidnapping of an opposition leader. Despite Ecuador’s extradition request of Mr. Correa to face these charges, he continues to travel freely between Europe and Latin America, including frequent trips to meet with U.S.-sanctioned officials of the narco-terrorist regime in Venezuela.”
Finally, the senators called for President Biden to use the laws in place at his disposal.
“Congress has demonstrated it is in the interest of the United States for Ecuador to preserve its independent democratic institutions and strengthen its economic prosperity. We recommend you support such interest by using the tools available to you under Presidential Proclamation 7750 and Section 7031(c) of the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related programs Appropriations Act to hold Mr. Correa accountable for his involvement in acts of significant corruption and violations of internationally recognized human rights in Ecuador,” concluded the senators.
Senator Rubio was joined by Senators Rick Scott (R-FL), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Tim Scott (R-SC), John Cornyn (R-TX), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), and James Risch (R-ID).
