In Ecuador, students and teachers protested against budget cuts

“We will not go back, no matter how much they invest in repressive apparatuses, we will continue until the right to public education is consolidated,” said one of the protesters.

“They call us irresponsible, but they are irresponsible because they cut the budget for education. Health and education are not negotiated, “said one of the protesters in a new day of protests to reject the budget cut to public education that was carried out this Monday, May 11, in several cities in the country.

Today the second sit-in was carried out in compliance with biosafety protocols. Protesters wearing masks, gloves, antiseptic gel and people who spray at every step they take. Most of them mobilized by bicycle and with signs that reflect the rejection of this measure.

“We will not go back, no matter how much they invest in repressive apparatuses, we will continue to fight and we will continue until the right to public education is consolidated,” said one of the protesters.

The protest began at the Central University of Ecuador (UCE) and ran down Avenida 12 de Octubre. Undergraduate and graduate students raised their voices, with slogans in favor of public education.

“I come for the future of our children. Many of us have already been able to train with public education and today I come so that my daughters can also do it, “said another of the protesters.

The march reached the Baca Ortiz Hospital, between Avenida Colón and December 6. Doctors, nurses and assistants of this health house came out to express their support for the group of teachers and university students, who reported that they will continue with actions, both legal and mobilizations, to reveal the cut that is more than USD $ 98 million.

“For our right to resist, not even a minute of silence,” reads the banner carried by a UCE student, who wears a white suit to avoid getting COVID-19.

In Cuenca, Guayaquil, Guaranda and other cities, demonstrations by students and teachers were also held. “Education is not business, it is a right,” exclaims one of the students in Guayaquil.