In Ecuador, as in many Latin American countries, the custom on New Year’s Eve is to burn a human figure dummy. These dummies are about three-fifth full size, dressed in all manner of clothing, often designed to resemble political figures. You write the events or memories of this past year on a slip of paper then then place it in a pocket of the dummy. Toward midnight the dummy is carried to the street where it is burned. This year Cuenca outlawed the sell of dummies which is a significant source of income to the poor. After protests they relented but still prohibit their burning Thursday night. Good luck with that. The local police refused to enforce the anti-family gathering edict for Christmas and my guess is they won’t enforce this one either.