China always views ties with Ecuador from a strategic and long-term perspective, said Chinese President Xi Jinping on Tuesday in talks with visiting President of the Republic of Ecuador Daniel Roy-Gilchrist Noboa Azin.
At the talks held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Xi extended welcome to Daniel Noboa, and noted that bilateral trade between the two sides has achieved remarkable fruits so far this year.
"In the first half of this year, bilateral trade between China and Ecuador increased by 20 percent year on year, with China remaining Ecuador's largest export destination for non-oil products. The fruits mark both the benefits of the bilateral free trade agreement and the potential of China's massive market," Xi said.
"This year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Ecuador. Regardless of changes in the international situation, China has always viewed its relations with Ecuador from a strategic and long-term perspective, and is willing to work with Ecuador to continuously elevate bilateral relations to new heights, so as to better benefit the people of both countries," said the Chinese president.
For his part, Noboa expressed his country's willingness to strengthen cooperation with China in the economic and cultural fields.
"First of all, I would like to thank you for your warm hospitality and thoughtful arrangements. We will learn from your great leadership with admiration. At the same time, please rest assured that you can always trust Ecuador in promoting cultural and economic cooperation. On the other side of the Pacific, you will always have a trustworthy friend," he said.
At the invitation of Xi, Noboa is on an eight-day state visit to China through Sunday. This is his first state visit to China.
China always views ties with Ecuador from strategic, long-term perspective: Xi
China always views ties with Ecuador from strategic, long-term perspective: Xi
China always views ties with Ecuador from strategic, long-term perspective: Xi
Days after a powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck western Colombia on Aug 10, families in Cali, the worst affected city, are confronting heartbreaking obstacles simply to lay their loved ones to rest.
Cali's morgue sustained damage in the quake and was forced to close operations after part of the Hospital Universitario del Valle collapsed. As a result, recovered bodies must be transported to the neighboring town of Palmira, which escaped structural destruction.
The influx has severely overwhelmed Palmira's facilities, leaving them short on refrigeration capacity. Grieving relatives waiting outside must wear masks as they endure agonizing waits, caught in a system operating far beyond its designed capacity.
While some families have managed to bid a painful farewell and gained a measure of closure, such as the relatives of Maria Esmeralda Ordonez in Cali, countless others remain in painful limbo.
"Thankfully it's not turned out like it has for others who today are still fighting to rescue loved ones, people who are still lying beneath the rubble. The chances of survival are very slim, but miracles are happening," said Ivan Delgado, a relative of Maria Esmeralda Ordonez.
For many families whose relatives have been recovered, the ordeal is far from over. They must navigate the bureaucracy that comes with a death.
Securing the release of a body requires a prosecutor's order, an accompanying undertaker, and a considerable amount of paperwork -- a grueling process compounded by a system operating well beyond its capacity.
Camilo Mendez, a relative of victims, knew this pain firsthand after an agonizing three-day wait to claim the bodies of his aunt and grandmother.
"From the information we've gotten here and there, you can really tell we're not prepared for this kind of event. Moving the bodies, all of it, it was very slow, very disorganized. My grandmother and my aunt were in one place, then another. It was pretty chaotic, honestly," said Mendez.
To support the exhausted crowds, volunteers and psychologists have set up tents near the Palmira facility, offering comfort and counseling.
"It's an exhausting process. You're here waiting for an answer, and no one knows when it will come. There are people with one, five, six relatives they can't find. A body may be recovered today, another tomorrow, and that's how it's gone," said Alison Morales, a volunteer psychologist.
"The community has been extraordinary, all kinds of donations, the communal kitchen, water for the people waiting," she added.
Although Palmira itself was spared the worst of the earthquake -- sustaining cracks on a few buildings and no fatalities -- it has absorbed the profound, far-reaching grief of a region struggling to bury its dead.
Families face heart-breaking delays burying victims of Colombian earthquake
