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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| Ecuador votes for new assembly | Ecuador votes for new assembly |
| (about 8 hours later) | |
| The people of Ecuador have voted for a new constituent assembly designed to radically alter how the country is run. | |
| President Rafael Correa wants the 130-member body to dissolve Congress and cut traditional parties' powers. | President Rafael Correa wants the 130-member body to dissolve Congress and cut traditional parties' powers. |
| Mr Correa, who came to power in January, says the assembly will bring politics back to the people after years of corrupt and inept governments. | Mr Correa, who came to power in January, says the assembly will bring politics back to the people after years of corrupt and inept governments. |
| But opposition groups say the move will only concentrate more power in the hands of the president. | But opposition groups say the move will only concentrate more power in the hands of the president. |
| They accuse him of wanting to turn Ecuador into a socialist state. | They accuse him of wanting to turn Ecuador into a socialist state. |
| Ecuador has thrown out three previous presidents in the last 10 years, and successive governments have been roundly criticised. | Ecuador has thrown out three previous presidents in the last 10 years, and successive governments have been roundly criticised. |
| 'Put aside hate' | 'Put aside hate' |
| The president's party expects to win more than two-thirds of the vote necessary to implement the changes he has promised. | The president's party expects to win more than two-thirds of the vote necessary to implement the changes he has promised. |
| This is the reaffirmation of a change in the times, the light at the end of the tunnel President Rafael Correa | This is the reaffirmation of a change in the times, the light at the end of the tunnel President Rafael Correa |
| In a speech broadcast at the start of voting, Mr Correa called for a strong mandate. | In a speech broadcast at the start of voting, Mr Correa called for a strong mandate. |
| "Put aside hate and rancour and join in the construction of a new country," he said. | "Put aside hate and rancour and join in the construction of a new country," he said. |
| "This is the reaffirmation of a change in the times, the light at the end of the tunnel." | "This is the reaffirmation of a change in the times, the light at the end of the tunnel." |
| But the BBC's South America correspondent Daniel Schweimler says more than 3,200 candidates and a complex voting system has left many voters undecided or simply confused. | But the BBC's South America correspondent Daniel Schweimler says more than 3,200 candidates and a complex voting system has left many voters undecided or simply confused. |
| Among the candidates are several former beauty queens, a long-haired monk who walks the streets urging voters to take from the rich and a masked crime fighter known as The Punisher who says his face is covered because he is allergic to corruption. | Among the candidates are several former beauty queens, a long-haired monk who walks the streets urging voters to take from the rich and a masked crime fighter known as The Punisher who says his face is covered because he is allergic to corruption. |
| There are evangelical Christians and Marxists, offering an array of measures, including a return of the death penalty and nationalising the country's oil industry. | There are evangelical Christians and Marxists, offering an array of measures, including a return of the death penalty and nationalising the country's oil industry. |