“Guayaquil is a big gray cloud now,” Maria Leonor Inca, an indigenous journalist from Ecuador, posted on Twitter on April 2.Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city and main port, has been hit hard by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) virus, better known as the novel coronavirus.Its mayor also recently tested positive for the CCP virus.Up to 150 bodies have been collected daily, said the newspaper El Universo Jorge Wated, leader of a government task force, all the people died from the CCP virus.With the municipal morgue at full capacity, more bodies could be waiting on sidewalks and inside homes, he added.Although the country is geographically far from China's epicenter, why has Ecuador been so affected by the virus?The Epoch Times editorial article: “Where ties to communist China are close, coronavirus will follow” suggests that “the worst-affected regions outside China share a common thread: close or profitable relations with the communist regime in Beijing.”Indeed, there are Beijing-friendly elements in Ecuadorian politics.Strategic cooperation between Ecuador and the PCCIn January 1980, the PCC established diplomatic relations with Ecuador.China and Ecuador established a system of “political consultation” in 1997, held every two years.On November 8, 2007, El Oro Province, Ecuador, and Hubei Province, China, formally established relations between the sister provinces.In December 2010, the Confucius Institute at the University of Quito in San Francisco, with funding from China, was jointly established with the Chinese University of Petroleum in Beijing.In January 2015, then President of Ecuador Rafael Vicente Correa Delgado visited China and then China and Ecuador established a strategic association.In November 2016, Ecuador and China elevated their relationship to a “broad strategic partnership”.In August 2016, Ecuador and China waived visa requirements for their citizens in an attempt to increase bilateral tourism.Ecuador was the first Latin American country to do so.On December 12, 2018, the President of Ecuador, Lenin Moreno Garcés, 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 the One Belt, One Road (also known as One Belt, One Road) initiative, a Beijing to build infrastructure projects in Latin America, Africa and Central and South Asia.”China welcomed Ecuador's promotion of cooperation between the two sides in infrastructure, agriculture, information technology and new energy.Currently, China is also Ecuador's third largest trading partner.According to Chinese media, more than 90 Chinese companies currently operate in Ecuador, with projects covering water conservation and hydropower, roads and bridges, copper mines, public safety and other fields.120 kilometers north of the capital of Quito is Yachay.On November 25, 2015, China Gezhouba Group Company (CGGC) signed a Phase I contract to build a Silicon Valley for Ecuador in Yachay.The project includes the planning and design of a series of technological research centers, laboratories and universities, which will be integrated into industrial parks and tourist development areas.The entire project is expected to last until 2049.On August 16, 2016, then-Vice President of Ecuador, Jorge Glas, inaugurated Ecuador's first fiber optic cable, built with the help of China, in the southern province of Guayas.Wang Yulin, Chinese ambassador to Ecuador also attended the opening ceremony.The fiber optic plant is the result of a joint venture with Holding Telconet in Ecuador and Fiberhome Technologies in China.This was the largest Chinese fiber optic cable factory in Latin America.The total investment was estimated at between 15 and 20 million dollars.Domestic Fiber Technology Group accounted for 51% of the shares, while Telconet owned 49% of the shares, according to China's Ministry of Commerce.On July 18, 2019, the President of Ecuador, Lenín Moreno, participated in Quito in the first test of 5G technology, or fifth generation, presented by the Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei and the National Telecommunications Corporation of Ecuador.Moreno praised China's technological advances at the ceremony.Canceling Shen Yun PerformancesIn 2015, the New York company Shen Yun Performing Arts would present a production of the dance piece “Monkey King” in the capital of Ecuador.However, less than a week before the performance, the House of Culture of Ecuador suspended activities at the National Theater, affecting the Shen Yun performances scheduled for May 23 and 24, 2015.Alejandro Nadal, a spokesperson for Shen Yun presenter in Ecuador, told local press promotion 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 aim by the Chinese embassy in Ecuador to cancel the process.The embassy was looking for ways to cancel the event last month.“We try to tell them in every way possible that they are violating the freedom of expression of the Ecuadorian people, that they are censoring culture in a democratic country and that they are doing it through a foreign country,” Nadal said.According to Shen Yun Performing Arts, theaters where the company performs are often pressured by local Chinese authorities to cancel Shen Yun performances.It was the first time that Shen Yun was canceled in Latin America.The CCP extended its censorship abroad and the Ecuadorian government succumbed to its demands.Instead, Ecuadorian officials attended presentations organized by the Chinese Embassy, ​​such as a Lunar New Year presentation in February 2016 by an art group from China's Henan Province and a gala in January 2020 at the Chinese Embassy in celebration. 40 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries.Many senior Ecuadorian officials attended, including the ministers of culture, national defense and education.Hydroelectric Power Plant and DamThe Coca Codo Sinclair dam is a hydroelectric project under the One Belt, One Road in Ecuador (OBOR) initiative.The dam was built about 75 kilometers east of the capital Quito, on the Coca River.It is the largest energy project in Ecuador.The dam was built by the state-owned Sinohydro Corporation for $2.25 billion.The Chinese would give Ecuador a loan of US$1.68 billion to cover 85% of the price of approximately US$2 billion, with interest of 6.9%.The project was criticized for excessive costs, technical failures and corruption.Ecuador is also facing a huge budget deficit due to loans it received from China.Interest alone would require Ecuador to send an annual salary of $125 million to China for 15 years.A full power test failed when the dam opened in 2016.The New York Times reported on the dam's many problems in a December 2018 report. South American country of poverty … Instead, it has become part of a national scandal that involves the country in corruption, dangerous amounts of debt and a future tied to China”.It also said: “Almost all the Ecuadorian authorities involved in the construction of the dam have been arrested or convicted of bribery.This includes a former vice president, a former electricity minister and even the former anti-corruption official overseeing the project, who was caught on tape talking about Chinese bribes.”In a report by the LA Times, the newspaper obtained a 2018 report issued by the Ecuadorian government's controller's office, according to which the Chinese project contractor ignored a stipulation in the contract that the dam must be built according to strict lines.standards set by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.The government report also revealed Sinohydro Corp.'s shady practices, according to the LA Times, including its "irresponsible and incomprehensible" use of low-quality materials and construction methods, including low-quality welds.“The Chinese used low quality steel and fired inspectors who said they should change it,” former Energy Minister Fernando Santos told the LA Times.In addition, the PCC avoided talking about the project's flaws and the corruption behind the dam.He praised the “success” of the project, calling it a historic project for Chinese companies.The following panel allows you to express your consent preferences to the tracking technologies we use to provide the functionality and activities described below.For more information on the usefulness and functioning of these tracking tools, see the cookie policy. You can review and change your choices at any time.These tracking tools are strictly necessary technical tools to ensure the functioning of Epoch Times Português and the provision of the service you have requested from us and therefore do not require your consent.These tracking tools (such as Google Analytics) allow us to measure traffic and analyze its behavior in order to improve our service.These tracking tools allow us to offer a personalized user experience, improving the management of settings and allowing interaction with external networks and platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.By disabling these cookies, you will no longer be able to share Epoch Times Portuguese articles on social media.These tracking tools allow us to provide you with personalized commercial content based on your behavior and allow us to manage, deliver and track advertisements (AdSense, Doubleclick).To convey your choice regarding targeting cookies, we use technology compliant with the IAB's transparency and consent framework.These services adhere to the IAB Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF).The TCF is an initiative by companies in the digital advertising industry that promotes responsible data processing practices and provides greater transparency and control over advertising tracking settings.