Ecuador Indigenous organization asks leftist candidate to respond to proposals
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FILE PHOTO: Supporters of presidential candidate, Leonidas Iza, leader of Ecuador's CONAIE (Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador), walk through the streets of the capital's historic center while campaigning, in Quito, Ecuador January 24, 2
By Alexandra Valencia
QUITO (Reuters) -Major Ecuadorean Indigenous organization CONAIE and leftist social organizations said on Wednesday they will not support incumbent Daniel Noboa for president in an April run-off and that they have asked leftist candidate Luisa Gonzalez to respond to a list of proposals.
The Indigenous vote in the country overall appears divided, with some groups saying they will back Noboa.
Noboa, a 37-year-old heir to a business fortune, beat Gonzalez, a protege of former President Rafael Correa, by less than 1% of the vote in a February first round.
The unexpectedly narrow margin means CONAIE leader and former candidate Leonidas Iza - who notched 5.25% of the vote - could potentially have important influence on who wins in a second round.
Though CONAIE has criticized Noboa's efforts on security and the economy, other Indigenous and social organizations have said they will back the president, who is finishing his predecessor's term, for a full mandate.
Among the proposals floated to Gonzalez by the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE) and the other groups are a halt to privatizations and large scale mining projects and an end to Noboa's declaration of war against crime gangs, the organizations said.
They also want sales tax lowered back to 12%, after Noboa raised it to 15% in a bid to fund security operations, and oppose Ecuador's deal with the International Monetary Fund.
Meanwhile the CONFENIAE, a confederation of Indigenous groups from Ecuador's Amazon which is part of CONAIE, has said it will back Noboa but wants a dialogue with the president about Amazon policies.
The party represented by former candidate Andrea Gonzalez, who came fourth in the February vote with 2.69%, has said it will back Noboa.
(Reporting by Alexandra ValenciaWriting by Julia Symmes Cobb)
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