CUENCA DIGESTHeavy rains overload city sewers, cause flooding

Heavy rains in the past 10 days have caused minor flooding in several areas of Cuenca and prompted calls from residents for city government to improve maintenace of storm drains.

Cuenca Fire Chief Carlos Chaca agreed that better maintenance could have prevented some of the problems, particularly in the southern areas of the city. He also said that logs and branches in city streams and rivers contributed to the flooding.

A Cuenca city spokesman said that maintenance crews were caught off guard because heavy rains are unusual this time of year. He added that work on-going on Rio Yanuncay will help prevent future flooding. The $800,000 project will be completed by July, he said.

Azuay provincial police form elite anti-crime unit

The Azuay Province Police Command has announced the creation of a new task force to combat serious crime. The task force will focus on weapons control, drug trafficking and robbery on roads and highways.

Mario Castro, chief administrative officer for the Azuay Police Command, reports that 30 men were selected for task force. The group will receive special training and work closely with the Command’s Special Operations Group.

According to Castro, the officers selected for the task force come with high qualifications and have undergone a rigorous vetting process. The new task will work primarily under cover.

Cuenca and Quito host international human rights conference

Dozens of international human rights experts will visit Cuenca and Quito from February 20 to 16 as part of the government sponsored "State of the Democratic Constitutional Law: Law and Human Rights” conference.

The panel of judges, attorneys and activists will discuss human rights provisions in Ecuador’s new constitution and discuss the state of international human rights.

Among those participating are Fillipi Alberto,  professor at the University of Camerino, Italy; Luigi Marini, the Court of Cassation, Italy; Doñate Antonio, a former judge of the Audiencia Provincial de Barcelona, Spain; José Antonio Martín Pallín, Supreme Court Justice Spain. Jesús Fernández Entralgo, presiding judge of the Audiencia Provincial de Huelva, Spain; Antonia Saquicuray, Judge, Lima, Peru; and Samuel Abad Yupanqui, Peruvian constitutionalist.

For more information about the event, call 09 584 4154.