LatinNews Daily - 21 August 2024

*Protesters have gathered outside Ecuador’s constitutional court in Quito to call on the judicial authorities to enforce the result of an August 2023 referendum in which voters backed a ban on mining in the Chocó Andino cloud forest on the outskirts of the capital. The protest was organised by the local NGO Acción Ecológica, which said on social media that it is “demanding that the popular mandate be respected and that our territory is protected from mining”, noting the Chocó Andino’s importance for Quito’s water supply and biodiversity. The protest was held to mark the first anniversary of the referendum, in which Quito residents voted by 68%-31% in favour of a ban on commercial and artisanal mining in the Chocó Andino. A parallel national referendum also saw voters approve a ban on oil drilling in the Yasuní national park by 59%-41%. Finance Minister Juan Carlos Vega said on 19 August that closing down the Yasuní oilfields is expected to take between three and five years.