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FM AMCONSUL GUAYAQUIL
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INFO RUEHBO/AMEMBASSY BOGOTA 3256
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RUEHQT/AMEMBASSY QUITO 0467

C O N F I D E N T I A L GUAYAQUIL 000038 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2018 
TAGS: PGOV EC
SUBJECT: GUAYAQUIL UNIVERSITY STUDENTS UNITE IN SUPPORT OF 
CITY'S AUTONOMY 
 
REF: GUAYAQUIL 25 
 
Classified By: Consul General Douglas Griffiths for reasons 1.4 (b) and 
 (d) 
 
¶1.  (C) SUMMARY: In the aftermath of Guayaquil Mayor Jaime 
Nebot's successful march in support of the city's autonomy, a 
group of 50 students representing nearly all of Guayaquil's 
major universities joined together to produce a proposal that 
they hope will be included in a paper the mayor plans to 
deliver to the Constituent Assembly.  This emerging student 
activism is new in Guayaquil, where university students have 
been politically apathetic in recent decades.  Looking 
forward, the group, coming from a diverse mix of 
socioeconomic backgrounds and political leanings, hopes to 
capitalize on the unity across universities to play a bigger 
role in the political process, using Caracas's student 
movement as an example.  END SUMMARY. 
 
STUDENTS BRING PROPOSAL FOR MAYOR TO BRING TO ASSEMBLY 
---------- 
 
¶2.  (C) Inspired by last month's march in support of 
increased municipal autonomy, a politically and socially 
diverse group of approximately 50 students representing 
Guayaquil's major universities came together to produce a 
proposal for Ecuador's new constitution.  The group received 
heavy media coverage when it met with Guayaquil's Social 
Christian Party (PSC) Mayor Jaime Nebot on February 12 to 
present the proposal and ask the mayor to include it in the 
"Guayaquil Mandate" he is preparing to send to the 
Constituent Assembly in Montecristi (Reftel).  Cesar Coronel, 
the group's Secretary General and primary spokesman, told 
PolOff that he and the other students "wanted to propose 
something that reflected how students feel about the 
political situation and Guayaquil's autonomy.  Even if they 
do not care about politics, students care about their future." 
 
¶3.  (C) The proposals that the student group made to Nebot 
are very similar to the themes the mayor himself has already 
publicly outlined for the mandate: jobs and production, 
respect and freedom, education, university budgets and funds 
set aside for local governments.  Despite this communality of 
interest, Coronel insists that the group is ideologically 
neutral, pointing to its diversity as evidence.  "All twelve 
of the city's major are represented -- even the University of 
Guayaquil, which has leftist tendencies.  And some of our 
members are pro-Correa.  We presented the proposal to the 
mayor because he is the elected leader of our city," he told 
Poloff.  However, Coronel also admitted to more practical 
considerations.  "We had thought about presenting it directly 
to the Constituent Assembly as well, but it would have been 
logistically difficult for us to mobilize forces and get up 
there," he told Poloff.  "Also, we wanted it to be part of 
something bigger and harder to ignore." 
 
UNIVERSITY LEADERS HOPE TO MIMIC ROLE OF PEERS IN VENEZUELA 
---------- 
 
¶4.  (C) The emergence of the student group marks the first 
time in recent memory that Guayaquil's university students 
have united to support a common goal.  While student 
demonstrations are frequent in Quito and other cities in 
Ecuador's highlands, Guayaquil's students have been less 
politically active.  "Students in this city are known for 
their 'que me importismo' ('how does it concern me?' 
attitude)," Coronel told Poloff.  However, he noted that the 
cohesion of his group underscores the importance of autonomy 
issues.  "It was not easy to get a consensus on our proposal 
in less than two weeks, but we were able to identify common 
goals," he said.  Coronel added that the group hopes to build 
on the publicity that they have received and continue to 
represent the will and interests of the city's students.  He 
also said that the group would be reaching out to their peers 
in Venezuela, whose demonstrations against the recent 
constitutional reforms were critical to defeating the 
referendum.  However, he stressed that his group needed to be 
careful about becoming too associated with the Venezuelan 
student leaders.  "We should learn from them, but we cannot 
be identified with them," he told Poloff. 
 
SUPPORT OF STUDENT GROUP GIVES NEBOT ADDED CREDIBILITY 
---------- 
 
¶5.  (C) COMMENT: Like the January 24 march, the emergence of 
a broad-based student coalition demonstrates how strongly 
many Guayaquilenos feel about the importance of defending 
their city's autonomy.  Getting support from this group is a 
 
win for Nebot, as the students add legitimacy and diversity 
to his proposals.  However, school holidays have begun in the 
coastal provinces and student leaders will have a challenge 
maintaining interest and support during the beach season. 
 
GRIFFITHS