How Long Will the Nationwide Strike Persist?

Government, Conaie back at negotiations.

I learned after the Oct 2019 strike to keep two extra filled gas cylinders on hand. I have begun buying my medications in a more accelerated manner.

September 21 strike called by labor groups.

An Internet search shows no signs of

progress toward resuming the stalled talks

that were halted by El Presidente

between the government and the indígenas. 

September has arrived with news

(see www.cuencahighlife.com) that the

United Workers Front is calling a

strike for the 21st of the month.

The purpose is to protest problems

with funding and operations at

the public health system and IESS, which

provides health care for Ecuadorians

and Expats.

The labor group says it will be joined in

the strike by the educators union,

the Confederation of Free Trade Organizations,

the Confederation of Unitary Class

Organizations of Workers and the

General Union of Workers of Ecuador.

This may not be a one-and-done protest...

Mesias Tatamuez, president of the

CEDOCUT union, said:  "Our protest will

continue until we see definitive action

by the government to adequately finance

the IESS services that our members support

through their contributions."

Workers are denied appointments, treatment

and medicines, said Tatamuez,

and people are dying.

This may not be a one-and-done protest...

Will you be back in time in the centro histórico of Quito to observe the violence, or do you still have days left on your tourist stamp? I am thankful that at least we may be heading into the time of year when there is more sun, so I can take a another shower. I need the water to reach 105 degrees and the past two weeks it has been cold and overcast in Cuenca.

I have to be back in Quito.  September 21 was long ago

scheduled for my drivers license renewal in Ecuador, and

the date can't be changed by me over the Internet.

Hopefully, the streets will be clear enough that day

to make it to the DMV office where it's scheduled.

I'll be back a couple of weeks beforehand for

a hearing test and other preparations for the

renewal appointment.

cccmedia in Colombia

Looks like September 9th is a key date for the "negotiations," according to Iza.

https://www.metroecuador.com.ec/noticia … -nacional/

A key date?  That's what Leonidas Iza would like us

to think.

--

Sr. Iza blinked first.  That's how I see it.

The whole month of August rolled by .. and the

government made no apparent effort to get

the talks back on track.

Now Iza notices that September 9 is roughly

45 days into the 90 day cooling-off period ..

and posits his concept of what seems

like a deadline.

Then on September 9 he can be guaranteed the

press will show up and ask him:  So, Sr. Iza,

it's September 9 and not much has happened.

What ya gonna do now? 

cccmedia

The latest posturing in the case of

the government of Ecuador versus

the indígenas.

-- The Catholic Church, which had been

moderating the talks, says some issues

have been resolved and this clears the

way for the talks to resume or continue.

--  The two sides agreed on Thursday

to resume the talks in good faith.

-- Government negotiator Francisco Jiménez

said on Wednesday that the government

will not be taking orders from Sr. Iza

or CONAIE.  Jiménez rejected the implication

that CONAIE would reinitiate protests

if progress is too slow. "Returning the

country to a state of chaos will solve nothing.

We must talk, not threaten each other,"

Jiménez said.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

What is really happening?

Based on Cuenca Highlife's latest updates,

it's unclear when substantive discussion of the

issues will resume.  It is not clear whether

substantive issues are being discussed .. or

whether it's mostly procedural ground rules

for potential discussion being decided.

Note the final paragraph of the article:

"[T]he United Nations Special Rapporteur

Office said it was pleased that talks

will continue.  The Rapporteur said it

would host meetings between the

indigenous groups and the government

to resolve procedural issues."

If we are subject to another national paro or worse, you might want to buy in bulk your oatmeal. I noticed this product for the first time when perusing their catalog.

I have a favorite cereal I buy at MegaMaxi, and it

is not oatmeal.

---

My strategy for another strike or worse affecting

Centro Histórico here in Quito .. has nothing to

do with cereal.

It has to do with exiting the city before the real

trouble arrives .. and -- from my listening post

in Lima or Medellín -- following the news to know

when 'the coast is clear' to return to Quito.

When I signed up for Expat life in Quito

ten years ago, I wasn't signing up to

stay in the city during any periods when

protesters were burning tires in the streets

and parks .. and barricading the roads.

cccmedia in Quito

News and analysis.

According to Reuters' latest reporting on the

now-resumed negotiations between the indígenas

and the Ecuadorian government:

"QUITO, Sept. 9 -- The government of Ecuador

and indigenous leaders on Friday signed a deal

to declare a temporary development moratorium

on 15 oil blocks and suspend new mining contracts

until a law about prior community consultations

is in place."

---

To the layman, this does not appear to be a

major breakthrough since it is a "temporary"

moratorium/suspension .. and appears to

kick the can down the road until some bill

is passed at some point.

A Reuters article from September 7 referred

to the understanding as a

"preliminary agreement with indigenous groups

to declare a temporary moratorium" on the

"oil blocks."

The agreement, as reported, covers only one

or two of the dozen or so issues that led to

the national strike/roadblocking in June.

So the agreement appears to be temporary

and confined to limited issues.

However, the Reuters analysis in the same

article of September 7 calls the news

"a turning point in negotiations aimed at

staving off renewed street protests."

This all raises the question of whether

the sides are really coming together for

a better Ecuador going forward .. or is

Reuters repeating what amounts to

more posturing by negotiators who are

grasping for anything that seems like

good news?

News source... Reuters

September 21 was long ago scheduled for my drivers license renewal in Ecuador, and the date can't be changed by me over the Internet.

@cccmedia

Your timing couldn't be better if you believe this woman on a Cotacachi Facebook

Mercedes CM

The new national paro will be starting on September 23th. At least 2 different sources have confirmed this to us. Please be prepared: buy food, water, medicines you usually take, and everything you might need to stay at home for 2 to 3 weeks

Call for aid -- driver license renewal.

