In Ecuador, protests have erupted in Quito after the National Assembly approved controversial constitutional reforms that permit the indefinite re-election of public officials, including the president. The reforms also grant the military increased power and strip away some collective bargaining rights for unionized public workers. At the protest, opposition lawmaker Ramiro Aguilar called for the measures to be put to a national referendum.

Ramiro Aguilar: “The decision is not to validate—not with presence, nor with our votes—this spurious process that started in the Constitutional Court, the Constitutional Court which is controlled by the government. And so, we will stand firm, democratic, but in absolute respect of the popular decision based on a referendum.”

Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa has vowed not to seek re-election in 2017.