Ecuador’s Curfew!
Guayaquil, Ecuador, Oct 31 (EFE).-
Five coastal provinces in Ecuador will enter a night curfew starting this Sunday, the fourth such measure this year. The government aims to contain rising violence linked to organized crime, though experts note it also projects an image of strong action on public safety ahead of upcoming elections.
This new night curfew will run from 12:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. local time, from November 1 to 10, in five of the country’s twenty-four provinces: Guayas, Manabí, Los Ríos, El Oro, and Esmeraldas. All are located along the coast, where drug-trafficking activity is heavily concentrated.
During the curfew, police and armed forces plan to deploy to the streets and raid properties in high-risk zones where government officials say members of criminal gangs hide.
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa justified the measure as a way to “reduce risks to civilians during operations,” referring to targeted security actions against crime.
Noboa has relied on states of emergency and curfews to check rampant criminal activity and lower murder rates that placed Ecuador among the most violent countries in Latin America.
In Jan. 2024, the president declared “war” against criminal organizations, labeling them terrorist groups. Since then, he has repeatedly declared states of emergency restricting basic freedoms, such as home sanctity, private correspondence, and movement during curfew hours.
Crime figures dipped slightly in 2024 before surging in 2025 to a record 9,283 homicides, despite at least two separate curfew periods meant to curb insecurity.
In 2026, Noboa declared further curfews in March, May, September, and now again in November.
Is criminal violence actually decreasing?
Noboa claimed September’s curfew led to a 40% reduction in crime and yielded the lowest weekly homicide counts of the year. However, Luis Córdova-Alarcón, director of the Order, Conflict, and Violence program at the Central University of Ecuador, told EFE those drops are temporary.
Córdova-Alarcón pointed out that when restrictions lift, crime bounces back. Following the May curfew, homicides dropped marginally from 714 in June to 697, before climbing to 723 in July and 779 in August.
He emphasized that coastal areas suffer from uncontrolled criminal violence, particularly El Oro on the Peruvian border. According to the Ecuadorian Observatory of Organized Crime, El Oro recorded the nation’s highest provincial homicide rate in the first half of the year: 68.74 per 100,000 residents, a 62% year-over-year increase.
Elections in less than a month
Given these numbers, Córdova-Alarcón noted the government needs to demonstrate action, particularly ahead of local elections on Sunday, November 29. The ruling party hopes to wrest control of major population centers like Quito and Guayaquil from opposition forces led by former supporters of Rafael Correa.
“We cannot separate security measures from the electoral cycle under this administration. With three elections in the last three years, public safety has become central to both governing and campaign agendas,” the analyst noted.
Across three nationwide votes since Noboa took office, including two referendums, security has dominated political debate. Yet Córdova-Alarcón stressed that measures so far have failed to address root issues, such as youth recruitment into organized crime. EFE
cbs/dmv
