- Indigenous leader Leonidas Iza has spearheaded a nationwide protest.
- He was arrested in Pastocalle, about 12 miles south of Quito.
- Fuel prices have risen since 2020, doubling diesel from $1 to $1.90/ gallon.
Ecuadoran police announced the arrest of Leonidas Iza, a top Indigenous leader who has spearheaded a nationwide protest movement against high fuel prices, on Tuesday.
Iza was arrested in Pastocalle, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) south of Quito, on suspicion of unspecified “offenses,” according to the police.
Pastocalle has been a focal point of protests against rising fuel prices and living costs organized by Ecuador’s powerful Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities (Conaie), which saw protesters block roads across the country on Monday.
Iza, who heads Conaie, is in custody awaiting a hearing, the police added.
Conaie confirmed Iza’s arrest, condemning it as “arbitrary and illegal” and calling for a “radicalization” of the demonstrations in response.
In 2019, Conaie-led protests resulted in 11 deaths and forced then-president Lenin Moreno to abandon plans to eliminate fuel subsidies. The group is also credited with helping topple three presidents between 1997 and 2005.
Oil-producer Ecuador has been hit by rising inflation, unemployment and poverty, strains exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
President Guillermo Lasso warned late Sunday that the government would not allow roads or Ecuador’s oil installations to be taken over by protesters.
But Iza insisted the demonstrations would continue for as long as was necessary.
On Monday, a nationwide demonstration saw roads blocked with burning tires and barricades of sand, rocks and tree branches in at least 10 of Ecuador’s 24 provinces, authorities said, with access to the capital Quito partly cut off.
Read more: Indigenous-led protests block Ecuador roads to demand fuel price cuts
Fuel prices have risen sharply since 2020, almost doubling for diesel from $1 to $1.90 per gallon (about 3.78 liters) and rising from $1.75 to $2.55 for gasoline.
Lasso froze prices at this level last October after a round of protests led by Conaie that saw dozens arrested and several people, including police, injured in clashes.
But the freeze failed to assuage simmering anger in a country that exports crude oil but imports much of the fuel it consumes.
Conaie wants the fuel price lowered to $1.50 per gallon for diesel and $2.10 for gasoline.
Protesters also want the government to address price controls on agricultural products, which harm farmers, as well as mining concessions granted in Indigenous territories.
More than a million of Ecuador’s 17.7 million people are indigenous.
Read more: British journalist, indigenous expert missing in Brazil
