Call your friends, family and neighbours to let them know about the nearest demonstration or action and call the politicians responsible for the ongoing genocide against the Wet’suwet’en people. Let them know what you think about Indigenous people’s being violently removed from their lands.
MAKE A PHONE CALL TO SUPPORT WET’SUWET’EN
B.C. GOVERNMENT: John Horgan (Premier) (250) 387-1715
Scott Fraser (Minister Of Indigenous and Relations and Reconciliation) (250) 953-4844
David Eby (Attorney General) (250) 387-1866
Mike Farnworth (Minister of Public Safety) (250) 356-2178
Doug Donaldson (Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resources) (250) 387-6240
Michelle Mungall Minister of Mines Petroleum Resources) (250) 953-0900 Your local MLA
YOU CAN SAY
I’m calling to ask that your government uphold your commitment to the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and respect Wet’suwet’en Law by withdrawing the RCMP trom Wet’suwefen Nation and canceling Coastal GasLinks permits.
I was horrified when heavily-armed RCMP officers forcibly removed Wet’suwet’en people from their own territory last year and want to make sure your government doesn’t let this happen today.
All five Clans at the Wet’suwet’en have rejected all pipelines. Coastal GasLink’s proposed pipeline does not have free, prior, and informed consent from the Wet’suwet’en. CoastalGasLink and the RCMP are trespassing on sovereign land.
Four people have been arrested already this morning at 39 KM despite their camp being outside of the injunction zone, and a massive police convoy is moving in right now!
Communication has been lost between 39 KM and other camps and it is reported that RCMP smashed the window of the truck hosting communications.
“Where ever you are, those who stand with us, we need you now. We need you to take a stand and stand up and fight back against this kind of oppression against our people.” -Molly
Live updates are being posted on Unist’toe’n Camp’s Facebook and Twitter:
CALL FOR INTERNATIONAL MOBILIZATION “The RCMP invasion and raid of Wet’suwet’en has begun. We know our ancestors are with us. We know our allies all around the world are with us. Organize a Wet’suwet’en solidarity action wherever you are and post it in this FB event page; all events will be compiled here. All Out for Wet’suwet’en!” INTERNATIONAL MOBILIZATION EVENT PAGE
We will send out more actions as they are organized. Check the facebook page for most recent updates.
GET ON THE PHONE
Call your friends go to get them to the nearest demonstration to you and call the politicians enabling this violence to let them know what you think!
We cannot sit quietly as invaders attempt to remove our friends from their lands at gunpoint. It is up to us to shut down business as usual and make clear that this kind of action from industry and government is completely unacceptable.
MAKE A PHONE CALL TO SUPPORT WET’SUWET’EN
B.C. GOVERNMENT: John Horgan (Premier) (250) 387-1715
Scott Fraser (Minister Of Indigenous and Relations and Reconciliation) (250) 953-4844
David Eby (Attorney General) (250) 387-1866
Mike Farnworth (Minister of Public Safety) (250) 356-2178
Doug Donaldson (Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resources) (250) 387-6240
Michelle Mungall Minister of Mines Petroleum Resources) (250) 953-0900 Your local MLA
YOU CAN SAY I’m calling to ask that your government uphold your commitment to the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and respect Wet’suwet’en Law by withdrawing the RCMP trom Wet’suwefen Nation and canceling Coastal GasLinks permits.
Iwas horrified when heavily-armed RCMP officers forcibly removed Wet’suwet•en people from their own territory last year. and want to make Sure your government doesn’t let this happen today. All five Clans at the Wet•suwet’en have rejected all pipelines. Coastal GasLink’s proposed pipeline
does not have free, prior, and informed consent from the Wet•suwet’en. CoastalGasLink and the RCMP are trespassing on sovereign land.
The RCMP raid has begun. Four arrests on Gidimt’en territories. RCMP have broken in windows to communications vehicle at 39 km and media are being turned away.
There is a call for urgent international solidarity actions beginning today (Thursday) through till weekend. Post your events in the event page and we will compile: https://www.facebook.com/events/221856442184296/ Stand with Wet’suwet’en!
“We are conducting peaceful actions as sovereign peoples on our territories, and ask that all actions taken in solidarity are conducted peacefully and according to the traditional laws of other Indigenous Nations. Forcible trespass onto Wet’suwet’en territories and the removal of Indigenous peoples from their lands must be stopped. Provincial and federal governments must be confronted.”
