Political violence and insecurity loom large as Ecuadorians get ready to vote

By Rafael Romo, CNN
Published 2:45 PM EDT, Tue August 15, 2023

- video at link -

Gissella Cecibel Molina doesn’t know if she will lose her right eye, which was injured last week when her colleague and friend, presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio, was assassinated in front of her as they left a political rally in Ecuador’s capital, Quito.

“I was leaving the place with Fernando and, because people were pushing and shoving [to get close to him], I got separated about one to two meters,” Molina, who is running for re-election in the National Assembly, told CNN.

“As he (Villavicencio) approached the car, there was a man with a flag around his neck that said ‘Fernando Villavicencio for President.’ The man ran around the car to the other side, pulled out a gun and started shooting,” she said.

The last thing Molina remembered before passing out was Villavicencio shaking as bullets hit him in the head, she said. “I then felt like something hit me in the face and fell to the floor. When I regained consciousness, I could still hear gunshots and there were many people injured around me,” she added.

More:
https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/15/americas/ecuador-elections-assassination-violence-intl-latam/index.html