Ecuadorians Fed Up With High Gas Prices, Inflation Begin Demonstrations

Ecuadorians Fed Up With High Gas Prices, Inflation Begin Demonstrations

Indigenous protesters in Ecuador have blocked roads with burning tires and debris while demanding that their government force a price cut to fuel.

Access to the national capital Quito was partially obstructed due to at least 20 roadblocks from those protesting gas prices and rising inflation on Monday, according to the BBC. The protests were organized by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), which is demanding that Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso drop gas prices and freeze them at $1.50 per gallon, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

CONAIE previously led protests that reportedly resulted in 11 deaths and forced former President Lenin Moreno to abandon plans to discontinue fuel subsidies in 2019. The country's current president fixed gas prices at $2.55 per gallon last October following pressure from the group, although the price freeze did little to satisfy those demanding a further drop in prices amid mass unemployment and poverty.