Odebrecht fined, Police protect themselves, Medicinal plants congress, Pottery fair in Azogues, Maduro deploys the big guns

Jueves,5/9/2019

Hola, Todos –

Actividades –
De la pagina cultural –

Exposición – “Mnemografías,” a show by Miguel Betancourt opened Thursday in Saledentro. He works in inks and watercolors on thin papers, ideal for Asian caligraphy, but with images of local places.

Teatro – “Uróboros: la Batallas por el distino empieza” will be presented Friday a las 20:00 in the Espacio Nómada (Pres. Córdova y Luis Cordero, next to the fire station). It’s an action/adventure story in which “Uróboro” is an object representing a serpent eating its tail. If it is activated, the world will descent into chaos. The good guys have to fight the devil. <I’m imagining something a little like Chinese opera – music, a simple plot, and martial arts.>

Del cuerpo del periodico –

Odebrecht is fined for illegal practices.

Congreso Internacional de Plantas Medicinas – There is a congress on medicinal plants in the teatro Carlos Cueva Tamariz this week. Internacional students, professionals, and researchers are in Cuenca for the 7th Congress.

Feria de la Alfareria – There will be a pottery festival in San Miguel de Porotos in Azogues canton el 15/9 a las 9:00 in the plaza central. This craft sustains the families of 16 women who produce these hand formed ollas de barra (clay cooking pots). They can be purchased from $2 up at the Plaza Rotary in Cuenca. <Try cooking in one – it gives a nice taste to the food. Remember to season or temper the pot first, though, or it’ll leak.>

Otras cosas –

Titular – La policía tiene su propia defensa (The police have their own defense) – The police in 4 cities in Ecuador, including Cuenca, have police lawyers in Departamentos de Defensa Institucional to defend police against complaints made while doing their jobs. It also represents police who have been victims of aggression.

Indígenas exigen respectar sus derechos (Indigenous people demand respect for their rights) – Representatives from indigenous peoples of Ecuador, mainly waorani from the Amazon, demonstrated in front of the Asamblea Nacional to demand that authorities comply with local and internacional laws protecting their rights and those of nature. They also referred to the fires in Brazil and how the people and nationalities most affected have been made invisible.

City ordinance – The City council had its second debate on an ordinance about rights of disabled people in various aspects of their lives including health, education, mobility, accessibility and preferred parking. The ordinance will update ordinances from 2010 and 2017 and bring it into conformance with national rules.

Hospital lighting work – 19 new poles with new lighting have been installed around the “José Carrasco Arteago” hospital (IESS) to improve security for the aproximately 3,000 patients the hospital sees daily.

Odebrecht fine – The giant Brazilian construction firm will pay $50 million after recognizing illegal practices on 2 projects financed by the Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID). The payments will start in 2024 to NGO’s and social projects to improve the quality of life for vulnerable communities in BID member countries. <But by 2024 will Odebrecht be a totally different company and deny liability for the illegal practices of its predecessor? Just look at Chevron.>

Archeological excavation – A Japanese archeologist is working with a team from the U. of Cuenca to excavate sites on the Narrío hill in Cañar and in the El Bosque sector of El Tambo canton. They want to determine the commercial relationships between the south of Ecuador and the north of Perú that existed 3,000 years ago. At Narrío, they have found pieces of ceramics, animal bones, carved stones, shells, and carbon which will help date the site.

Internacional –

Venezuela – Pres. Maduro announced that he will desplegará (deploy – your word for the day – no particular reason.) and anti-missile, anti-aircraft, and land defense system along the border with Colombia. <A scary situation given Duque’s closeness to the US. Remember who Iván Duque is?>

Argentina – Thousands of protestors marched on two government buildings in Buenos Aires to pass a law to deal with an “emergencia alimentaria” (food emergency). According to the Institute of Statistics and the Census, there were 23.4% of households, or about 32% of the population, living under the poverty line in the second half of 2018.

And that’s all for today so Hasta la Próxima Semana –

Jeanne