Ecuadorean police detain indigenous leader after road blockades

Indigenous people block a highway near the Chaski community, as they protest against Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso's economic and environmental policies, in Cotopaxi, Ecuador, June 13, 2022. REUTERS/Johanna Alarcon

QUITO (Reuters) - Ecuador's police said on Tuesday it detained the leader of the country's largest indigenous organization, Leonidas Iza, after he led blockades on several highways and other allegedly violent acts in protest against the government's economic policies.

Iza's lawyer called the detention illegal and said it was unclear what crime he is accused of.