focused both on providing jobs for low level drug traffickers in legitimate business, and on using the military to patrol the borders looking for drugs as well as weapons and fugitives. Although the gains made by these efforts were felt to be modest, they improved the public perception of the country's ability to deal with the problem, and also the international perception ("Urban Crime" 37).
Ecuador is increasingly involved in the drug trafficking issues of Latin America, particularly in areas along the border with Colombia. Oil remains a key export from Ecuador to the United States, but the country is also participating in processing Colombian coca into cocaine for export to the United States. In the border region, violence is increasing, and the war on drugs in Colombia is producing a large number of refugees seeking a better life in Ecuador. This is putting considerable pressure on the economy of Ecuador, as well as bringing new violence to that already troubled country. Oil workers have been
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