October 28, 2025, Lago Agrio, Ecuador.— Nearly three weeks after the bank accounts of the Ceibo Alliance Foundation were frozen, our organization has initiated the technical defense to which it is entitled by law. This process has involved overcoming multiple difficulties to obtain the case number being processed by the Specialized Unit for the Prosecution of Corruption and Organized Crime, at the request of the Financial and Economic Analysis Unit (UAFE).
It was only on October 6 that Banco del Pichincha in Lago Agrio informed Ceibo Alliance that the account freeze had been ordered by its headquarters. On October 8, Ceibo Alliance formally requested information from the bank, the Superintendence of Banks, and the UAFE regarding which entity had ordered the freeze, the legal grounds for the order, and the reasons justifying the decision. To date, no response has been received.
Finally, on Monday, October 20, Ceibo Alliance obtained the case number, the presiding judge, and designated a judicial address. As of today, the organization is still awaiting notification of the date and time for the hearing to review the precautionary measure imposed.
The freezing of the organization’s bank accounts within the financial system raises serious concerns, not only due to the lack of proper notification, but also because of the obstacles it creates for the organization to exerciseits right to defense, and the absence of clarity regarding the reasons invoked by the UAFE to justify this measure, which gravely affects the organization’s legal and legitimate activities.
Among other impacts, the freezing of the organization’s accounts has made it impossible to pay staff salaries and other legal and tax obligations. It has also prevented payments to suppliers and, most critically, has limited the organization’s ability to continue its essential work of community support, capacity building, and accompaniment.
For this reason, several Indigenous organizations from the Northern Amazon have sent communications to the presiding judge, expressing how this arbitrary and unjustified decision affects the lives of hundreds of families who rely on, trust, and depend on the work of the Ceibo Alliance.
While it is true that the UAFE may order the freezing of funds as an exceptional measure, it cannot do so arbitrarily. Such an action, and any possible ratification by a judge, must be fully justified and comply with the principles of necessity and proportionality established by law.
In the case of the Ceibo Alliance, the judge did not specify the duration of the measure beyond the eight-day period established by law. Nor did the order detail the amounts or transactions that allegedly provided objective, serious, or verifiable indications that prompted the UAFE to immediately impose the precautionary freezing of funds within the National Financial System, thereby affecting the entirety of the Foundation’s existing accounts.
In recent days, together with our legal team and the Alliance of Organizations for Human Rights, we have submitted legal briefs and supporting evidence demonstrating not only the strong reputation of the Ceibo Alliance but also the transparency with which our Foundation has operated throughout its ten years of existence. These documents show that the freezing of the Ceibo Alliance accounts and the initiation of this process, driven by the Ecuadorian government through the UAFE, are arbitrary, disproportionate, and unnecessary, seemingly intended to hinder and undermine our organizational work.
The funds received and managed by the Ceibo Alliance come from international donors and cooperation agencies. They are administered through project-based mechanisms and governed by formal management and use agreements. All are subject to accountability processes and, in most cases, to audits, thereby demonstrating both the legitimacy of the funds received and the lawful and transparent use made of them by our foundation.
All of the above not only evidences that our management fully complies with the law, but also underscores the essential nature of our work in supporting communities and peoples who the Ecuadorian State has historically and structurally neglected at all levels.
Those affected by these account freezes remain in a legal limbo, with no institution providing answers. When access to the case files is finally granted, it becomes evident that, in most instances, there is no factual or legal basis for the freezing measures. Moreover, despite the filing of formal requests for review, hearings are not convened promptly or with the urgency required by due process.
We warn that what is happening to human rights defenders, organizations, and certain social leaders could happen to any individual using the country’s banking or cooperative systems.
In the case of individuals and organizations like the Ceibo Alliance, who defend human, collective, and nature’s rights, these actions appear to be part of a broader strategy of dismantling and criminalization. This comes alongside growing attacks on political and civil freedoms, marked by unconstitutional measures and regressive legal reforms. The current threat is the dismantling of the plurinational and intercultural State of rights, the erosion of the Rights of Nature, and the targeting of organizations that oppose extractivism and territorial dispossession.
We call upon the national and international community to remain vigilant, to demand that the Ecuadorian Government fully respect due process and the principles of due diligence, and to stand in solidarity with those of us defending the Amazon, the rights of Indigenous Peoples, and the Rights of Nature.
Defending life and territory is not a crime; it is a right!
For more information regarding the legal process faced by the Ceibo Alliance Foundation, please visit: Gobierno ecuatoriano congela las cuentas bancarias de Fundación Alianza Ceibo, published on 9 October 2025.
Board of Directors of the Ceibo Alliance
Contact
Luisana Aguilar
+593 99 924 0129
