The picture of violence that affects children, teenagers and teachers in Ecuador

(CNN Spanish) — “Both inside and outside, students are in danger. There are many people who come armed with weapons, rob them on the way, steal their cell phones, bring money and steal their money.” This is one of the testimonies collected by CNN about the situation that minors are going through in many educational institutions in the conflict zones of Ecuador, a country that is in a state of “armed internal conflict”, in violence The order was given on 9 January after the increase. Committed by 22 criminal organizations that the government considers “terrorist”.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) reported in 2023 that the homicide rate of children and adolescents in Ecuador had increased by 640% in four years. According to UNICEF, 770 murders of children and adolescents were recorded in 2023, while the cases registered in 2019 were 104.

Many parents think that schools and colleges should be the safest places for a child or teen to learn and develop their skills. However, the complex situation of violence that Ecuador is experiencing due to the penetration of criminal groups is creating insecurity and vulnerability not only for minors but also for teachers, who are subject to threats, extortion and harassment inside and outside the campuses. Being a victim of threats.

“This worrying increase in deaths from armed violence is seriously affecting the lives of boys, girls and youth in Ecuador (…). In addition, the increasing number of medical personnel, teachers and school directors who are threatened They are being subjected to torture, extortion and murder by armed groups,” UNICEF said in its most recent report, released on January 12.

Hundreds of Ecuadorian children and teenagers are experiencing the effects of brutal violence on which the government has declared war to prevent more innocent lives being lost due to stray bullets, settling scores or the recruitment of minors into gangs.

Gangs, drugs and fear: a time bomb in schools and colleges

Outside the Montúfar School, an emblematic public institution located south of Quito, Mariana Tapia monitors the entry of students before 7 a.m. She is a mother and tells CNN that some parents have organized themselves into brigades to control access for their children, who sometimes fear being attacked or bullied.

Tapia says, “There is fear because of the gangs…) They can’t even speak out because then both the student and the family are threatened. Sometimes they remain silent and don’t want to speak.”

Another mother, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, told CNN that two of her children, students at Montúfar School, have been recruited by criminal groups who forced them into drug use and selling. Is.

This mother says, “They sell drugs inside the school, because there are dealers in the surrounding area, they deliver drugs outside at different times so that they can enter here. I want the police to raid the entire sector ” She says she is concerned and is trying to get her children “back on the right path”, but assures that “the mafias have more power over them”.

A large section of parents come to this school to drop their children early in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon. They say this is a way to protect them but it is not a guarantee as there are cases of abuse, theft and violence within the educational establishment.

Faced with the reported problems, the Ministry of Education responded to CNN that it would continue to work not only with the Montúfar School, but also with other schools and colleges in the country – depending on their sphere of influence – in the socialization of the protocol. Is. prevention of violence, suicide, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse; Training for parents and teachers, patrolling with police, activating panic buttons, and restructuring of student counseling departments to improve the educational environment and establish safety mechanisms.

“They wanted to take my life”: teachers are vulnerable to threats

Becoming a teacher in Nueva Prosperina, Los Guasmos, Pascuals, Monte Sinai, Isla Trinitaria and other popular neighborhoods of Guayaquil has become a complex task and a cause of high stress for teachers and students.

“We teachers are very shocked, very scared, we find ourselves in a problem we have never experienced before,” explains Hilario Beltrán, professor and president of the National Union of Educators of Guayas, the country’s most violent province. ” CNN. According to police, Ecuador has recorded the highest number of intentional killings.

Beltrán says dozens of teachers in schools located in areas “hijacked by crime” are being the targets of threats, extortion and intimidation. He says the extortion, known as “vaccine” in the neighborhood, comes from some students and parents who are part of criminal gangs.

“There are many types of threats. The vaccine (extortion) is that you have to pay money month after month. They ask for the vaccine for US$ 100 or US$ 200. The other way is that we force them to spend even for a year. Do it.” If they have not gone to classes. So they insist that we grade them. When they don’t give them the money, they threaten to kill them,” Beltrán insists.

A teacher from Guayas state, who preferred to remain anonymous for fear of retribution, spoke to CNN about the death threats she received last year. “Yes, not just one but two threats were made directly to me. But, thank God, things did not escalate. Threats were made that they did not want to see me in the institute at all and that they wanted to take my life, ” the teacher said.

