Ecuador President Stops Talks With 'Opportunist' Indigenous Leader

Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso said on Tuesday his government will not return to negotiations with indigenous leader Leonidas Iza aimed at ending more than two weeks of protests connected to eight deaths, food and medicine shortages and a cut in oil output.

"We will not return to dialogue with Leonidas Iza, who only defends his political interests and not those of his base. To our indigenous brothers - you deserve more than an opportunist for a leader," said Lasso, who opposition lawmakers are trying to remove from office, citing fallout from the protests.

Largely indigenous demonstrators have been marching to protest high fuel and food prices since June 13 and at least eight people have died in connection with the marches, including a soldier killed early Tuesday morning.

Road blockades associated with the protests have led to shortages of food in supermarkets and medical supplies in hospitals. As of Monday, Ecuador's total oil production was at 234,496 barrels per day (bpd), less than half the output of about 520,000 bpd before the protests.

Lasso said the government has made significant concessions to marchers, agreeing to a gasoline price cut, debt forgiveness and subsidies for fertilizers, among other demands. Iza said on Monday the price cut was not enough.

Lasso said his government is open to talks, but not with Iza.

The country cannot dialogue with those keeping it "hostage" Lasso added. He offered condolences to the family of the soldier, who died when a convoy accompanying 17 diesel tankers from a refinery to the ITT oil field was attacked by a group of armed people.

"Only when there are legitimate representatives of all the peoples and ethnicities of Ecuador, who seek real solutions and who are open to a real and frank dialogue, will we return to the negotiating table," Lasso said.

"Mr. President we have never conditioned who can come to dialogue and who cannot," Iza said in response to Lasso, adding he would remain at the talks' location until government representatives come.

"In this moment what seems important to me is an attitude of peace, of dialogue, no more warlike attitudes," added Iza, who heads the CONAIE indigenous organization.

Mediators at the talks said the two sides had been close to a deal.

LOST PRODUCTION

Ecuador's oil production has fallen by 1.8 million barrels during the protests, the energy ministry said on Tuesday, as blockades prevented the transport of supplies to oil blocks.

State-run oil company Petroecuador has registered a reduction of 1.47 million barrels, while private producers have lost over 385,000 barrels, the ministry said in a statement.

"In 15 days the state has stopped receiving $166.4 million in the oil sector. Up to now 1,199 wells have been shut, 85% belonging to Petroecuador," the statement said, adding the SOTE pipeline was halted again on Monday because of low crude volumes and the private OCP pipeline was pumping at 20% of its capacity, some 92,000 barrels.

The ITT field - Ecuador's largest - was operating normally and produced more than 52,000 bpd on Monday, according to Petroecuador.

A company source who asked not to be named said Petroecuador was looking at whether it would need to delay exports, but production would likely not be forced to stop for several more days.

Lasso's adversarial relationship with the national assembly has worsened during the protests.

Lawmakers were debating an effort to remove him from office on Tuesday afternoon, though it appears opposition groups, some of whom are loyal to former President Rafael Correa, lack the 92 votes out of 137 needed for the measure to succeed.

"This isn't a call to defend a person, nor a political effort nor a government, it is a call to defend the country from this coup attempt. For the well-being of all Ecuadoreans, democracy must prevail," Lasso said in a video urging lawmakers to reject the effort.