Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez was taken into custody by the National Guard Tuesday during an anti-government demonstration in Caracas.

Lopez was wanted for charges of conspiracy and inciting violence during recent street protests which left at least four dead. 

For more than two weeks, Venezuelans have been gathering in small towns and in the capital city to protest what they consider to be unfair treatment from their government.

Opposition protestors have been wearing white to show their peaceful intentions even as they take to the streets of Caracas in the thousands. The major grievances of anti-government groups are high inflation, crime and the shortage of some essential staples.

The shortages have been blamed on strict currency controls put in place more than a decade ago to prevent the flight of capital. Experts say the controls have crippled the economy and led to inflation reaching 56 percent, the highest in the world,  according to The Guardian. 

Nicolas Maduro assumed the presidency in 2013 and has focused on maintaining the legacy of late socialist leader Hugo Chavez, who was noted for his anti-American sentiments. He has been accused by anti-government media sources in Venezuela to be trying to silence the media and students in the country, some of whom are among the loudest advocates for change. 

On Friday, social media site Twitter reported that the Venezuelan government had blocked images from being shared following the death of two student protesters at another large anti-government gathering.

Before his surrender on Tuesday, Lopez led several thousand supporters in peaceful protests, giving a speech despite fears of fresh violence against anti-government protesters. “They want to jail Venezuelans who want peaceful, democratic change,” Lopez said. Of the protests, he said that “this is the first step in the construction of the road for change and it must, by necessity, be a peaceful process.”