The teacher says she filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office, but had to withdraw the process because they began intimidating her and searching for her inside and outside the educational establishment. This teacher has been practicing her profession for more than a decade, but she assures that she can no longer work with the same enthusiasm because she is afraid. He mentioned that his educational center has not yet returned to in-person classes because it is one of the high crime areas.

“Earlier, someone did it for the love of their profession, because someone prepared themselves to serve, to teach children and learn from them. But now someone does it out of fear and necessity. Because someone from his work Also supports itself,” he comments. To CNN.

Teachers stress that it is necessary to have more support in educational and safety matters, as in some schools there is no support even from parents. He believes that he cannot work in peace and his family has asked him to do so with caution.

He says, “One is under this tension that at some point they will shoot you or the ‘vaccine’ will threaten. One cannot work peacefully.”

They withdraw complaints out of fear of retaliation

Hilario Beltrán, professor at the National Union of Educators, explains that last year alone UNE accompanied about 80 teachers to the province of Guayas to present complaints to the prosecutor’s office, but some were withdrawn due to teachers’ fear. New dangers.

“Expelling the student doesn’t solve the problem because they’re out there waiting for us,” says Beltran, noting that some conflicted students and parents investigate teachers and follow them up. and manage to identify what time teachers leave and come to work.

Beltrán has not been able to return to in-person classes because the violent conditions in Isla Trinitaria, the neighborhood of Guayas where he works, do not allow him to and he emphasizes that the virtual modality significantly improves the education of minors. Are influencing. He says that in his class of 38 students, only 15 or 20 are connected, because many of them do not have access to the internet, lack technical equipment or have migrated.

The Education Ministry said on Monday that educational institutions that are in virtual mode in Costa Governorate, which includes Guayas and other provinces, will remain in that mode until the month of March when their school year ends.

“This is danger, kidnapping, robbery”: Parents demand more control over police

Following the declaration of internal armed conflict in Ecuador on January 9, hundreds of schools and colleges in Ecuador had to suspend their face-to-face classes by order of the Ministry of Education and began returning to classes in phases from January 24. However, there are educational facilities that are close to prisons or in certain dangerous areas that are not able to return to face-to-face conditions.

Outside schools like Montefiore in Quito and other schools across the country, the National Police implements a “Safe Schools” plan to prevent violence and protect the environment. Parents agree that this project should be ongoing.

“It’s danger, kidnapping, robbery. We parents are afraid that, by defending them, something might happen to us. It should always be for the safety of all the boys. What they need right now is some protection There is no more safety. Let the police be more active for the well-being of the children,” insists Vinicio Segura, father of a student.

Colonel Mauricio Chacón of the National Police, who leads the control operation outside the Montúfar school and other schools south of Quito, tells CNN that patrolling and security outside some schools and colleges would allow the creation of a “safe” corridor. Is. Student.

“It has managed to reduce crime rates and achieve a better perception of safety,” Chacon says. On the other hand, it details how to determine in which schools security should be strengthened, “geo-referencing of crime” is carried out, the measurement of groups of people and the number of students in an educational area.

He said, “There are designated policemen who are deployed outside, at the main gates and at entry and exit times and along with that we provide security. We must remember that areas are different and criminal patterns are different.” are also different.” adds up. Colonel Chacon.

UNICEF has expressed its concern about the problems arising from organized crime among children and adolescents in Ecuador and has offered assistance to the Ecuadorian authorities in the neuro-related field to combat the scourge of violence in schools and colleges.

The UN argues, “Large-scale disruption of basic services in areas controlled by armed groups is not only putting more children at risk of recruitment, but also limiting access to health, education and protection.” ,

In December, a group of hitmen attacked a house in a popular neighborhood in the south of Guayaquil. They aimed at the window and four brothers were shot. The eldest among them was barely seven years old. The young pregnant mother, who jumped in front of them to protect them from the bullets, died two days later. The National Union of Educators and Parents in the country’s riskiest areas says that in many places in Guayaquil, children are neither safe in their homes nor in schools.