Kahnawake Mohawk offer to temporarily step in for RCMP in Wet’suwet’en territory

A peacekeeper speaks to people at the protest site in Kahnawake on Wednesday. (Ivanoh Demers/Radio-Canada)

Grand chief says replacing RCMP could lead to ‘immediate de-escalation of the current crisis’

The Mohawk Council of Kahnawake has proposed that its peacekeepers head up a temporary Indigenous police force to patrol traditional Wet’suwet’en territory instead of the RCMP.

“We are bringing forth a possible solution to address one of the most problematic issues in the Wet’suwet’en situation,” Grand Chief Joe Norton said in a news release.

The offer comes as the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs are set to meet for a second day Friday with B.C. and federal government officials in northwestern B.C., as they try to break an impasse in a pipeline dispute that has sparked weeks of protests across the country.

Mounties made the decision to end patrols along a critical roadway in Wet’suwet’en territory while negotiations unfold — a request made by the hereditary chiefs.

“The key demand is for the RCMP to leave, but there is a need for policing services to offer assistance in everyday matters,” Norton said in the release. “We feel this can lead to an immediate de-escalation of the current crisis.”

The force would be led by Kahnawake Peacekeepers and include members of other Indigenous police services, Norton told CBC News Friday.

The idea would have to be approved by the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs currently at the negotiating table, the federal and British Columbia governments and the RCMP, Norton said.

Norton said he spoke about the idea on Thursday with federal Minister of Indigenous Services Marc Miller and Justice Minister David Lametti.

“There seems to be acknowledgement that might be a very good answer at this point in time,” Norton said.

The Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline would run from Dawson Creek to Kitimat, B.C., through traditional territory of the Wet’suwet’en. (Source: Office of the Wet’suwet’en) (CBC News)

“We did a similar thing in Kanesetake in 2004 when requested to come and help to ease a very tense situation there,” he said. “We stayed for a while and helped calm things down, restore peace.”

The head of the Kahnawake Mohawk Peacekeepers, Dwayne Zacharie — who is also president of the First Nations Chiefs of Police Association — is contacting other Indigenous police chiefs in order to be ready to send an “amalgamation of officers,” said Const. Kyle Zachary, a spokesperson for the Kahnawake force.

Zachary said it’s too early to say how many officers would be needed and where they would come from.

Norton said it wasn’t impossible that an Indigenous force could work with the RCMP. He said that funding for the project, if it happened, would be up to the Canadian and B.C. governments.

“They created the circumstances, so they would have to pay for it,” he said.

Kahnawake peacekeepers are recognized as federal police officers who enforce the Criminal Code of Canada, Zachary said. Officers in the force complete the six-month RCMP training program in Regina.

Zachary wouldn’t speculate on whether an Indigenous peacekeeping unit would enforce a court injunction in Wet’suwet’en, saying the proposal has not been accepted and the specific objectives and composition of the unit haven’t been defined.

Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters erected a camp in the territory in northern British Columbia to prevent the construction of a natural gas pipeline there.

Solidarity protests and blockades erupted across the province after the RCMP enforced a British Columbia Supreme Court injunction by raiding the camp earlier this month

Work on the pipeline has been paused for two days as the hereditary chiefs meet with government officials.

A blockade in Kahnawake is currently halting operations on a Canadian Pacific Railway line south of Montreal. The Kahnawake Mohawk Peacekeepers have said they have no intention of enforcing an injunction to dismantle that blockade.

With files from CBC’s Alison Northcott

CBC News · Posted: Feb 28, 2020

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Arrests made at rail blockade near New Hazelton, tires slashed on RCMP cars

RCMP before the arrests at the rail blockade near New Hazelton, north of Smithers, B.C.. on Monday evening. (Photo: Dinize Ste ohn tsiy (Rob)/Twitter)

Arrests made, tires slashed on patrol cars: RCMP

VANCOUVER — A First Nation leader says he was among several people arrested Monday night at a blockade outside New Hazelton on territory that neighbours the Wet’suwet’en Nation.

Hereditary Chief Spookwx of the Gitxsan Nation said Tuesday three other hereditary chiefs were also taken into custody as the RCMP broke up the demonstration on a CN Rail line in northern British Columbia.

The RCMP said 14 people were arrested.

A similar blockade was set up by the Gitxsan earlier this month and removed as a show of good faith on Feb. 13, but Spookwx said the protest resumed because the RCMP have not acted quickly enough to leave the Wet’suwet’en’s traditional territory where a natural gas pipeline is under construction.

Elsewhere in B.C., anti-pipeline protests blocked an intersection that serves as a key entry point to the port of Vancouver, and a group of protesters remained at the B.C. legislature.

