By Entorno and AFP | 2023-08-11

QUITO -- A few days before his assassination, Ecuadoran presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio had publicly spoken out against ratifying the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China, citing multiple corruption cases involving Chinese state-owned companies operating in Ecuador.

Villavicencio, a 59-year-old journalist and anti-corruption crusader and the second most popular candidate in the Ecuadoran presidential race, was assassinated in the capital city of Quito on Wednesday (August 9).

He was killed in a hail of machine-gun fire as he left a campaign rally, with the country's main newspaper, El Universo, reporting he was assassinated "hitman-style and with three shots to the head."

Police said six Colombians have been arrested in connection with the murder of Villavicencio. Another attacker, also Colombian, was fatally shot by security agents, authorities said.

Interior Minister Juan Zapata said the assailants belonged to "organized crime groups," without specifying which ones.

Villavicencio had complained of receiving threats from Los Choneros, one of the country's most powerful drug gangs.

Electoral officials have reported threats against them ahead of the snap election on August 20. A popular mayor and aspiring lawmaker have been assassinated in recent weeks.

President Guillermo Lasso declared a two-month state of emergency, and said the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) had accepted the country's request for help, with a delegation arriving soon.

Resisting China

Villavicencio stood at the forefront of Ecuador's anti-corruption struggle, denouncing irregularities in public contracts just days before being assassinated.

"You cannot make an agreement with China without addressing the issue of corruption," Villavicencio said on July 31 during an interview with the television program Políticamente Correcto Electoral (Politically Correct Electoral).

He stressed that China must be held accountable for corruption perpetrated by its state-owned companies in Ecuador.

"China has to answer for very serious cases of corruption," he said.

"Here are billions of dollars of damage to this country by Chinese companies."

Villavicencio vowed to do everything in his power to prevent the FTA from going into effect.

The FTA between China and Ecuador was signed by both sides three months ago but still needs a review in the Constitutional Court of Ecuador and its approval or rejection by the National Assembly.

Villavicencio asserted that previous Ecuadoran governments have engaged in "plundering" activities, such as selling oil to China at a loss, "constructing hydroelectric plants that are not working and overpriced," and supposedly building "ghost refineries" that in reality do not exist.

The Ecuadoran justice system is investigating multiple corruption cases involving high-ranking former officials, including former president Lenin Moreno. The cases involve allegations of bribes paid by Chinese state-owned companies for the construction of infrastructure projects in Ecuador.

The highest-profile case is the investigation of Sinohydro Corporation, a Chinese state-owned construction company. The company is accused of paying bribes to Moreno and other officials in exchange for contracts to build hydroelectric dams and other infrastructure projects in Ecuador.

Deal raises eyebrows

The Ecuador-China FTA is the first trade agreement that Ecuador has signed with an Asian country. It was signed virtually and simultaneously on May 10 in Quito and May 11 in Beijing.

While Ecuador is hopeful that the new trade treaty will generate more employment opportunities, economists have long raised concerns that it could lead to job losses and other unintended consequences.

Currently, 1.2 million jobs are linked to the export sector, and this number could double by 2033, according to Ecuadoran Trade Minister Julio José Prado.

However, some leaders of some sectors, such as textiles and footwear manufacturing, fear that they will not be able to compete on price with Chinese products.

Another concern is that the deal could give China even more political leverage in Ecuador.

Ecuador, like other countries that have made deals with China, has become a victim of China's "debt-trap diplomacy" that lures countries into unsustainable debt and allows China undue influence.

China became Ecuador's largest financier during the administration of Rafael Correa, who was in office from 2007 to 2017. During this time, Ecuador's debt to China reached $5 billion, representing 4% of the country's current GDP.

Ecuador last September was forced to reach a deal to restructure its debt with Chinese banks, providing relief worth $1.4 billion until 2025.