There, the Carmelite priest visited a shantytown on the outskirts of the city where landless people struggled to exist after taking over vacant property. This experience began his conversion, and his appointment as archbishop of Cuenca, in the Ecuadorian highlands, turned him into a committed defender of the country's most marginalized people. Cuenca is picturesque, with fertile farmland surrounding a city that combines colonial and modern architecture. This image contrasts starkly with the province's rural areas, where indigenous people live in extreme poverty, lacking roads, water, electricity and sewer services. The archbishop visited every village, promoting community organization and encouraging the people to defend their rights.
Protest is natural.
Luis Angel Saavedra is an Ecuadorian journalist, based in Quito.