Wet’suwet’en protest: Demonstrators defy injunction, return to B.C. legislature
Credit to Author: Scott Brown| Date: Tue, 25 Feb 2020 05:38:40 +0000
Protests and blockades in British Columbia intensified again Monday as an anticipated meeting between federal leaders and Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline through their territory has yet to materialize.
Two groups of protesters, both marching in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, set up blockades Monday afternoon that shut down service of the West Coast Express commuter train and disrupted access to the Port of Vancouver.
A group calling themselves the Red Braid Alliance for Decolonial Socialism blocked the rail lines along the Haney Bypass in Maple Ridge that halted train traffic in both directions. The demonstrators vacated the tracks at around 6:45 p.m. and TransLink says trains will run tonight as well as Tuesday morning.
Ridge Meadows RCMP, CP Police and Metro Vancouver Transit Police attended the scene and gave the demonstrators notice that they needed to vacate the property.
Commuters empty the West Coast Express at Waterfront Station after TransLink suspended service on the commuter train service due to protest activity.
TransLink says it was forced to suspend West Coast Express service due to protesters blocking the tracks near Port Haney station. The transit authority had advised passengers to take SkyTrain to Coquitlam Central station where a bus bridge was waiting to shuttle people further east.
It’s the second time in two weeks that protesters halted the commuter train, which operates between Mission and Vancouver and moves nearly 5,000 people every weekday.
TransLink was forced to cancel afternoon service on Feb. 13 and morning service on Feb. 14 due to protesters blocking the railway adjacent to the Pitt River Bridge. The Red Braid Alliance for Decolonial Socialism took credit for that blockade as well.
#WCE West Coast Express service leaving Waterfront Station this afternoon Monday Feb 24, is suspended due to protesters blocking the railway tracks near Port Haney Station. Visit our Alerts & Advisories page for more info: https://t.co/8mM2JFOsQC ^pj
Supporters of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs returned to the B.C. legislature Monday night despite a court injunction prohibiting protests blocking entrances to the building.
About 300 people were gathered at the front steps, with many crowding at the building’s ceremonial gates used by dignitaries including the lieutenant-governor and members of the Royal Family.
Police were also on the steps standing next to the supporters, but there were no reports of arrests.
“We are not here seeking arrest,” said Indigenous youth leader Ta’Kiaya Blaney, speaking with a megaphone. “We are here as our duty as Indigenous youth. Bring your blankets, it’s going to be a long night.”
At about 7 p.m., the supporters blocked the progress of a police van that arrived at the legislature. They linked arms and chanted, “peaceful and with love, unarmed and non-violent.”
Several police officers got out of the van without incident.
Protesters form a line to halt the progress of a police vehicle at the B.C. legislature in Victoria, Monday, Feb.24, 2020. They are there in defiance of a court injunction restricting the blockage of entrances to the building.
The group placed a carved ceremonial mask on the ceremonial gates, saying it would look after them during their gathering. A fire they said was sacred was lit in a steel pit that was placed at the top of the legislature stairs.
The legislature was the scene of widespread protests on Feb. 11 that prompted the Speaker to obtain an injunction when entrances to the building were blocked.
Meanwhile, a different group of demonstrators, who describe themselves as urban Indigenous sovereigntists and their supporters, set up a blockade Monday afternoon at the intersection of Hastings Street and Clark Drive to prevent vehicle access to the Port of Vancouver.
A group of protesters, marching in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, have set up a blockade at the intersection of Hastings Street and Clark Drive in East Vancouver.
Vancouver police advised drivers to steer clear of the area and consider alternate routes.
On Feb. 10, Vancouver police arrested 43 protesters for blocking port access, in violation of an injunction obtained by The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority. Delta police said a further 14 people were arrested on the Deltaport Way causeway.
The Port of Vancouver said in a statement that its court order was still in effect and it is working with Vancouver police “to address the current protest at Clark and Hastings Street.”
“The disruptions to port operations over the past few weeks have had a significant impact on Canadians across the country, who rely on the businesses that import and export goods through the port for employment and for the products that support each of us every day. While we respect the right to a peaceful protest, the port authority has a federal responsibility to ensure the safe and efficient movement of Canada’s trade through the port,” the statement said.
VPD spokesman Sgt. Aaron Roed says police were monitoring Monday’s protest, which he said was blocking just one of the three access points into the port.
In the meantime, the port is advising commercial trucks to use the terminal entrance at Commissioner Street.
#VanTraffic: The intersection of Clark Drive and East Hastings Street is currently closed. Traffic is blocked in both directions. Drivers are advised to consider alternate route. pic.twitter.com/I57wTi4jWO
Protest organizer Atiya Jaffar said the action is in response to the Ontario Provincial Police’s raid on a rail blockade on Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory territory near Belleville, Ont.
The blockade by Mohawk leaders was erected Feb. 6 in solidarity with some Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose TC Energy Corp.’s Coastal GasLink pipeline project in northern B.C.
Ten people were arrested early Monday morning as police, enforcing a midnight injunction, moved in to dismantle barriers that had brought rail traffic to a standstill in central Ontario.
A group of protesters, marching in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, have set up a blockade at the intersection of Hastings Street and Clark Drive in East Vancouver.
Coastal GasLink is building the 670-kilometre underground pipeline to ship fracked natural gas to the LNG Canada plant being built in Kitimat. The pipeline is scheduled to be completed in 2023.
The company has promised to spend $1 billion of its $6.6-billion budget on contracts, grants and training opportunities for the 20 First Nations bands along the route that it has signed agreements with.
However, Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs assert title to a vast 22,000-square-kilometre area and say band councils only have authority over reserve lands.
Meanwhile, members of the Gitxsan First Nation are once again blockading a rail line outside of New Hazelton, B.C.
The blockade was temporarily taken down Feb. 13 pending a meeting between the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and federal government that has yet to materialize.
The Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs have said they want the RCMP and Coastal GasLink out of their traditional territory before talks begin, but Wet’suwet’en Chief Na’moks says the Mounties have continued foot patrols and pipeline workers are also still there.
“We tell them the same message: these three criteria must be met, then let’s discuss moving forward together. I think they’re making it a little bit more complicated than it should be,” he said.
A group of hereditary chiefs who visited Mohawk supporters in Ontario have returned to British Columbia, he said
Gitxsan Chief Spookwx, who also goes by Norm Stephens, accused the RCMP of “dragging their feet” and says there are 30 to 40 people at the blockade who are willing to stay until the Mounties leave.
In Victoria, a group of protesters has locked themselves to a gate at the B.C. legislature.
Hundreds of protesters are on the grounds of the legislature, which was the scene of widespread protests on Feb. 11 that prompted the province to obtain an injunction when entrances to the building were blocked.
The protesters chanted “Stand up, fight back” as members of the Victoria Police Department monitored what was happening and spoke to members of the group.
With files from The Canadian Press and David Carrigg