On Friday, 5 April 2024 in the evening, Ecuador government authorities broke into the Mexican Embassy in Quito, Ecuador and took former Vice President Jorge Glas into custody. Glas had been granted asylum at the Mexican Embassy after a judge revoked his provisional release from jail. He has been jailed and released on several occasions after being convicted for bribery and organized crime.
Mexico responded promptly calling off diplomatic relations in the name of international law.
This is a difficult case that could set new precedents.
The government of Ecuador says it seeks that a high-profile crime not go unpunished. The Ecuadorian presidency confirmed Glas’ arrest in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “No criminal can be considered a politically persecuted person,” the presidency said, stressing that Glas, convicted twice for corruption, “has been convicted with an enforceable sentence and had an arrest warrant issued by the competent authorities.”
Yet Mexico responded, in the country’s obligation to uphold international law and offer international protection for Jorge Glas.
Mexico broke off diplomatic relations almost instantaneously and removed all diplomatic personnel from Ecuador.
The Dominican Republic, Panama and Costa Rica, as founding members of the Alliance for Democratic Development, followed suit in condemning the action. Ecuador is also a part of that alliance.
The note sent by the three countries pointed out that the Vienna Convention regarding Diplomatic Relations (1962) states that diplomatic buildings are “inviolable” and that agents of the host country may not enter such properties without approval of the Charge d’Affaires.
Glas was Vice President of Ecuador from 2013 until 2017, serving Presidents Rafael Correa and Lenin Moreno. He has been accused of what would be called embezzlement of funds regarding the reconstruction of an area of Ecuador that was devastated by an earthquake in 2016. A judge had issued an arrest warrant and an order to remand Glas to custody pending trial. Glas sought asylum at the Mexican Embassy before the judicial police could arrest him.
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DW
Associated Press
Diario Libre
Listin Diario
8 April 2024