Outcry as Ecuador allows US military to use Galapagos Islands airstrip
- Political row sparked after Ecuador’s government gave US permission to use island for anti-narcotics flights
The Galapagos Islands are at the centre of political row in Ecuador after the government agreed to allow US anti-narcotics planes to use an airstrip on the archipelago which inspired Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution.
Dozens of people demonstrated outside the main government office in Quito on Monday to protest against a plan they described as a threat to the World Heritage Site’s unique environment – and an attack on Ecuador’s sovereignty.
The Galapagos Islands, 900km west of the South American continent, are renowned for their unique plants and wildlife.
Unesco describes the archipelago – visited by a quarter of a million tourists every year – as a “living museum and a showcase for evolution”.
Ecuador’s Defence Minister Oswaldo Jarrin provoked patriotic and environmental outrage last week when he said that US aircraft would be able to use the airbase on San Cristobal Island, and described the islands as a “natural aircraft carrier”.
