Mayor calls for talks, says city services operating normally; Strike halts local exports; Three dead in mine attack; Indian embassy to host ‘Yoga Day’

Jueves, 16/6/2022

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –

5 ciudades se unen para sesión de yoga (5 cities join for yoga session) – The Indian Embassy for Colombia and Ecuador, the Ministerio of Ayush, and the Consejo Indio para las Relaciones Culturales have organized a series of activities for the Día Internacional del Yoga which will be this coming 21/6. Cuenca will join with Quito, Guayaquil, Manta y Machala in yoga sessions taught by instructors from academies in each city. The sessions in Cuenca will be in the parque De La Madre from 8-12:00. To participate, wear comfortable clothing, preferably white, and bring a mat. No previous knowledge needed. Free.

Roadblocks erected by strikers are keeping Cuenca manufactured goods from national and international markets. (El Mercurio)

Los hermanos Vizñay-Loja llevan el rodeo en su sangre (The Vizñay-Loja brothers have rodeo in their blood) – The article is about the 3 brothers and bull riding which you can read on your own if you’re interested. There will be a rodeo este sábado, 18/6 a las 19:00 in the Hostería Turística Caballo Campana. The event will have the best riders in the city and country and is being organized by the Cuenca Bull Rider. In addition to trying to stay on a bull <who’d probably rather be grazing unmolested somewhere and is pissed he’s not> for 8 seconds, there will be barrel racing, a country music show, and more.

Titular –

Escasea el gas en Cuenca (Gas shortage in Cuenca) – See today’s (jueves) article in CHL for the story.

Informe –

Preocupación por efectos en la economía (Concern about effects on the economy) – According to statistics from the Cámara de Industrias, Producción y Empleo de Cuenca (CIPEM), the productive sectors in the city produce $13 million per day. Of this, $3.1 million or 23% is from industry, mostly manufacturing. Diego Solano, an economist and business consultant, said that Azuay leads in the manufacturing of ceramics, white goods (washing machines, stoves, etc. <before they started getting made in colors>), tires, furniture, liquor, plastics, and hats from paja toquilla (straw – “Panama” hats). He said that 93 – 95% is sent to other provinces and is exported. Almost all of it goes by road, and with the blockades, there’s no way to move the products. <I guess flowers might still be getting around since they go by air.> Lorena Medina, a commercial engineer and export consultant, said that in 2021, Azuay sold $9,336,000 worth of goods domestically, and exported another $224 million worth, mostly manufactured products.

At a press conference ayer, Mayor Palacios said that municipal services are being provided in the normal manner. Potable water distribution and garbage collection have not been inconvenienced by the strike. The Tranvía is operating normally although there have been problems for interprovincial bus transport. The livestock market and slaughterhouse are still functioning <So you can still have your pork chops and steaks even if the accompanying salad ingredients look like they’re in short supply.>. He called for a dialogue between the social groups and the Gobierno Nacional. He also called on the Intendencia General de Policía de Azuay to conduct controls in the mercados to avoid price speculation.

Empresarial –

En top financiero hay 2 cooperativas azuayas (There are 2 Azuayan cooperatives in the top financial category) – Savings and loan cooperatives have grown in the past few years. There were 7.4 million benficiaries in 2019 counting depositers and users of credit. This number jumped to 7,695,002 in 2021. An analysis by the superintendencia de Economía Popular y Solidaria (SEPS) which covered up to febrero de 2022, listed the cooperatives with the most credit given, the most deposits, and the most accounts. 3 Azuayan institutions on the list were Juventud Ecuatoriana Progresista (JEP) with $2,902 million, Jardín Azuayo with $2,276 million, and Policía Nacional with $2,268 million in activos (assets?). JEP had the most deposits at a national level with $2,569 million, followed by the Policía Nacional with $1,044 million, and Jardín Azuayo with $996 million. According to SEPS, of the cooperatives in segments 1 (assets over $80 million) and 2 (assets between $20 & $80 million), the Policía Nacional lent the most with 11,575 loans valuing $42,360,000 million; next was Jardín Azuayo with 5,915 loans, then JEP with 5,148 loans.

Nacional –

Ataque armado en una mina causa tres muertos (Ataque armado en una mina causa tres muertos) – An armed attack at the “Un Solo Toque” in the Santa Martha sector of Camilo Ponce Enríquez canton left 3 dead and 5 injured Tuesday afternoon. It was reported at 18:15 in the mine owned by Baldor Bermeo, mayor of the town. The attack was committed with large caliber guns, and ballistic evidence of 38, 5.56, and 9 mm. weapons were found. Two of the people killed worked in the mine and one was found 50 m. into the tunnel. One of the perpetrators was also found in the tunnel.

And that´s all for today so Hasta ? –

Jeanne