In any case, it is clear that at this point in time the country is suffering from very deep political polarization, in which the main opposition force is the movement led by the predecessor of the president who in 2018 called the consultation and who cannot return to the country due to of the conviction in the aforementioned Bribery Case. 53. It should be added that in the aforementioned Bribery Case, the vice president of the executive who called the consultation, Jorge Glas, was also sentenced and when the new president broke with his predecessor, he remained in the political opposition. He currently remains in detention. 54. It is not clear whether the popularly elected ex-vice president was dismissed according to constitutional procedure, or if he was replaced by the mere fact that being imprisoned he could not perform his duties, but beyond this circumstance, what is certain is that the conditions under which he is kept in detention have been a matter of serious concern and at some point raised fears for his life, such that the Inter-American Commission ordered precautionary measures that led to his relocation. It has also transpired that it would shortly proceed to make a visit to verify the current situation of the detainee in situ. 55. Notwithstanding the Commission’s actions, news reports relay that other prominent international authorities have expressed concern about the situation of Jorge Glas, who apparently is undergoing new proceedings, in accordance with the well-known procedure of indefinite cloning of criminal proceedings, typical of repeated cases of lawfare in our region, such as the one affecting Milagro Sala in Argentina for more than four years and which also prompted measures by the InterAmerican System and this very Court. 16 56. I consider it absolutely unnecessary to draw attention to the enormous seriousness the above represents for democracy, the respect due to pluralism and the principles of the Rule of Law, widely developed in this Court’s case law and ratified with the recent measures ordered regarding the State of Nicaragua. 17 II.3.c. Conclusions with regard to context 57. Although some of the data set out above will be aired in the course of the investigations that have been processed in the Inter-American System and in that of the United Nations, the truth is that what has been fully proven and, therefore, is beyond any doubt, is the following: (a) The institutional situation of Ecuador, as a result of the use that the Executive Branch made of the powers conferred by the aforementioned referendum, is internationally questioned and inquiries have been opened in this regard with proceedings underway both before the Inter-American System and before the United Nations, which indicates that in both areas prima facie credence has been given to the accusations. (b) Interpol rejected the request for the international arrest of the Ecuadorian opposition leader due to his conviction in the Bribery Case, as usually happens when it recognizes signs of a possible case of political persecution. 16 I/A Court HR,. Matter of Milagro Sala regarding Argentina. Request for Provisional Measures. Order of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of November 23, 2017. 17 I/A Court HR,. Matter of Juan Sebastián Chamorro et al. regarding Nicaragua. Provisional Measures. Orders of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights of November 4 and 22, 2021. 9