Coronavirus on the west side along The Equator

Countries through which the equator passes (red) and the Prime Merdian too(blue)
Wikipedia

Like almost everywhere in the world, the COVID 19 pandemic has spread to the Western Hemisphere and to the Equator. Ecuador, Brazil and Colombia are the three countries through which the equator passes. The first two nations mentioned are some of the most affected by coronavirus in Latin America.
In Ecuador, about one person in 2,000 is infected with the virus and more than 400 have died, something very shocking in a small country of only 16 million inhabitants. Guayaquil is its most affected city, where people are even dying on the streets. It is believed that the virus came from Spain, since there are a lot of Ecuadorians living there and many travel back and forth. Brazil, one of the most populated countries in the world, is the epicenter of the pandemic in the region, with more than 2,000 dead. Some criticize the Brazilian president because, according to them, he is not doing enough to mitigate the contagion. Colombia is considered to be one of the countries with lower contagion rates in the region. Less than 4,000 people have been infected and only about 150 have died. This country has a 48-million population. The low rate may be due to the country-wide quarantine imposed by the national government, through a State of Economy, Social and Environmental Emergency. But the situation here is as critical as it is in other countries. Many people have lost their jobs and some are even starving. The national and local governments are trying to help people out, but they have not been able to do it for everyone. There are people who work on the street and since they are not allowed to go out, they do not have any income. Although the situation is bad, Colombia has not been hit like other countries. Many in the region have learned from what has happened in China, Iran, Europe and the United States, so they have taken steps in prevention and sought a quick solution to the virus upon arrival. Either way, there is still much to do.

Comments

The John F. Kennedy's district in Bogota, Colombia.

Bogota, Colombia's capital city, is divided by 20 districts (Localidades, in Sapnish). One of them was named Kennedy, after the former president of the United States who founded the district himself. This district is the most populated, 1,5 million inhabitants, and one of the largest in Bogota. John F. Kennedy and his wife Jackie visted Bogota in Dicember 1961 within the framework of the Alliance for Progress, in which Kennedy founded the neighborhood for the poorest people in the city. The neighborhood was named then Ciudad Techo (Techo City) and 12.000 houses began to be build. In 1964 after Kennedy's assessination the residents of the neighborhood changed its name to Ciudad Kennedy (Kennedy City) and the Council of Bogota approved the name change in 1966. President Kennedy inaugurates the housing project Ciudad Techo (John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum) Last November 22nd, 50th anniversary Kennedy's assassination, the residents of the d...

Americans are all the inhabitants of the continent

This is the translation of an article that I wrote in Octuber, 2010. It is about my point of view on the habit of Spanish speakers to call people and things from the United States 'americanos' (American), when a correct name exists: estadounidenses (something like Unitedstaters). Last week I attended the presentation of the Unitedstater Studies Institute (Instituto de Estudios Estadounidenses) in Bogota, Colombia, attracted by the posibility of getting to know something else about the United States, county which I like since my childhood and in which I have had the chance of living briefly somewhen. What attracted my attention the most was the name of the institute itself. Its name is Unitedstater Studies Institute and not American like some others which exist in some Spanish-speaking countries. And I believe that Unitedstater is the correct name for the people born and nationalized in the United States. Not American because that name belong to all the inhabitants o...

The kidnapped general.

General Mendieta is a Colombia National Police commissioned officer who was recently rescued from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia FARC after eleven years of kidnapping. He was took prisoner in 1998 in the city of Mitu, in the Colombian Amazon, when he was practicing as the commander of city police bureau, in the rank of litenuant colonel. During his captivity he was promoted by the Colombian Government to the the ranks of colonel, Brigade General and Major General. Mendieta was rescued with three more Armed Forces of Colombia members by Colombia Army through 'The Chameleon Operation'. Until that day General Mendieta was the police and military force kidnapped the with the highest rank in the world. Two facts involves me with this. The first one is that I produced a journalism report on it as a prelude of General Mendieta's rescue. It was by the way of his last promotion which was particular due to the general's obvious absence. Then, I attended the ceremony ...

From Colombia

Search This Blog