Diego Ordonez Ortiz, Ruben Eduardo Andrade Veloz, Juana Pico Duque (f) and Jose Garcia Burgos: Diego Ordonez Ortiz, the secretary general of the National Workers Union of the Ecuadorean Institute of Social Security (IESS), is being arbitrarily detained in Quito since 23 September 1997 under the accusation of inciting a strike of public health workers. Amnesty International believes that he is a prisoner of conscience. The other, also IESS trade unionists, have had warrants for their arrest issued against them on the same charges as Diego Ordonez but are still believed to be free.