I don’t know if this will end by the forced removal of the land protectors of the Wet’suwet’en territory by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). We can hope and pray for restraint on the part of the RCMP. But no matter how peacefully they might arrest the land protectors, it is still a stunning act of violence to yet again see the corporations steal Indigenous lands and remove the people. A legal observer said the corporations are doing the colonizing these days.
This is all the more tragic because we know the fossil fuels have to remain in the ground. If these pipelines are built, they will add fire to the burning Earth. I hope all our prayers might work as they did at Sanding Rock. At least for a while.
It saddens me so deeply to see the awesome beauty of the Wet’suwet’en territory, and to imagine that destroyed simply for greed and the continued assault on Mother Earth. It was seeing the similar beauty of the Rocky Mountains being despoiled 40 years ago that turned me into a water and land protector, though I didn’t know those words then.
The following photos are from the Climate Crisis Parade held in Des Moines, Iowa, last Saturday. One sign says “Corporate Capitalism = 7th Generation Genocide”. You can also see a covered wagon with Colonialism on the side, and the arrows to defeat colonialism embedded in the wagon.
As Cody Merriman says below, “This is for something greater than ourselves” . This is a part of a legacy. This is part of something that will get passed down beyond us… We’re in something that’s going to impact our children and who come after them. We’re talking about many generations.” “And you guys helped contribute to that in a very meaningful and impactful and lasting way. And it’s not over.”
There are links below for ways to support the people. And please offer up your prayers.
RCMP helicopters circled three times over the camp at 44 kilometres down the Morice West Forest Service Road on Wednesday morning. Photo by Amanda Follett Hosgood.
At 5 p.m., a grader had begun clearing the road to the camp, one of four set up by the Wet’suwet’en and allies along the forest road about 60 kilometres south of Smithers, which campers took as a sign of imminent police action. Molly Wickham, governance director for the office of the hereditary chiefs, breaks the news to supporters gathered around the fire. “We knew that the province wasn’t coming to the table. They weren’t ever trying to resolve the issue, they were just trying to get us to give up and let them come in,” she says. “Tomorrow might be the day.” Sitting by the fire, Molly’s partner, Cody Merriman, gives a powerful speech. “This is for something greater than ourselves,” he says. “This is a part of a legacy. This is part of something that will get passed down beyond us… We’re in something that’s going to impact our children and who come after them. We’re talking about many generations.” “And you guys helped contribute to that in a very meaningful and impactful and lasting way,” Merriman says. “And it’s not over.” “I know everyone’s tired, we all are, but we’ve just got to dig a little bit deeper,” he said. “Whatever comes, comes. And it’s coming. But we’re going to be ready.” ‘Each Moment Here Is a Victory’: Wet’suwet’en Supporters Aren’t Backing Down Molly Wickham anoints each of them with medicine for protection.
On the Ground: Wet’suwet’en Pipeline Opponents Bracing for RCMP Action. RCMP says it’s prepared to move in, but campers remain defiant: ‘Canada’s laws don’t apply here.’ by Amanda Follett Hosgood, The Tyee, 2/5/2020
An autonomous group of concerned individuals are establishing a plan for a local action in Kingston in the event the RCMP attempt to remove Wet’suwet’en from their territory. While a week of talks have been declared between Hereditary Chiefs and the BC government and the RCMP has stated they will “stand down”, local community halls have been filled with police in the same way they did last year before the raid that took place on January 9, 2019. This development is deeply concerning and comes at the same time that RCMP are stepping up their harassment of the Gitdimt’en camps at 27 km and 39 km, despite Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their allies filing formal complaints against the RCMP last week. Helicopter and airplane surveillance from the RCMP and private security has also intensified while local companies have refused to fly for the Wet’suwet’en after being warned by the RCMP. The fact that the Province is mobilizing militarized police while opening “de-escalation talks” is a clear intimidation tactic and speaks to their lack of integrity. Politicians like Horgan and Trudeau like to talk about reconciliation but Canada is willing to use violence as soon as Indigenous people stop going along with business as usual. If business as usual means violence against Indigenous people then we have a responsibility to disrupt business as usual. The response to an initial attempt at moving on the camps is crucial. The government, RCMP, and CGL must know that carrying out a raid on the Wet’suwet’en will have serious consequences.
