Ombudsman requests access to new prison; Maduro wants General Sucre’s body; Government owes Azuay Province millions; Country risk and inflation fall

Ecuador Ombudsman César Córdova has asked the Ministry of the Interior for access to the new high security Encuentro Prison in Santa Elena Province. “It is our constitutional duty to verify that prisoners are being treated humanely and that human rights protocols are being observed,” he said.

Córdova said he was responding to the fact that the relocation of more than 300 prisons to Encuentro was carried out before work at Encruentro was complete. According to the government, work is 40% to 45% complete but critics claim many of the prison’s essential systems have not been installed.

Azuay Province and the city of Cuenca are owed millions of dollars by the government. The government acknowledges the debt but says it doesn’t have the money and will pay when it does.

“We make no prior judgement and are awaiting ministry authorization to carry out a full and independent assessment,” Córdova.said.

Under Ecuadorian law, the Ombudsman’s office is required to investigate claims of human rights violations of citizens.

Maduro wants General Sucre dug up and returned to Venezuela
Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro wants the body of General Antonio José de Sucre returned to his “Venezuelan homeland,” claiming it is an outrage that he is buried in Ecuador. “He should be rescued and brought home to be among people who love him instead of in a country where its presidents hate Venezuelans.”

Sucre is buried in the Metropolitan Cathedral in Quito.

The idea to dig up Sucre and replant him Caracas is not new. Maduro suggested it in 2019, claiming Ecuadorians exhibited xenophobia toward Venezuelan migrants. “The president there [Lenín Moreno] has shown his hatred to our people and our hero should not remain at eternal rest under such conditions,” Maduro said.

On Wednesday, Maduro said he ordered his Interior Minister to begin proceedings to bring Sucre back to Venezuela.

In response, Quito historian Alejandro López said in a Friday radio interview that, in his will, Sucre asked to be buried in Quito.

Government owes Azuay Province millions
Azuay Province Prefect Juan Cristóbal Lloret on Wednesday demanded that the government pay its debt to the province. “The debt of $12 million has gone unpaid for five months and is affecting our operations and our ability to pay employees,” he said. “This is money that is, by law, required to be paid to the province on a timely bases. It is collected in Azuay and should not be used by the government for other purposes.”

Last week, Cuenca Mayor Cristian Zamora made a similar demand, claiming government debt to the city amounted to nearly $20 million. He accused the government of President Daniel Noboa of mismanagement, claiming that “flow-through funding” to local governments should be a priority.

Country risk and inflation fall
Ecuador’s country risk rating and inflation rate improved in October, the Central Bank reports. The country risk, a measurement of investors’ confidence in the ability to meet external debt, dropped to 688 while the inflation rate was 1.25%, the lowest of the year.

In November 2023, following the resignation of President Guillermo Lasso and the cross-death election, the country risk reached a record 2,016.