Alondra Santiago was harshly criticised for using the Ecuadorian national anthem to make a parody of the president’s administration.
14ymedio, Quito, 28 June 2024 — Cuban journalist and actress Alondra Santiago left Ecuador on Friday, where she has lived for nearly 20 years, after the government of President Daniel Noboa withdrew her visa. The decision has been criticised as an attack on freedom of expression against a journalist who is critical of the government.
Noboa’s administration informed Santiago on Tuesday that it was withdrawing her permanent residency visa on the grounds of alleged acts against national security, which was based on a “secret report” prepared by the intelligence centre.
Through her talk show Ingobernables, which is broadcast on social networks and has a wide audience, Santiago had been critical of Noboa and in the last elections had expressed her sympathy for Luisa González, the candidate of Correísmo.
Weeks ago she was harshly criticised for using the Ecuadorian national anthem to make a parody of President Noboa’s administration.
In the last few hours I have taken the difficult decision to leave my country: Ecuador. And I’m not leaving deported, I’m leaving legally first.
In fact, the government broadcast the national anthem in a national chain (message to the nation) through the media on the same Tuesday that the decision was made known, with the previous phrase “out of respect for the country”.
In a video published on social networks by her lawyer Carlos Soria, Santiago explained that she had taken the decision to leave the country before the government deported her and while waiting for the legal actions presented by her lawyers to take effect and for her to be able to return to the country. The