The B.C. RCMP say they are ready to enforce an injunction order against protesters of the Coastal GasLink pipeline —and urge protesters to leave the area or face arrest. “If there are arrests to be made there are peaceful options that will require minimal use of force,” said Assistant Commissioner Eric Stubbs, criminal operations officer for the B.C. RCMP. Stubbs said officers are instructed to use the least amount of force that is reasonable to safely arrest a protester. He said Mounties prefer peaceful options, including voluntary arrests or physically carrying away someone who isn’t resisting. But Stubbs stressed that injunction orders are mandatory, “not optional invitations or suggestions” for everyone involved. “Police are not at liberty to choose which orders to follow,” Stubbs told reporters at a press conference Wednesday. The talks unfolded against the backdrop of looming RCMP enforcement of the injunction, which was issued at the end of December. Hereditary chief Woos released a video statement Wednesday, objecting to the RCMP’s presence and saying the Wet’suwet’en are being framed as the “bad guys” in the current situation. “We’re not safe at all and their presence is not trusted at all, not one bit,” he said. “We are not convinced that this is going to go peacefully.” The injunction prohibits ongoing physical obstructions along a snowy forest road in the heart of Wet’suwet’en territory that were put up to stop workers from accessing the pipeline construction site. The company says it plans to resume construction on the pipeline in the coming days.
A militarized RCMP raid of Wet’suwet’en territory appears “imminent” after talks broke down between First Nations leaders and the B.C. government over the construction of a $6.6 billion natural gas pipeline through unceded Indigenous land.
Tensions on a logging road leading to Wet’suwet’en land defender camps have been rising for a month since hereditary chiefs evicted Coastal GasLink pipeline workers from their lands.
Police set up a roadblock in mid-January limiting access to camps where Wet’suwet’en chiefs and supporters are asserting land rights, setting the stage for a possible repeat of a 2019 raid by militarized RCMP.
Last week a police helicopter was spotted for the first time circling the Wet’suwet’en watch camps and blockades, and land defenders say they saw an increase in police patrols through the area.
But even if a police raid happens as expected, Coastal GasLink won’t be able to start construction in the contested area for weeks unless it meets some outstanding conditions of an environmental assessment certificate, according to B.C.’s environment ministry.
Jason Slade, an environmental consultant working with a healing lodge on Wet’suwet’en land, told VICE there is no need for the police to enforce an injunction the way they did last year. “When (B.C. Premier John) Horgan says that all the authorizations have been granted, that’s patently untrue,” he said.
RCMP Raid of Wet’suwet’en Territory ‘Imminent’ As Pipeline Talks Break Down. Nearly 100 officers are positioned to enforce a court order making way for a pipeline through unceded Indigenous land. By Jesse Winter Feb 5 2020
2/4/2020 Indigenous Youth for Wet’suwet’en Solidarity Rally
Outside Dan Vandals Office.
Rally today at 4:30 outside Minister of Northern Affairs Dan Vandal’s office in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en land defenders and hereditary chiefs. There are indigenous youth and allies PEACEFULLY occupying the office until a call, and a commitment to following demands are met. Come and support the youth inside. Bring your drums, rattles and solidarity. There is a sacred fire outside to send our prayers and give us strength for this occupation. We invite all supporters to join the fire at any given time.
2/5/2020
Dozens of protesters gathered at the Winnipeg office of a member of Parliament Tuesday to voice their opposition to a pipeline in northern B.C.
The rally against the multibillion-dollar Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline project was organized by a group calling themselves the Indigenous Youth for Wet’suwet’en. Protesters gathered Tuesday morning at the office of MP Dan Vandal, who is also minister of Northern Affairs, where they rallied outside and also sat peacefully inside, saying they are not leaving until they get a response from the MP.
The peaceful protest “is an action of solidarity to show that the world is watching … the actions being taken in B.C.,” said Emily Amos, a Prairie Cree and Coastal Salish protester.
The fact the pipeline is several provinces away is irrelevant, she said. Emily Amos says Tuesday’s peaceful protest was a sign of solidarity. (Gary Solilak/CBC)
“If Wet’suwet’en territory becomes ruined by the construction that goes on out there, it could eventually travel to us, and then our entire land will be ruined.”