Mr. Barley cited the earlier mention of my

drivers-license-renewal appointment, Sept. 21,

in Quito.

I am preparing for that 'cita' on the 21st

in order to avoid a conflict with a possible

resumption of hostilities/roadblocks in case

the drivers-renewal date has to be

postponed until some time in October.

The fly in the ointment is that last Friday

when I reviewed the requirements for

the DMV renewal, I read this paragraph

at the agency site, ant.gob.ec:

"En caso de ser persona natural extranjera

deberá presentar Certificado de haber

culminado la educación básica, el mismo que ser

apostillado, traducido a español y

notarizado."

I translate the sentence as follows:

In case of being a foreign person, it is

required to present a certificate showing

completion of basic education, the same

certificate to be apostilled, translated

to Spanish and notarized.

---

Apparently, this means I need to bring

to the appointment a certificate from

my high school in Montrose, New York ..

after it has been apostilled in the

school's county, translated in Ecuador

and notarized (somewhere).  It seems

unlikely I could have all this done and

the document ready by the 21st.

If any Expat reader has attempted or

succeeded in obtaining a drivers-license

renewal in Ecuador, I would appreciate

any input that could make the renewal

possible before Ecuador potentially

goes down a difficult path.

cccmedia in Quito

Y también.

Additionally, since I couldn't get ANT

(Agencia Nacional de Tránsito) on the phone

today between 4 and 4:30 p.m. and

can't find an email address for ANT

customer service, please post that

email 'dirección' is you have it.

@cccmedia and

can't find an email address for ANT

customer service, please post that

email 'dirección' is you have it.

-@cccmedia

I don't know if it works, but it was located on an ANT page:

[email protected]

Kudos to Mr. Barley for his prompt response

to yours truly's call for aid in the

drivers-license matter.

I am about to send an email to the ANT

web address he supplied and will report back

if they respond with more than a

bot's email acknowledgment.

cccmedia in Quito

Iza pronouncements turn toxic.

Leonidas Iza says the government has not been

acting in good faith and not honoring agreements

it made to the inidígenas last week.

Iza is spokesman and leader for the coalition

of indígenas that staged a violent national strike

and widespread roadblocks in June .. seeking

to have its one dozen demands met.

Now Iza says the frustration with the government

has reached a point where renewed protesting

could resume "soon."

Iza says the government has been lying and

progress is insufficient toward resolving the

relevant problems.

Source... Cuenca HigLlife website

Iza rips El Presidente on referendum.

Nor is Sr. Iza pleased with the eight-part

referendum that Presidente Lasso unveiled

this week.

Iza calls the referendum questions

"a waste of time" and says the indigenous

peoples do not support the referendum.

Iza's position is that if Presidente Lasso

cannot resolve problems with Iza's coalition

of groups, there is little chance of success for

the referendum-related issues.

Source... Cuenca HighLife

Wed., September 28, 2022:

Quito police politely blocked me from

crossing calle Mejía into the Plaza Grande/

government buildings area late today.

Stated reason:  "Manifestaciones."

It's the third time inside one week, police

confirmed to me, that sections of the

old city have been blocked off due to

various groups protesting.

I haven't seen any large protest-group

gatherings or the indígenas-style

blockades/tire-burnings, etc. that

were commonplace in June.

A search of the international news sites

tonight does not indicate any progress

or other news this week toward

resolving the issues between the

government and protest groups.

The strike has been paused since

late June pending on-and-off

negotiations.

cccmedia in Centro Histórico, Quito

On the 22nd, gas station owners were protesting in your hood.

https://www.primicias.ec/noticias/econo … bustibles/

I would imagine there have been recent protests there as well, related to the murder of that woman lawyer in the police academy where her husband worked.

Correct.  They were also protesting against the IESS, as

Cuenca Highlife has explained.

News reports say the husband drove to the Colombia border

to escape.  Presidente Lasso has since fired two police

commanders, the Interior Minister (who was boss of the

national police) and various other officials .. over the murder

at the police academy.

cccmedia in Quito

Deadline may have to be extended.

In what should be no surprise to anyone who

has followed this thread, the Ecuadorian

government says the negotiations may have

to be extended beyond the 90-day

period announced in June.

"Substantial progress" is the latest description

of how the talks have been going.

Source... www.cuencahighlife.com

Iza wants reparations paid to indígenas

for June '22 strike, plus 2019 reparations.

Leonidas Iza, the CONAIE president, is taking

a hard line on the issue of reparations .. and

not backing down.

Iza says the government should

pay reparations for injuries and deaths

among the indígenas peoples that

took place during the June 'Paro'

and during the Paro of 2019.

Indígenas protesters are the only parties

deserving of receiving reparations,

says Iza -- what Iza is calling

"the true victims of government

violence."

The police and the military were the

aggressors, not the victims, and the

damage to property was the result

of government carelessness, Iza says.

Naturally, the government does not agree

with the concept that the only parties

deserving of reparations were the

indígenas.

Source... www. cuencahighlife.com

Hackers in South America.

Hackers in Ecuador's neighbors Peru and Colombia, Mexico

and other parts of South America -- saying they are working

in support of indígenas peoples -- have been hacking the

records of police and the military.

However, the hackers have had trouble accessing the records

of the most highly-classified communications, apparently due

to better electronic protections.  The records being hacked

supposedly show how the authorities monitor indígenas

peoples who have been protesting in many parts of the

continent.

More details of this Associated Press story are reprinted

at www.cuencahighlife.com

@cccmedia

Have you been pricing flights to Peru, just in case?

https://www.larepublica.ec/blog/2022/10 … -gobierno/

Yes, especially the two daily non-stops UIO-LIM

that are listed at cheapoair.com