Ecuadorian indigenous leader LeĂłnidas Iza during the 2025 presidential election debate. Photo: NT24/File photo.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—Luisa González, the presidential candidate for Ecuador’s Citizen Revolution party, has publicly expressed solidarity with Leónidas Iza, leader of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), who currently faces trial for his work in leading demonstrations against economic policies of former President Guillermo Lasso.
In a message posted on social media this Wednesday, March 12, González denounced the proceedings as political retaliation against Iza for defending the Sacha oil field, a contested resource in Ecuador’s Amazon region. “Defending our natural resources is an act of dignity,” she emphasized, “not a crime.”
Electoral significance
Iza, who secured third place in the first-round presidential vote with over 5% support, could prove crucial to González’s chances in the April 13 runoff. His endorsement carries particular weight as CONAIE convenes its national assembly this week, though internal divisions within the indigenous organization may complicate unified support.
Political context
The legal charges against Iza center on the Sacha field—one of Ecuador’s largest oil reserves in Orellana province—where tensions persist between the state, energy companies, and local communities. González framed the conflict as emblematic of broader struggles.
“The Ecuadorian people united to prevent Sacha’s irregular privatization,” added González in her post. “Yet those who challenge power abuses face persecution. We must maintain this unity against forces sowing polarization, fear, and hatred.”
“Our program prioritizes the common good: social justice, resource sovereignty, and life itself,” she stated, further outlining her platform. “They wield fear; we offer hope through collective action.”
Mi profunda solidaridad con @LeonidasIzaEc. Defender el #CampoSacha no es un delito, es un acto de dignidad. El pueblo ecuatoriano, en UNIDAD, venció al no permitir que el Campo Sacha sea regalado en medio de irregularidades y opacidad. Pero sabemos que quienes enfrentan el abuso… https://t.co/oyotDo6gxz
— Luisa González (@LuisaGonzalezEc) March 12, 2025
Iza’s Legal Challenges
A prominent critic of both former President Guillermo Lasso’s and current leader Daniel Noboa’s neoliberal policies, Iza has faced repeated legal actions for his work against these policies. These include charges related to his leadership of anti-government protests against the economic policies of then-President Lasso in June 2022, which authorities accused of having disrupted public services, resulting in the ongoing court proceedings.
In June 2022, Leónidas Iza, then-president of Ecuador’s Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (CONAIE), faced criminal charges following these protests. The demonstrations, sparked by soaring fuel prices, privatization proposals, and austerity measures, paralyzed key infrastructure and led to clashes between indigenous groups and security forces.
Authorities accused Iza of “paralyzing public services” and “inciting unrest,” alleging his role in organizing roadblocks and strikes violated public order laws. The government declared a state of emergency, deploying military forces to quell dissent, while Iza denounced the charges as an attempt to criminalize legitimate social mobilization and silence indigenous resistance.
The legal proceedings against Iza drew condemnation from human rights organizations, which framed the case as politically motivated retaliation. Despite international scrutiny, prosecutors pursued charges tied to his activism. While the 2022 trial remains unresolved, the charges resurface in Ecuador’s current political climate, with Iza’s critics leveraging the case to undermine his influence and allies framing it as evidence of systemic persecution against grassroots leaders. His legal battles continue to intertwine with debates over resource sovereignty and indigenous rights, particularly amid ongoing tensions over the contested Sacha oil field.
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Iza’s controversies
While Iza never formally endorsed Lasso, his pragmatic pauses in protests during 2022 negotiations sparked criticism from factions within Ecuador’s indigenous movement. Some activists accused Iza of compromising core demands—such as halting oil extraction in indigenous territories and reversing austerity measures—in exchange for limited concessions, including temporary fuel subsidies. This tension exposed divisions within CONAIE, as grassroots communities questioned whether dialogue with Lasso’s government legitimized policies they viewed as exploitative. Critics framed Iza’s tactical shifts as a betrayal of the anti-establishment principles that cemented his leadership during the 2019 protests.
Iza’s critics further argue his intermittent engagement with Lasso’s administration undermined Indigenous solidarity, particularly after the 2022 protests failed to secure long-term guarantees for land rights or resource sovereignty. While Iza argued that strategic negotiations were necessary to avert state violence, his detractors highlight how Lasso’s subsequent escalation of oil drilling in the Amazon and pro-business reforms contradicted these efforts.
Leftist political analysts have increasingly scrutinized the CONAIE leader’s electoral strategy in recent presidential races, arguing his candidacy risks fracturing the progressive vote. During Ecuador’s contentious 2023 elections, critics accused Iza of running as a spoiler candidate: a tactical move to divert support from frontrunner left-wing candidates like Luisa González and amplify divisions within the anti-neoliberal bloc.
The debate reflects longstanding tensions between Ecuador’s institutional left and indigenous vanguard over electoral tactics. CONAIE, historically a kingmaker through protest mobilization rather than direct candidacies, has faced internal dissent over Iza’s pivot to presidential runs. While the organization once bolstered leftist leaders like Rafael Correa (2006–2017), its 2023 break from alliance-building sparked accusations of prioritizing symbolic resistance over pragmatic power-sharing.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/AU