In a tweet sent Thursday, Vandal said he had “a productive conversation” with one of the protesters, and said he planned to follow up later this week.
The project has received approval from the province of B.C., and 20 First Nations band councils have signed agreements in support of the pipeline. But Wet’suwet’en hereditary leadership says band councils do not have authority over land outside of the reserve boundaries.
Winnipeg protesters rally at MP’s office in solidarity with northern B.C. pipeline opponents. Indigenous Youth for Wet’suwet’en rally against the Coastal GasLink pipeline, want response from MP Dan Vandal, CBC News · Posted: Feb 04, 2020
Dozens of protesters gathered at the office of a Member of Parliament Dan Vandal in Winnipeg Tuesday to voice their opposition to the Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline project in B.C. (Sam Samson/CBC)
Bear Creek Friends (Quaker) Meeting supports the Wet’suwet’en Peoples. January 26, 2020
The following statement and press release indicate the Wet’suwet’en people expect the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to raid the Wet’suwet’en territory today. The court had decided in favor of the Coastal GasLink corporation in their bid to build a natural gas pipeline through the Wet’suet’en territory that will end at a port on the Canadian Pacific coast for shipment.
This is the first of several other pipelines that have been proposed to run through the territory.
Tensions are high because of the violence of the RCMP when the territory was raided a year ago. Documents show the use of lethal force by the police was discussed.
The powerful video below is of Freda Husen explaining why the people at the Unisto’to’en camp in the Wet’suwet’en territory will not leave their land.
BREAKING – We expect RCMP to begin enforcing the injunction on unceded #Wetsuweten territory today.
A statement from the Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs says “Coastal Gaslink declined to see this discussion resulting in progress. Therefore, the enforcement of the injunction zone is imminent.”
We are peaceful people and we have every right to protect the land that defines and sustains us. We continue to honour our ancient laws, shaped over millennia to ensure a sustainable relationship with the land; while BC and Canada fail to honour their recent commitments to reconciliation and to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People.
The world is watching RCMP and CGL’s militarized invasion of our territories. Massih (thank you) to all our allies who continue to use your voices and actions to stand with us. We are protecting our right to exist as Indigenous people, while protecting the land and water for everyone’s future generations.
Tensions continue to escalate in the Wet’suwet’en territory as busloads of police, armored trucks and police dogs have been sighted in the area.
Freda Husen speaks powerfully in this video. Below that is an auto-generated transcript.
Video update from Freda Husen. We’re not leaving
As Canada prepares to violently invade our lands, we have no fear. We are peacefully living on our lands and upholding our laws, as we always have.
31 days after Coastal Gaslink was evicted from Wet’suwet’en territory, RCMP helicopters circle the Unist’ot’en healing center several times a day.
Busloads of police have taken over local community halls, airport hangers have become RCMP training grounds, while armored pickup trucks and police dogs have been spotted in the area. Canada is preparing to use militarized force to steal our lands and destroy them, with the world as witness.
Ever since contact, RCMP have been used to get the government and industries way to forcefully take our land. Now they’re trying to forcefully take our land again. They’re circling my cabin where I live like I’m a criminal when I’m just trying to live on my own land.
They’re getting ready to raid. More and more frequently they’re coming here. We’re not scared. This is our land. Canada has been doing business and other countries and killing indigenous people in the name of mining and now they’re trying to take us off our lands.
Can’t even find our murdered and missing women and can’t even solve those cases but they sure as hell can send RCMP on us to get what they want. To steal more of our lands. So they can destroy it. My ancestors fought the same fight that we’re still fighting and we’ve been peacefully living here and they’re bringing the violence to us and I’m going to stand here and wait for their violence. I’m not afraid of their violence because I know I’m doing right. I live here. This is my home.
It’s insane for them to tell us that they’re going to bring us potable water. If they dirty the river why would we want that when we have pristine river and clean water we can drink from. We depend on that water. That water flows into our taps here. That water is healing. It has healed many people because they’re all the minerals and everything’s intact. That water is alive it’s not dead. The taps and the municipalities are chlorinated and purified. That’s dead water that they’re drinking, We’re drinking living water out here.
We’ve been here, feel like under siege for 31 days now because we can’t get out. People can’t come in. It’s just us here and it felt like literally like we’re under siege but meanwhile we feel like at peace and feel the beauty of this land. With no CGL here, with no police here, it’s been peaceful. We’re way happier. I haven’t felt like this in the last 10 years. We were here. It felt like this when we controlled who came in through free prior informed consent.
