QUITO, June 14 (Xinhua) -- Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso announced on Tuesday the arrest of the leader of an influential indigenous organization for acts of vandalism that occurred on the first day of a nationwide agitation.

The announcement came in a recorded message that was broadcast to the nation Tuesday morning on social networks.

In the message, Lasso said that acts of vandalism were prohibited under the Constitution and the laws.

Among the detainees is Leonidas Iza, president of the opposition Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (Conaie), the largest indigenous organization in the country, which called for the indefinite agitation.

The indigenous organization shared on social networks a video clip showing Iza's capture by the National Police.

The Conaie, which brings together 58 indigenous groups, made a call to radicalize the agitation after the arrest of its leader.

Lasso said the acts of vandalism included the burning of a patrol car, the invasion of a farm, the smashing of windshields on private and school vehicles, the attack on an oil pumping facility, the cut-off of water supply to the communities and the blockage of state roads.

The Ecuadorian president said that no one is above the law and that vandals only want to cause chaos.

Lasso, who celebrated his first year in office as president in May, said that he was obliged to guarantee free mobility of Ecuadorians to work and study at a time when the country has begun to reactivate socially and economically after two years of the COVID-19 pandemic.