Though the country is geographically far from the epicenter of China, why is Ecuador hit hard by the virus?
Strategic Cooperation Between Ecuador and the CCP
In January 1980, the CCP established diplomatic relations with Ecuador. China and Ecuador established a “political consultation” system in 1997, held once every two years.On Nov. 8, 2007, Ecuador ’s El Oro province and China’s Hubei province formally established sister-province relations.
In December 2010, the China-funded Confucius Institute at the San Francisco University of Quito was jointly established with the China University of Petroleum in Beijing.
In August 2016, Ecuador and China waived visa requirements for their citizens in a bid to increase tourism between the two countries. Ecuador was the first Latin American country to do so.
On Dec. 12, 2018, Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno Garces visited China. According to Chinese state media reports, “the two leaders witnessed the signing of several cooperation documents, including a memorandum of understanding on jointly promoting Belt and Road” (also known as One Belt, One Road), Beijing’s initiative to build infrastructure projects across Latin America, Africa, and central and south Asia.
China welcomed Ecuador to promote cooperation between the two sides in infrastructure, agriculture, information technology, and new energy.
Chinese Companies in Ecuador
According to Chinese media, at present, more than 90 Chinese companies are operating in Ecuador, with projects covering water conservancy and hydropower, roads and bridges, copper mines, public safety, and other fields.On Aug. 16, 2016, Ecuador’s then-Vice President Jorge Glas inaugurated Ecuador’s first fiber-optic cable plant in the southern province of Guayas. Wang Yulin, China’s ambassador to Ecuador also attended the opening ceremony.
The fiber optic plant is the result of a joint venture with Ecuador’s Holding Telconet and China’s Fiberhome Technologies.
This was China’s largest fiber-optic cable plant in Latin America. The total investment was estimated to be $15 million to $20 million. Fiberhome Technology Group accounted for 51 percent of the shares, while Telconet owned 49 percent of shares, according to China’s commerce ministry.
Canceling Shen Yun Performances
In 2015, the New York-based Shen Yun Performing Arts was set to perform a production of the dance drama “Monkey King” in the capital of Ecuador. However, less than a week before the performance, the Ecuadorian House of Culture suspended activities at the National Theater, impacting Shen Yun performances planned for May 23 and 24, 2015.Alejandro Nadal, a spokesman for Shen Yun’s presenter in Ecuador, told local press advocacy group Fundamedios.org that the suspension of activities was illegal, as they had all the relevant permits. He said he believed the incident was part of an explicit goal by the Chinese embassy in Ecuador to cancel the performances.
The embassy had allegedly been looking for ways to get the event canceled for the last month. “We have tried telling them in every possible way that they are violating the freedom of expression of the Ecuadorian people, that they are censoring culture in a democratic country and are doing so through a foreign country,” said Nadal.
The CCP has extended its censorship overseas, and the Ecuadorian theater appeared to succumb to its demands.
Dam and Hydropower Station
The Coca Codo Sinclair Dam is a hydroelectric project under CCP’s Belt and Road Initiative in Ecuador. The dam was built some 46.6 miles (75 kilometers) east of the capital Quito, on the Coca River. It’s the largest energy project in Ecuador.It also stated: “Nearly every top Ecuadorean official involved in the dam’s construction is either imprisoned or sentenced on bribery charges. That includes a former vice president, a former electricity minister and even the former anti-corruption official monitoring the project, who was caught on tape talking about Chinese bribes.”
The government report also revealed shady practices by Sinohydro Corp., according to the LA Times, including the “project’s ‘irresponsible and incomprehensible’ use of substandard building materials and construction methods, including inferior welds.”
“The Chinese used bad-quality steel and fired inspectors who said to change it,” former energy minister Fernando Santos told the LA Times.
However, the CCP has avoided talking about the project’s flaws and the corruption behind the dam. It has lauded the “success” of the project, calling it a landmark project for Chinese companies.