Quito court grants Llori another reprieve; No damage reported from Cuenca quake; Monkeypox suspected in Quito; Labor union joins Conaie in June protests

The effort to oust National Assembly President Guadalupe Llori hit another roadblock Friday when a Quito court ruled that Llori can ignore a report recommending her removal. The legal maneuver, requested by the Assembly’s Pachakutik bloc, of which Llori is a member, delays indefinitely the opposition’s effort to replace her.

A Quito court ruled Friday that National Assembly President can ignore a report by an Assembly commission recommending her dismissal.

The Correista Union of Hope, the Social Christian Party and some members of Pachakutik and the Democratic Left have tried for weeks to remove Llori from leadership but have been thwarted by a series of legal actions and the fact they lack a two-thirds majority to bring the issue to a vote by the full Assembly.

In its Friday action, the court said that Llori “can refrain from dealing with and resolving the report” that would lead to her removal.

Following the court ruling, Marcela Holguín of the Union of Hope said the opposition would appeal the court decision while it continues removal efforts next week.

No damage reported from local earthquake
A magnitude 4.1 earthquake 18 kilometers west of Cuenca resulted in no damage, officials reported Friday night. The quake was recorded at 8:37 p.m., centered in a sparsely populated area of the Cajas Mountains.

The quake occurred at a depth of 71 kilometers and was felt in Cuenca and several nearby communities. The Ecuador Geophysical Institute said that the depth of the quake and the fact it occurred in an area of solid rock minimized its impact.

Monkeypox case suspected in Quito
A suspected case of monkeypox is being investigated in Quito. According to Health Minister Ximena Garzón, an African man who arrived in Ecuador last week is under observation at a Quito hospital and his status will known by Monday or Tuesday

“The man presents several symptoms consistent with the pox, including fever and skin rashes and we are conducting tests,” Garzón said. She added that the man traveled directly from Africa and did not pass through Europe and North America where dozens of monekypox cases have been confirmed.

Only two cases of the disease have been confirmed in South America, both in Argentina.

Union plans to join anti-government protest
The United Workers’ Front, Ecuador’s largest labor union, announced Thursday it will join a national protest June 22 against the policies of President Guillermo Lasso. A week earlier, the Ecuador Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie) said it would begin a “continuing strike” against the government June 13.

Ángel Sánchez, president of the FUT, said members stand in opposition to the government’s “neoliberal actions that have led to increased suffering for Ecuadorians.” Among the union’s complaints are a lack of action to address unemployment, the increased cost of living, high crime rates and the “privatization” of public services and facilities.

According to Sánchez, Lasso’s claim that 300,000 jobs have been created during the past year is false. “Most of these are informal since the IESS only registers 100,000 new jobs during the period. This is part of the government’s continuing pattern of lies suggesting that the situation is improving for the population.”