Ecuadoreans pelt lawmakers with stones_3452

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However, Correa now faces his toughest challenge since taking office in January as opposition lawmakers have vowed to fight his political plans.
Fifty-seven legislators reject the electoral tribunal's ruling. They want to block Correa's call for a referendum that aims to dilute the power of traditional political parties in the world's top banana exporter.
Ecuadoreans pelt lawmakers with stones
On Monday, dozens of Correa backers clashed with opposition sympathizers as lawmakers scuffled with riot police and forced their way into Congress, widely perceived as corrupt.
Correa, a leftist ally of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, was elected by a wide margin last year on a pledge to battle political bosses many blame for chronic instability. Ecuador has had eight presidents in ten years.
The widely popular Correa has demanded lawmakers be replaced by substitutes from the same parties, a move that could weaken his strongest opponents in Congress.
Lawmakers want the judge in Rocafuerte,You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, who ordered a temporary suspension of their dismissal, to override the verdict of the electoral tribunal, although the tribunal has often rejected rulings from lower courts.
A crowd of Ecuadoreans pelted lawmakers with rocks and smashed their cars,You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, police and legislators said,You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, as a feud between President Rafael Correa and Congress deepens in the volatile Andean country.
Hundreds of people in the coastal town of Rocafuerte, 230 km west of Quito, blocked congressmen from asking a court to overturn a decision by the electoral tribunal to fire them last week.
On Thursday, thousands participated in two separate marches in the country's business hub, Guayaquil, to support Correa and his rival, the popular mayor of the port city,You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login, Jaime Nebot.
Police in Rocafuerte said the crowd had vowed not to let the lawmakers back into the town.
Television said a handful of protesters and police had been injured.
"A mob assaulted us. They destroyed our cars and hurled rocks at us," lawmaker Gloria Gallardo told Reuters by phone.
It was not immediately clear how many lawmakers had tried to get to the court or whether any of them had been hurt.