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Courts have been struggling to cope with a backlog of cases
Ecuador’s President, Rafael Correa, signed a decree this week declaring a 60-day judicial emergency that allows the government to mobilise judges and others judicial officials countrywide to avoid a suspension in services after an earlier reform sacked some judges, many on corruption charges.
The courts have been struggling to cope with a backlog of cases.
The move comes at a time when the government is pushing forward with a controversial overhaul of Ecuador’s court system that it says is needed to tackle some 1.2 million cases in the pipeline.
Opposition leaders say the reforms are designed to give President Correa more control over key judicial appointments.
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