President of the Republic of Ecuador Seeks to Get Casinos and Other Gambling Businesses Back to Work

Ecuador (January 7, 2024) — Since 2011, casinos and all types of games of chance have been prohibited in Ecuador. That is due to another popular consultation.

Ecuadorian  digital newspaper Primicias reported that among the 11 questions for the popular consultation sent by President of the Republic of Ecuador Daniel Noboa to the Constitutional Court includes one with which the president seeks to get casinos and other gambling businesses back to work.

Question number 11 asks the following:

Do you agree that casinos, game rooms, betting houses or businesses dedicated to gambling are allowed to operate, under the conditions detailed in the Annex to question 11? In the document sent to the Constitutional Court, the Government states that the authorization of casinos and other similar businesses is proposed as a measure to generate employment.

The document ensures that the authorization of casinos is a “solution that, as long as it is carefully regulated, will contribute to strengthening economic stability and consequently, mitigate insecurity in dangerous areas.” The Constitutional Court has 20 days to hear the questions, which were sent on Tuesday, January 2. Ban on gambling The elimination of this type of business was proposed in the popular consultation of May 7, 2011, promoted by former president Rafael Correa. At that time, the former president assured that the objective of eliminating casinos was to create “a healthier environment” for young people and prevent parents from losing their income due to “the vice of gambling.”

Even the operation of casinos, game rooms or betting houses in the country is classified as a crime in the Comprehensive Organic Penal Code (COIP), approved in October 2013. People who manage this type of business can face a custodial sentence of one to three years and a fine of fifty to one hundred unified basic salaries of the worker in general.

SOURCE: Ecuadorian  digital newspaper Primicias.