Vancouver police told the demonstrators to move out of the intersection at the port or risk arrest for violating a court injunction, and most of the estimated 70 protesters had moved to the sidewalk.

Commuter rail service was moving again between Vancouver and the Fraser Valley after demonstrators blocked rail tracks late Monday afternoon, saying they were acting in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the Coastal GasLink pipeline.

Following his arrest on Monday night, Spookwx said supporters blocked Highway 16, the main route through the region, until about 3:30 a.m. when all the people arrested were released.

Spookwx, who also goes by Norm Stephens, said First Nations across Canada must act together as sovereignty issues raised by the construction of the pipeline are addressed because “their rights are ultimately at risk here.”

“The First Peoples of Canada should be treated with respect,” he added.

At least two dozen people blocked the tracks west of New Hazelton, the RCMP said in a statement.

One train reportedly nearly hit a male on the tracks, just before CN Rail was made aware of the blockade, the statement said.

The RCMP enforced the injunction at the request of CN Rail and the Mounties said those arrested were released on the condition that they abide by the injunction order and attend an upcoming court date.

Before midnight, police officers noted the tires were slashed on four patrol cars parked across from the highway, which the RCMP is investigating.

“We would like to remind the public that any attempts to block rail tracks is extremely dangerous and unlawful,” Cpl. Madonna Saunderson said in the news release.

“Should they put themselves in harm’s way, protesters are not only putting their own lives at risk, they are also putting the lives of train operators, rail employees, responding police officers and members of the public at risk.”

The Canadian Press, published Feb. 25, 2020.

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1 injured as police move to clear rail blockade on Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory

OPP officers make an arrest at a rail blockade in Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory, near Belleville, Ont., on Feb. 24, 2020, as they protest in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en Nation hereditary chiefs attempting to halt construction of a natural gas pipeline on their traditional territories. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Ontario provincial police moved Monday morning to clear a rail blockade on Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory.

The blockade near Belleville, Ont., has crippled both freight and passenger rail traffic in most of eastern Canada for nearly three weeks.

Police and CN Rail had given protesters until midnight Sunday to clear the blockade or face an investigation and possible criminal charges.

Around 8:30 a.m. police arrested several men near the railway and took them away in a police vehicle. Several dozen other officers lined up in front of the remaining protesters at the encampment.

Officers moved in again around 9:15 a.m., grabbed several more men and arrested them.

One person was taken to hospital with minor injuries that occurred during an arrest, the OPP confirmed with CityNews.

The dramatic scene this morning as OPP moved in on an encampment near a railroad crossing in Tyendinaga. Captured by @realpeoplesmedi on the frontlines, in a statement they write: “we condemn the use of force in Mohawk Territory on people who are standing up for human rights.” pic.twitter.com/5GUopsGdy3

— Tina Yazdani (@TinaYazdani) February 24, 2020

The OPP said its liaison team has tried to negotiate peacefully over the past few weeks, but decided to take action to uphold a court injunction to clear the railway.

“We have remained respectful of the ongoing dialogue, including issues of sovereignty between our Indigenous communities and various federal ministers, and have hoped for productive communication leading to a peaceful resolution,” said spokesman Bill Dickson.

“The OPP notes the broader societal impacts of this extended protest have correspondingly increased risks to public safety closer to the protest sites. Unfortunately, all avenues to successfully negotiate a peaceful resolution have been exhausted and a valid court injunction remains in effect.”

The barricades were a response to a move by the RCMP to clear protesters who had been blocking access to a Coastal GasLink natural gas pipeline worksite on Wet’suwet’en territory in northern British Columbia.

OPP remain on Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory after clearing rail blockade

Hereditary chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en Nation oppose the work on their traditional territory, despite support from elected band councils along the pipeline route.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was to meet with the cabinet incident response group Monday morning to discuss the situation with the blockades.

On Friday, Trudeau said the barricades had to come down and injunctions ordering the tracks cleared needed to be enforced.

Trudeau spoke by phone Sunday with Ontario Premier Doug Ford, Quebec Premier Francois Legault, and B.C.’s John Horgan “to discuss the railway blockades and the impacts they are having across the country on Canadians and the economy.”

According to a statement from the PMO, Trudeau informed the premiers of measures being taken to ensure that critical needs are addressed, including propane, chemicals to treat drinking water, and essential agricultural products.

“We will remain in close contact with all provinces to address urgent needs as required, and we will continue to support coordinated efforts to find a resolution,” the statement said.

Trudeau and the premiers also reiterated their commitment to resolving the situation peacefully.

