A young Nicaraguan woman, living in Quito, Ecuador’s capital, was surprised by the uptick of violence that broke out in that country this past week. In this interview, she tells us how she’s getting through the tense days.
HAVANA TIMES – Since the moment she arrived in Ecuador in November 2023, Andrea Cano, a young Nicaraguan woman, was warned not to go out on the street. “Don’t go out, be careful,” the locals insisted. This made her a little fearful, she says, but nothing troubled her as much as what happened over the last week in that country.
Armed bands of hooded men assaulting a television station; bombs exploding in the streets; drug traffickers escaping from maximum security prisons; videos posted of police and prison staff being killed; fires set in discotheques and commercial establishments. All that and more has been happening in Ecuador in recent days.
Andrea Cano, 24, with a degree in International Relations, is currently in Ecuador studying for a Master’s at the Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales [Latin American School of Social Sciences]. Her plans are to stay there for the two years the program lasts, hoping that the atmosphere of insecurity changes, although she’s aware it won’t be easy.
Ecuador recently experienced a great uptick in violence. What was your experience with it?
On Monday, [January 8], we learned there was going to be a curfew, but everything was okay. On [Tuesday] morning, when I went out, everything was fine. However, I went to get my Metro card, I saw that the soldiers were still guarding the area, because the Metro is a space that could be used by these groups as a focus of attacks. By around three or four in the afternoon, when a number of things had already taken place in Guayaquil, people were very anxious.
Everything closed at four, even the supermarkets, for fear of looting because there are always people who take advantage of the situation. Everything was shut tight, the streets closed, everyone just wanting to get home. The subway shut down. Around four in the afternoon, everything became chaotic. The soldiers were going around at night, the patrol vehicles in the streets, and also helicopters flying over the city.
How close are you to the metro station?
Four blocks
Are you afraid they’ll put a bomb there?
Right now, the soldiers are guarding the area. There’s protection, but you can’t discount the possibility.
What do the military on the streets do?
They check people, especially in the hot zones. They check you if they think you’re suspicious. The police as well as the army ask for your documents. They’re concentrated in the vulnerable zones, like the subway, near the jails, and government buildings.
How did you spend that Tuesday night?
At home. I rent a place where other people live, so I wasn’t completely alone. It was really hard for me to sleep. I go
