Defensoría del pueblo y tortura en los estados de excepción en Ecuador en 2024

Abstract

This document analyzes the role of the Ecuadorian Ombudsman's Office in response to allegations of torture and cruel treatment recorded during the states of emergency declared in 2024. At the national level, the year was marked by a crisis of internal security, an increase in organized crime, and a structural collapse of the prison system, which prompted the executive branch to issue multiple emergency decrees based on serious internal unrest and internal armed conflict. This created a scenario of tension between the need to guarantee public order and the state's obligation to protect human rights without restriction, especially personal integrity as an inalienable right. The research was conducted using a qualitative approach, documentary and hermeneutic analysis, systematizing the reports of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture (MNPT), rulings of the Constitutional Court, and institutional reports. The Ombudsman's Office carried out verification actions, control visits, interviews, and issued recommendations. Its intervention faced operational limitations related to restricted access, lack of technical resources, and absence of standardized protocols. Finally, it is concluded that protecting the right to personal integrity requires strengthening preventive capacity, creating structural oversight mechanisms, and consolidating institutional policies that guarantee democratic control of the state's use of force, contributing to a culture of peace and respect for human dignity.