Ecuador: VP President Glas Denounces Torture During Detention

April 12, 2024 Hour: 7:14 am

On Thursday, former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas declared that he was a victim of torture during his detention at the Mexican embassy in Quito on April 5th.

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“I opened the door, they shone flashlights in my face, and aimed rifles at me. I was in pajamas and asked to get my medicines… They kicked me, kneed me, and stepped on my neck,” he said from La Roca prison during the virtual hearing initiated regarding the habeas corpus petition filed by his lawyer, Andres Villegas.

Glas confirmed that agents used force against Mexican diplomat Roberto Canseco, who tried to prevent his entry into the embassy and his capture. The former vice president reiterated his innocence regarding the charges and previous sentences. He also requested to be returned to the Mexican embassy where he had received asylum and asked for safe passage.

Additionally, Glas recounted that one of the members of the assault team intentionally twisted his finger, telling him that he did it so he would remember him.

#FromTheSouth News Bits | Mexico will send UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres a report on the diplomatic crisis with Ecuador, aggravated by the rupture of formal ties, informed the Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alicia Barcena. pic.twitter.com/jaR6wlzj4J

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
April 10, 2024

On their part, the lawyers for the Police and Armed Forces denied accusations of torture or cruel treatment during Glas’s detention and requested a review of his medical certificates.

Regarding videos showing Glas being violently subdued, the Police stated that such a procedure adheres to what is established in the Use of Force Code, which stipulates that agents can act according to the resistance of the detainee.

Lawyer Villegas argued that the former vice president’s arrest was improper, demanded the annulment of his detention, and requested his return to the Mexican embassy. He also demanded the presentation of the document authorizing Glas’s detention.

Glas’s lawyer argued that his client’s detention was arbitrary, illegal, and illegitimate, constituting a violation of international law and human rights.

The former Ecuadorian vice president suspects that the agents who detained him were aware that they were acting illegally, as they celebrated his capture by affirming that they were already out of the embassy and that was what mattered.

Once transferred to La Roca prison, Glas began a three-day hunger strike to protest mistreatment, as he has not been provided with the necessary pain medications and is locked in a room without light 24 hours a day.

#Ecuador | Former Vice President Jorge Glas began a hunger strike in jail, according to his lawyer Sonia Vera Garcia, who was able to contact him by video call after five days in prison. pic.twitter.com/VqyQRTecVf

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)
April 11, 2024