"Shame on Horgan, shame on BC," say protesters.
鈥� Nina Grossman (@NinaGrossman)
Twelve protesters supporting Wet鈥檚uwet鈥檈n hereditary chiefs were arrested by members of the Victoria Police Department early Wednesday morning during a lengthy occupation of a provincial government building lobby.
Indigenous youth activists blocked the entrance to the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources on Blanshard Street on Tuesday for about 18 hours, starting at 11 a.m. The group was standing in solidarity with hereditary chiefs of Wet鈥檚uwet鈥檈n First Nation opposing Coastal GasLink, asking that the chiefs鈥� demands be upheld, observed and respected.
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鈥淲e are unarmed, they have guns,鈥� protesters yelled the next morning at a meeting outside the Blanshard Street Serious Coffee.
Protesters remained in and around the building overnight Tuesday night and told Victoria News the next morning that there were many arrests between 1 and 6 a.m. They said they were forcefully removed and had wanted only to peacefully occupy the space.
VicPD confirmed that 12 adults were taken into custody after 15 hours of negotiations. They said the arrests were lawful under the Trespass Act.
| On Wednesday morning young Indigenous protesters gathered down the street from the Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources 鈥� where 12 participants were arrested by VicPD between 1 and 6 a.m.(Nina Grossman/News Staff) |
鈥淥fficers worked with both representatives of the protest group and the Province to find a peaceful resolution to the incident,鈥� said VicPD spokesperson Cameron MacIntyre in a statement. 鈥淚n the course of the evening, additional protesters arrived outside the building. Officers from Patrol, the Community Services Division, Investigative Services Division and the Integrated Crowd Management Unit attended.鈥�
VicPD said plain clothes community liaison officers listened to and spoke with participants while officers 鈥渇acilitated access to medicine, food, and water. Officers also assisted parents who arrived to pick up youth who were present at the protest.鈥�
Protesters said they were initially denied food but that officers eventually relented.
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VicPD said after 15 hours without arrests, the building owner requested to have protesters removed. Officers began arresting participants with the 鈥渕inimum amount of force.鈥� Arrests took place over a four-hour period and protesters were escorted to waiting police vehicles. Protesters outside the building 鈥渕ade efforts to impede the lawful arrests,鈥� police said, and surrounded officers who were 鈥減ushed and shoved while carrying arrestees to the police vehicles.鈥�
More arrests. Police are continuing to carry out youth and supporters are trying to block their efforts.
鈥� Jeff Doctor (@jeffadoctor)
VicPD said there were no injuries and no charges have been sworn.
Sutherland-Wilson said the protesters had decided to stay through the night when 鈥渢heir efforts were met with silence.鈥�
鈥淲e wanted a concrete agreement from the Ministry that they would demand Horgan to meet with hereditary chiefs,鈥� he said, adding that the premier鈥檚 recent offer to send the Minister of Indigenous Relations was 鈥渄isrespectful.鈥�
鈥淸Horgan is] not treating them like a sovereign Indigenous people who have never ceded their territory,鈥� Sutherland-Wilson said. 鈥淗e鈥檚 treating them like an inconvenience and painting them in a narrative as dissidents [and] as protesters.鈥�
Hereditary chiefs have taken a stance in conflict with members of the Wet鈥檚uwet鈥檈n Band Council, some of which have supported Coastal GasLink 鈥� the 670-kilometre pipeline set to run from northeastern B.C. to the LNG Canada鈥檚 export facility in Kitimat. Coastal GasLink has signed agreements with the 20 elected First Nation councils along the pipeline鈥檚 proposed path.
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