And they forced their way in. They invaded our lands. Basically we’re waiting for the the corrupt government and the corrupt industry and the corrupt police to invade these lands again. We know that’s what they’re gonna do because they’re goal is they want us out of here. So the RCMP are here to get rid of the problem. Unis’ot’en. They believe they can get rid of us, then they can do what they want here.
But does this look like a protest camp? We have permanent structures here and CGL’s route is nowhere near this site so they can’t say we built this for their benefit. They can’t take glory for this place. We didn’t build it for them. We built it for us so we could use our land. Even the judicial system failed us.
So who can we rely on? Nobody but ourselves. We can’t rely on Canada. Canada’s not a real system. To be a real country you have to be a have to have a religion, you have to have a culture. What is Canada’s culture but just the steal native peoples land. That’s not a culture. Native people have culture. They have a connection to these lands.
The invaders are continuing to invade our lands. It hasn’t changed. You figure it’s 2020. Things would have changed and those people who would have waken up. But no they haven’t woken up to continue to just bulldoze through all of the lands and destroy the water and pollute everything that nothing sacred anymore. I feel the land a land is life and it’swell the water is alive the trees are alive everything here is alive the rocks are alive and they’re coming to destroy that too. And we’re not gonna let them. They’ll have to drag me out of here because I’m not leaving.
If you’d asked Susan Bibbing two years ago how she planned to kick off the new decade, carving a pit latrine from the frozen ground of northern B.C. likely wouldn’t have factored in the conversation.
But when the self-described West Vancouver housewife saw pictures and video from last year’s police raid on a Wet’suwet’en land defender blockade, it was the last straw.
“I felt I couldn’t just stand by and watch this in the news anymore,” Bibbing told VICE. When the Gidimt’en clan of the Wet’suwet’en nation issued a call for supporters in January, Bibbing answered it along with dozens of others.
“I think a lot of settler-descendant people like myself are rather late to the game. Indigenous people have been defending their territory for hundreds of years,” she said. “People who are non-Indigenous are really starting to wake up in big numbers and add their voices.”
I Left Home to Dig Pit Toilets on the Front Lines of the Wet’suwet’en Standoff. “I felt I couldn’t just stand by and watch this in the news anymore,” Susan Bibbing told VICE. By Jesse Winter, VICE, Feb 3 2020
VIDEO below: Explaining the Wet’suwet’en standoff. Exploring the origins of an ongoing crisis by André Goulet, Savanna Craig, ricochet, FEBRUARY 3, 2020
On Thursday, the B.C. government announced a seven-day “de-escalation” to allow for mediation talks with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline across their territory. During this week-long mediation period, however, tensions remain high and the RCMP presence has increased significantly.
Thus far, no attempts have been made to clear the trees blocking the road or to transport Coastal GasLink employees into the area. But the RCMP are amassing in nearby settlements such as Houston and Telkwa, B.C., and an RCMP checkpoint set up to control access into Wet’suwet’en territory remains a serious point of contention.
Legal observers are now joining the Wet’suwet’en to record police actions and violations amid the conflict.
Part of what the Wet’suwet’en are doing differently this year to try and ensure human rights are upheld is welcoming legal observers at every camp and checkpoint along the road to the Unist’ot’en Healing Centre, located approximately 39 kilometres past the RCMP checkpoint.
Legal observers include any independent volunteers willing to record police activity where peaceful assembly and law enforcement action are occurring. They are meant to record encounters with police like Carmen Nikal’s.
Their main focus at the moment is the RCMP checkpoint. Since Coastal GasLink was granted the injunction, the RCMP have had the power to arrest any people blocking construction on Wet’suwet’en Yintah.
Wet’suwet’en law, civil liberties, and human rights
A wave of legal experts have risen to begin what appears to be a long battle over jurisdiction on unceded territory.
“The confluence of legal systems here makes the problem a complicated one and one that is not reducible to a simple statement about the rule of law,” stated Margot Young, a University of British Columbia law professor, during a press conference organized by the Union of BC Indian Chiefs a few days ago in Vancouver.
