Ecuadorean indigenous leader says fuel prices must fall by Tuesday

Ecuadorean indigenous leader Jaime Vargas said on Monday that gasoline and diesel prices and transportation fares must return to levels that were in effect before the government's now-canceled plan to slash fuel subsidies. The comments followed Ecuadorean President Lenin Moreno's promise to repeal a decree that had eliminated four-decade-old fuel subsidies, confirming he had given in to a chief demand of protesters who had agitated against it for nearly two weeks.

Vargas said he expected prices to be normalized by Tuesday, a sign that a law being drafted by the government and representatives of indigenous groups might not mean higher fuel prices for consumers. "We've freed the country," Vargas told a news conference to applause from supporters. "Enough of the pillaging of the Ecuadorean people!"