Andres Oppenheimer
While
Correa suspects that Venezuelan President
Palacio is one of the several well-known Ecuadoran journalists who have been victims of what leading freedom of the press groups - including the Committee to Protect Journalists,
Correa, who has shut down several news outlets over the past year, sued Palacio and three directors of El Universo for
Palacio, however, is seeking political asylum in
In an interview, Palacio laughed when I mentioned that Assange - who has been holed up at the Ecuadoran Embassy in
Palacio said the Ecuadoran president is seeking to outgrow his image as a follower of Chavez and Castro. His ego is too big, and he resents having been treated as a second-tier figure in the ALBA bloc, Palacio says.
When Correa took office in 2007, Chavez publicly referred to him as "this boy," Palacios says. And
Sensing there will soon be a leadership vacuum in the ALBA bloc, Correa has been stepping up his international showmanship in recent months, Palacio said.
In April, Correa managed to become the star in absentia of the 34-country Summit of the Americas with President
Then, in June, Correa was the only foreign leader who showed up at the
In July, Correa asked the Olympic Committee if he could parade in front of his country's team at the inauguration ceremony of the London Summer Olympics, the Spanish EFE news agency reported. Correa's petition was rejected by the Committee. Now, Correa is trying to grab international headlines by posing as a champion of the oppressed by granting Assange asylum, Palacio says.
My opinion: Palacio plays a little bit loose with words when he calls Correa a "dictator." For the time being, Correa is a narcissist populist leader who spends too much time trying to grab absolute powers, and too little to improve his country's living standards. Yet,
Still, opinions such as Palacio's don't justify Correa's all-out attacks on press freedoms. As
Palacio is right when he suggests that Correa's pretension to be seen as a champion of justice could hardly be more hypocritical. The very fact that Correa is saying that he wants to grant Assange asylum in
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