Young was referring to a recent statement made by B.C. premier John Horgan, wherein he claimed the rule of law is being upheld by the RCMP, even though the Wet’suwet’en have unequivocally said no to the Coastal GasLink pipeline project at every stage of discussion.
“The failure to receive free, prior, and informed consent from the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs about their traditional land and the impact on it by the pipeline development meant that the pipeline project should be stalled,” Young said. “The RCMP should stand down and government must kick up meaningful conversations with the Wet’suwet’en over the use of this land.”
Police deploy in nearby towns during ‘de-escalation’ of Coastal GasLink pipeline conflict. Legal observers are joining the Wet’suwet’en to record police actions and violations. News by Jerome Turner, ricochet, FEBRUARY 4, 2020
I disagree with actions like the one below. I’m reporting it here for a more complete picture of all that is happening related to the Wet’suwet’en struggles.
We just want to take a moment tie say tabï misiyh everyone for all of your support! All of the donations of supplies, food, money and all the amazing solidarity actions! Wow. The pressure you create by taking to the streets, banks and railways is what is keeping us safe on the ground. It ensures that people are still paying attention. Do not be fooled by the rcmp statement that they are standing down, we aren’t. They could move in at any moment. Keep it up! And misiyh, from all of us at the Gathering Place (27km), Wolverine Watch (39km) & Gidimt’en Camp (44km) ✊🏽 Ways to support: www.yintahaccess.com
Today we were informed of a meeting happening at the Silverking Heli office in Smithers and found a bus with RCMP officers and military-style TAC team personel loading what appears to be tactical gear into trucks. The “standing down” agreement seems to have been ordered as a smoke screen to halt any kind of media coverage or solidarity actions. So keep up the pressure! Eyes on the frontlines and feet in the street is what is keeping our people on the frontlines safe. For more ways to support visit yintahaccess.com
Hereditary chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en who have been trying to block the Coastal GasLink pipeline have agreed to a sit-down with the B.C. government. The Wet’suwet’en have a dual governance structure, with both elected band councils and hereditary chiefs representing 13 houses and five clans. There is division among the Wet’suwet’en over the $6.6 billion Coastal GasLink project, which is part of the $40 billion LNG Canada project. All five elected band councils of the Wet’suwet’en support the project and have signed benefits agreements worth more than $300 million. But there are 13 houses, and eight of the 13 hereditary chiefs are opposed to the project in their territory. Members of a group called the Unist’ot’en – affiliated with Dark House – have set up camps Houston B.C. on the Morice West Forest Service Road to try to prevent Coastal GasLink from doing work on the natural gas pipeline. At the end of December, the BC Supreme Court issued an injunction and enforcement order, and the RCMP have set up check points to control who goes in and out of the contested area. So far no arrests have been made.
More than 20 Indigenous youth blocked the entrance to the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources in Victoria to deliver a message to the Minister Michelle Mungall and Premier John Horgan. Protesters have been on site since around noon and according to Nigel Robinson, they’re planning on occupying the building until “all [their] demands are met.” Earlier on Tuesday, the protesters delivered a letter to Mungall that stated Indigenous youth were not only inheriting a climate crisis “driven by fossil fuel projects like [Coastal GasLink] CGL, but Canada’s legacy of colonization, genocide and gendered violence against Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people.” In other words, they are supporting Wet’suwet’en sovereignty and opposing RCMP actions. “Canada’s siege and invasion of those territories that have not given consent for Coastal GasLinks operation. It’s unconstitutional, it is illegal, it is immoral and it is shameful. Canada can not continue to uphold the status quo of indigenous genocide when moving forward with natural resource projects that impact Indigenous youth first and foremost,” said Ta’Kiya Blaney, while seated in the middle of the group. Link to video.
Protesters block B.C. government building entrance to support Wet’suwet’en First Nation. A letter with four demands was delivered to the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources by KENDRA CRIGHTON, The Interior News, Jan. 21, 2020
The Indigenous land defenders regrouped outside of Serious Coffee after being released by VicPD on Jan. 22. (Nina Grossman/News Staff)
Gina Mowatt was “terrified” while being arrested in downtown Victoria in the early hours of Jan. 22. She was one of the 12 young Indigenous people that were arrested – along with an elder in her 60s – for taking part in an 18-hour sit-in in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs. “We were there in peace, we were there in prayer, we were there in solidarity for the Wet’suwet’en,” Mowatt said. “We’re not protesters, we’re land protectors.” “It’s not about a pipeline, it’s not about politics – it’s about the survival of life on earth.” She said the sit-in only began after the group’s demands were ignored. She remembered feeling afraid because she and her fellow land defenders were being separated and they didn’t know what would happen once they were alone. The Wet’suwet’en supporters were arrested individually and loaded into separate vans for the drive to the police station. Mowatt remembered having her hands bound behind her back while in the van so she couldn’t prevent her body from being thrown around as she was driven to the Victoria Police Department. “As much as I was shocked, heartbroken and terrified by what was happening, I wasn’t surprised,” Mowatt said.
