Dead bodies left at home and in streets. Quarantined people facing hunger. Political turmoil. Ecuador’s coronavirus outbreak is a grim forecast of what may await poorer countries when COVID-19 hits.
A demonstrator protesting new austerity measures in Ecuador confronts armed police officers during clashes in Quito, Ecuador, Oct. 11, 2019.
AP Photo/Dolores Ochoa
All those democracy protests in South America may be having some unintended consequences.
Demonstrators clash with a police water cannon during a recent anti-government protest in Santiago, Chile. Several South American countries have been experiencing massive social unrest in recent months.
(AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
In the last century, several South American countries faced coups, military dictatorships and social uprisings. Despite economic improvements in recent years, the continent remains mired in unrest.
Soldiers enforce a curfew in Quito, Ecuador during weeks of protests over higher fuel prices.
(AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)
The mass protests shine a spotlight on the tension between policies that raise energy prices and day-to-day energy affordability.
Many of Latin America’s leftist ‘revolutions’ are now in crisis. But the left is resurging in some countries.
The Conversation / Photo Claudia Daut/Reuters
Progressives are leading in the presidential elections of Argentina, Uruguay and Bolivia, bucking the region’s recent rightward trend. But there are lessons in the failures of leftists past.
Venezuelans hoping to cross into Ecuador via Colombia amass at the Rumichaca border bridge in Tulcan, Ecuador, as new visa restrictions limiting migration took effect, Aug. 26, 2019.
Reuters/Daniel Tapia
Citing national security, Ecuador, Peru and Chile have all made it harder for Venezuelan migrants to enter the country, and xenophobia is rising across the region – even in more welcoming Colombia.
The Wikileaks founder has been removed from the Ecuadorean embassy after nearly seven years.
Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez was a major financier of Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega, seen here at a 2016 commemoration on the third anniversary of the socialist leader’s death.
Reuters/Marco Bello
Cheap Venezuelan oil boosted Nicaragua’s economy and funded President Daniel Ortega’s many anti-poverty programs. With Venezuela in crisis, the oil has dried up – as has support for Ortega’s regime.
Saudi Arabia is the most recent country to grant women the vote. Pakistan has some serious work to do. And Vatican City really needs to get with the programme.
After executing a stunning break with his left-wing predecessor, Ecuador’s new president, Lenin Moreno, has been ousted from his party.
Reuters/Henry Romero
Ecuador’s new president, Lenin Moreno, has been disavowed by the party that brought him to power after disputing with his left-wing predecessor.
In courting the right, President Lenin Moreno (L) has broken with his powerful predecessor, Rafael Correa, unleashing a very public Twitter feud.
Mariana Bazo/Reuters
Ecuador’s president, Lenin Moreno, has been flirting with conservatives. Beyond irking his base, it has also lead to mass resignations and Twitter battles with his powerful left-wing predecessor.
Ecuador’s school snack programme focuses on pre-packaged, individual-sized items like juice boxes.
Bernardo Cañizares Esguerra
Up to 25% of Ecuadorian children suffer from malnutrition, and the country’s sugary school snacks aren’t helping. Kids need healthful, fresh food — not high-calorie humanitarian aid.
Families at a tree planting day at Te Muri, New Zealand in June 2017.
Greenfleet Australia/flickr
Mostly, humans have been devastating to the planet but, on rare occasions, we get it right. Here are stories of people who live in harmony with their surroundings, from Tibet to Morocco and beyond.
The Whanganui River, seen here, is now a person under New Zealand law.
AlexIndigo/Flickr
New Zealand just conferred personhood upon the Whanganui River, giving it standing to legally defend its rights. Can this novel strategy save the environment?
A new study shows that conditional cash transfers have helped Ecuador’s poorest households climb out of poverty. When that money was paired with capital to invest, people fared even better.
Lenin Moreno celebrates after Ecuador’s election board said he won the country’s presidential election.
Mariana Bazo/Reuters
Recent elections in Latin America have suggested a retreat from left-wing politics and populist leaders. But results from Ecuador’s 2017 presidential election suggest otherwise.
Ecuador’s Rafael Correa is one of the wold’s top politician-tweeters.
Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters
When leaders of weak democracies use social media to connect with their constituents, people feel heard. But Twitter responses won’t give citizens what they need.