Indian influence

摘要

Though Latin America's millions of indigenous peoples have many campaigning groups, they have few political parties. And none has had the influence or the roller-coaster ride of Ecuador's Pacha-kutik. From rabble-rouser to government coalition member to feisty opposition in four years, it helped overthrow Jamil Ma-huad, Ecuador's president, in 2000, and elect Lucio Gutierrez to the post in 2002. Party leaders feared that it might have alienated supporters when it left Mr Gutierrez's coalition, in which it had little say, in 2003. And so it seemed, when protest marches called earlier this year fizzled after a few days, instead of driving out the president as promised.