The Assembly investigates who are behind the leak

Ecuadornews:

Elizabeth Cabezas, questioned that there is a “luck of espionage” that tries to destabilize the action of the Legislative. The COIP sanctions this crime with up to 5 years in prison. The illegal recording of conversations inside the National Assembly became a common practice to affect the image of legislators and advisers.

On this occasion this act sanctioned by the Comprehensive Criminal Code (COIP) reached the head of the Legislative, Elizabeth Cabezas. “It is reprehensible, illegal and illegitimate that there is a kind of espionage about the National Assembly that intends to put the action of both the Assembly and the country in instability,” the official said, referring to an audio recording, allegedly during the 580th session of the full and disclosed in social networks. “We will investigate who is allowed to have this type of espionage actions, we cannot pretend that a political group wants to destabilize the country with actions in which there is nothing to object, but are part of the daily work in the Assembly”, he emphasized.

The filtering of that audio is investigated. A senior police official, who declined to be named, said the wiretapping is legal as long as the judge’s authorization is within an investigation. So, in this specific case, it constitutes a crime that must be investigated ex officio or by complaint. Article 230 of the COIP establishes that the person who without a prior judicial order, intercepts, listens, deviates, records or observes with the purpose of obtaining information, will be sanctioned with imprisonment of three to five years.

This practice of filtering videos or audios related to political actors was a common practice in the previous government. Last year a group of opponents to the regime of Rafael Correa denounced the persecution of which they were subjected and the violation of their privacy.

Fernando Balda broadcasts an audio in which, according to him, President Correa, ministers and politicians attached to the Government were discussing alleged irregular changes in the text of the new Constitution, approved in a referendum in September 2008. Preoccupation in the Assembly Mario Pazmiño, ex-director of Army intelligence, He affirmed that this new case means that there is “internal espionage” in the Assembly.

The intelligence expert considers that all espionage activity compromises the security of the State and the country. Based on his experience, he commented that, on occasion, the filtering of those recordings comes from the same teams of legislators. And he recommended to the same Assembly to take measures to prevent new violations.

Esta noticia ha sido publicada originalmente por Diario EL TELÉGRAFO bajo la siguiente dirección: https://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/politica/3/asamblea-investigacion-filtracion-audio
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For example, he proposed that there be an internal monitoring team to prevent this type of leakage; that there is a double “switch” in the automatic connection of microphones; and finally, that signal inhibitors of a range of five meters are placed. After the incident, the legislators questioned that they were recorded without authorization. For the Assemblywoman of Fuerza Ecuador (FE), María Mercedes Cuesta, those customs -of recording and filtering audios- originated in the government of Rafael Correa.

He regretted that these actions are currently replicated by assembly members. “(They) learned from the master, which left microphones and cameras in the presidential office,” wrote the weekend on Twitter. Eliseo Azuero, legislator of the National Integration Block (BIN), stressed that we must be careful with what is said and done, since these leaks are a consequence of the combat of “despicable practices” that existed in the previous government. “Today they are reluctant to lose control and try to scandalize to justify their passage through the public service, making us believe that we are all immoral,” said the legislator.

However, political analysts believe that these actions show that there is a “serious crisis” of political values. For the consultant and professor Marlon Orbea that filtered conversation denotes a “creole espionage” with political ends. He considers it disturbing that illegal recordings are used as a tool of blackmail.

On the other hand, the lawyer and analyst Alexander Dávila considers it worrisome that politicians obtain these recordings to discredit, threaten and blackmail their peers. (I)

Source: https://www.eltelegrafo.com.ec/noticias/politica/3/asamblea-investigacion-filtracion-audio