Of course, Gutierrez is a scumball for stacking the Supreme Court with his political bed partners and the mass protests against him were totally warranted. But apparently there was something wrong with the vote that kicked him out, and it has the OAS concerned.

QUITO, April 21 (Xinhuanet) — The Organization of American States(OAS) Thursday gave the new government in Ecuador 24 hours to explain how the Congress concluded that President Lucio Gutierrez should be removed from office, the local press reported.

The request came after Ecuador’s acting representative to the OAS, Jaime Barberis, told an emergency session of the 34-nation organization in Washington that Gutierrez’s removal “was a constitutional act.”

Briefing OAS ambassadors on the situation in Ecuador, Barberis said Gutierrez was removed from office “for dereliction of duty” and it was “supported by people.”

Barberis also asked the ambassadors to pass a “resolution” supporting the new Ecuadorian government headed by Alfredo Palacio,who was Gutierrez’s vice president.

In response, Panamanian ambassador Aristides Royo asked Ecuadorto explain how the “dereliction of duty” was determined.

Peruvian Ambassador Alberto Borea, who is also the president ofthe Permanent Council of Ambassadors, said the inter-American community “cannot look in a different direction and say nothing is happening in Ecuador.”

Borea said Gutierrez was still in the Presidential Residence inQuito and “giving orders as president” when a group of congressmen,all from the opposition, agreed to oust him in a meeting held in avenue away from the seat of the Congress.

The Peruvian ambassador also noted that the Ecuadorian congressmen ousted Gutierrez in a session short of the required quorum of at least a third of the total lawmakers.

OAS ambassadors are scheduled to meet again on Friday to hear Barberis’ explanation from Ecuador’s new government. The ambassadors who attended Thursday’s meeting did not say what action they would take if they find the explanation unsatisfactory.

According to the 2001 Inter-American Democratic Charter, it is theoretically likely to impose sanctions on Ecuador if the OAS decides that Gutierrez’s removal is unconstitutional.

What makes this particular situation complicated is the point just made, that many see what Gutierrez did as illegal in the first place, the fact that Ecuador has scrapped many of its past constitutions. So what should happen? The Congress could easily gather the necessary 1/3 session and recast the vote for his ousting, but if they aren’t able to, the whole country would be thrown into a total political crisis amidst the confusion. If they don’t, however, they will be violating their own constitution and risk not being recognized by the OAS. So far, the United States is calling on them to simply hold new elections, and chances are, that’s probably the safest route for establishing a new government without too much controversy.