Wet’suwet’en Heredity Chief Na’moks, also known as John Ridsdale, said Sunday that Trudeau’s “antagonistic” speech had just the opposite effect.

“If the prime minister had not made that speech the Mohawks would have taken down everything,” he said. “They were ready. We were on the phone.”

Na’moks said all five hereditary chiefs were expected to meet in northern B.C. Monday to plan their next steps and talks with the RCMP could resume on Thursday at the earliest.

He said the chiefs will not budge from their demands for the Mounties to remove every component of a mobile unit from their territory before meeting with them.

Dawn Roberts, a spokeswoman for the RCMP, said the mobile unit had been temporarily closed and discussions were underway with the deputy commissioner about its future.

The chiefs visited supporters this week in Tyendinaga and Kahnawake south of Montreal, and repeated that their conditions for talks to begin had not been met.

By: The Canadian Press, Feb 23, 2020.

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B.C. RCMP offer to withdraw from Wet’suwet’en territory

RCMP and Coastal Gaslink on Morice West Forest Service Road in Wet’suwet’en territory.

RCMP say they’ll withdraw from Wet’suwet’en territory if road is kept clear

Public Safety Minister Bill Blair says he’s hoping the RCMP’s offer to leave their outpost on Wet’suwet’en territory in northern B.C. will lead to the barricades coming down, as talks aimed at ending the rail blockades crippling the country’s rail network continue.

“I’m very hopeful that that will satisfy the concerns that were raised,” said Blair ahead of a Thursday morning cabinet meeting.

“I think the RCMP have made a very sound operational decision based on the current circumstances.”

CBC News has obtained a copy of a letter sent Wednesday from RCMP Deputy Commissioner Jennifer Strachan to the hereditary chiefs offering to move the RCMP’s temporary detachment from near the protest site to the nearby town of Houston — as long as Morice West Forest Service Road remains clear. The RCMP confirmed that letter was sent.

“As always, we encourage dialogue over enforcement with a goal of a long-term solution,” Strachan wrote, while asking for a meeting “in the near future.”

In a separate letter to staff, Strachan said the decision to re-assess their presence was “not an easy one to consider.”

“By making this gesture in good faith, we are not only supporting efforts towards a peaceful and sustainable solution, but also facilitating them,” she wrote in the internal email, first reported on by Global News.

“Our hope has always been to create mutual understanding for a peaceful resolution, without the need for police intervention.”

The RCMP, which acts as the provincial police service in B.C., moved in to enforce a court injunction earlier this month after the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and their supporters blocked construction of the $6-billion Coastal GasLink pipeline project. The B.C. Supreme Court issued an injunction in December authorizing the police to clear away the protesters who had blocked access to the public road.

Those arrests triggered national protests and the rail blockades, which have lasted just over two weeks now. Via Rail announced nearly 1,000 layoffs Wednesday in response to the nationwide rail shutdown, while CN Rail has issued temporary pink slips to 450 workers because the blockade has shuttered much of its eastern Canadian operations.

Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Carolyn Bennett has offered to meet with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs as soon as possible to help resolve the dispute.

Trudeau calls blockades an ‘unacceptable situation’

So far, the hereditary chiefs have said they won’t meet with the federal and provincial ministers until the RCMP leave their territory.

Blair said he hopes the RCMP’s offer will meet the chiefs’ conditions.

“We have met the condition that those who were on the barricades had said was important to them before they would change their posture,” he said.

“I believe the time has come now for the barricades to come down.”

It’s not clear yet whether the hereditary chiefs will meet with federal and provincial government representatives.

In a tweet, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde called the RCMP’s decision “an important opportunity for progress, dialogue and safety.”

A handful of hereditary chiefs are travelling to Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory near Belleville, Ont., to meet with protesters there who have been blockading CN Rail in solidarity.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s office put out a statement calling the B.C. developments a positive step while pushing for a timeline to end the blockades.

“While the Ontario government believes in the rule of law, it is imperative that elected officials do not direct police operational decisions,” his office said in a statement.

“We believe the OPP is in the best position to ensure the protest remains peaceful, as both sides find a negotiated resolution.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his cabinet met in Ottawa Thursday morning to chart a path forward.

“We’re working very hard to end the blockades. It’s an unacceptable situation,” said the prime minister.

CN gets injunction for Montreal blockade

CN Rail says it has obtained an injunction to dismantle a rail blockade on Montreal’s South Shore.

“We’ve obtained the injunction and are hoping for a swift resolution of this incident so that passenger commuter rail service can resume,” it said in a statement.

Quebec Premier François Legault told reporters earlier Thursday that “once the injunction is granted, we will dismantle the blockade.”

By Catharine Tunney · CBC News · Posted: Feb 20, 2020

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