BRUSSELS, Belgium. – Former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa advocated for early elections in his country, and criticized the strong police crackdown on participants in demonstrations against the government of Lenin Moreno.

At a press conference in the European Parliament, the Ecuadorian President from 2007 to 2017 backed the protests, and accused Moreno of betraying the people by pursuing neoliberal policies dictated by the International Monetary Fund.

The Ecuadorian Constitution provides for the anticipation of the elections, in case of serious social commotion, which is what we are living, but they do not want to convene them because they know they are going to be razed at the ballot box, the former President of Ecuador said.

This is not a fight between Moreno and Correa, but the struggle of a people who rise because they reject those who have betrayed it, Rafael Correa pointed out.