Tensions continue to escalate between the Wet’suwet’en people and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP)
The RCMP have promised our Dinï ze’ and Tsakë ze’ they will stand down for 7 days. Nowhere in the injuction does it say they have the right to set up an exclusion zone.
They arrested our Cas Yikh elder and a supporter that was filming the interaction Jan 31/20. They were released on site. Please stay tuned as more RCMP are entering the area and now have reports of police dogs in Houston.
Keep up the pressure. Their illegal behaviour is unacceptable. For background info and ways to support visit: yintahaccess.com
Background on Exclusion Zone – January 14
RCMP are now blocking access to Wet’suwet’en territory, and only allowing hereditary chiefs that THEY approve to enter our own unceded lands. Our Wet’suwet’en people and family members are being blocked off the territory, while RCMP say that they are in a position to decide who is and who isn’t a chief.
Police have blocked media and supplies out, and they are enforcing a modern day pass system – forcing people to identify themselves in order to come and go from our own unceded lands.
Wet’suwet’en lands are unceded, untreatied, and unsurrendered. We maintain full jurisdiction, and the right to decide what happens on our lands. Our chiefs have unanimously asked RCMP to pack up and leave their remote detachment, but instead RCMP are increasing their presence – in anticipation of using violence against our people to force their way onto our lands.
The Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs represent a governance system that predates colonization and the Indian Act which was created in an attempt to outlaw Indigenous peoples from their lands. The Wet’suwet’en have continued to exercise their unbroken, unextinguished, and unceded right to govern and occupy their lands by continuing and empowering the clan-based governance system to this day. Under Wet’suwet’en law, clans have a responsibility and right to control access to their territories.
The validity of the Wet’suwet’en house and clan system was verified in the Delgamuukw and Red Top Decisions that uphold the authority of the hereditary system on Wet’suwet’en traditional territories.
At this very moment a standoff is unfolding, the outcome of which will determine the future of Northern BC for generations to come. Will the entire region be overtaken by the fracking industry, or will Indigenous people asserting their sovereignty be successful in repelling the assault on their homelands?
The future is unwritten. What comes next will be greatly influenced by actions taken in the coming days and weeks. This is a long-term struggle, but it is at a critical moment. That is why we say: The Time is Now. If you are a person of conscience and you understand the magnitude of what is at stake, ask yourself how you might best support the grassroots Wet’suwet’en.
For different people, this may mean different things. For some people, it means traveling to the front-lines. For others, awareness-raising efforts or cash/material contributions.
GIDIMT’EN YINTAH access
The Gidimt’en is one of five clans of the Wet’suwet’en Nation. The creation of the Gitimd’en Camp was announced in the Wet’suwet’en feast hall, with the support of all chiefs present.
The Gidimt’en Yintah Access checkpoint is controlling access to Cas Yikh House territory within the larger Gidimt’en clan territory at 44.5 km on the Morice River FSR. The collective House Chiefs made the decision to support Gidimt’en Yintah Access December 14th, 2018. The five clans ratified the decision in a bahlats (feast) in Witset on December 16th, 2018.
On Friday, December 21st, a judge granted Coastal Gas Link an extension to their injunction against individuals at the Unist’ot’en Camp, applying it to all resistance camps South of Houston.
In response to CGL’s injunction, the Gidimt’en Yintah Access checkpoint was established on the road leading to the Unist’ot’en Camp. CGL’s lawyers have been arguing that the Unist’ot’en are essentially a rogue group without a rightful claim to aboriginal title. The Gidimt’en intervention shows that the Unist’ot’en are not alone, and that the hereditary chiefs are prepared to uphold Wet’suwet’en law by refusing to grant CGL consent to access the Yintahs.
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