Cuenca orphan and senior care workers go unpaid; Indigenous protesters block Ecuador-Colombia bridge; Two Avianca flights to Cuenca refuse to land

Employees of three Cuenca facilities that house and care for children and the elderly say they have not been paid by the government for three months. On Tuesday, about fifty workers from Cristo Rey, Miguel León and Tadeo Torres protested in Parque Calderon and outside the offices of Ministry of Economic and Social Inclusion (MIES), which is contracted to pay the salaries.

The workers say they are also concerned that MIES has not signed the annual agreement to pay employees at the three centers through 2025.

Two Avianca Airline flights could not land in Cuenca this week, siting bad weather. However, Latam flights landed within minutes of the Avianca diversions. (El Mercurio)

Jenny Albarracín, a gerontological nurse at Cristo Rey, said she and her fellow workers have not been paid since October. “We continue to work out of love and respect for the old people who depend on us,” she said, “but we have bills to pay and cannot continue much longer.”

She carried a sign at the Cuenca MIES headquarters reading, “Mr. President, we want our salaries, we must be paid.”

Albarracín said this is not the first time workers have gone unpaid. “We seem to be way down on the list of the government’s priorities, which shows you how much they care about the elderly and the homeless children.”

Administrators at the three centers say they are in contact with MIES officials and say they expect the payment problems to be resolved soon.

Indigenous protesters block Ecuador-Colombia bridge
Protesters from three indigenous communities are blocking the Rumichaca Bridge at Tulcán that connects Ecuador and Colombia. The protests follow the destruction of three “informal bridges” by the governments of Ecuador and Colombia, which they claim were used by smugglers to transport illegal goods, including cocaine.

Although talks continue with Ecuadorian officials in Tulcán, no settlement had been reached by mid-day Wednesday, although protesters were allowing the passage of some buses.

The protesters claim the dismantled bridges east of Tulcán were traditional indigenous crossing points that have been used for generations. “We do not recognize international borders since we lived on this land long before the countries were formed,” a protest leaders said. “This is how we connect with our brothers and sisters across the river.”

According to Ecuador’s Interior Ministry, the destroyed bridges were considered “informal” and cannot be monitored by immigration authorities. “They had become smuggling routes used by criminals and must be closed,” a ministry spokesman said. “We regret the inconvenience to those who respect the law, but we must ask them to use the Rumichaca Bridge.”

Two Avianca flights to Cuenca can’t land
Cuenca Mayor Cristian Zamora and Azuay Prefect Juan Cristóbal Lloret are demanding an explanation why two Avianca flights from Quito were unable to land at the Cuenca airport. Avianca blamed the flight diversions, one on Sunday and the second on Wednesday, on bad weather although officials at Mariscal La Mar Airport say conditions were favorable for landing.

Zamora said the two incidents are the latest in series of Avianca incidents he says “leaves much to be desired” from the airline. Since late last year, he said, “numerous flights” have been cancelled without explanation even though the airline reports it consistently flies the Quito-Cuenca route at 90% to 100% capacity.

The airport management reported light rain was falling Sunday but said there was no rain and partly cloudy skies Wednesday morning. It also reported that two Latam flights landed within minutes of both Avianca diversions.

With all votes counted, Noboa finishes first in Feb. 9 election
With 100% of votes counted in the presidential election, President Daniel Noboa finished in first place with a .2% lead, 44.17% to 43.97%, over second-place finisher Luisa González. The National Electoral Council released its final number on Tuesday.

Noboa and González meet in an April 13 runoff election.

COE posted the final results after rejecting vote-count challenges by the campaigns of both candidates.