 On 22 October Ecuador's state prosecutors' office opened an investigation into Jaime Vargas, head of CONAIE, after Vargas said that CONAIE would create its "own army".CONAIE said Vargas was referring to a "communal guard" to protect its territory in accordance with the Ecuador constitution.The Indigenous group said that its leaders were being persecuted by the government since the anti-austerity protests had stopped.