The latest on protests across Canada in support of anti-pipeline demonstrators

Here is the latest news on protests across Canada over a natural gas pipeline project in British Columbia:

Protesters blocked traffic at a major intersection in Vancouver after the region’s public transit operator obtained a court injunction preventing them from obstructing its SkyTrain facilities.

The demonstrators had planned to gather at the Broadway-Commercial station but instead stood in the centre of nearby Broadway and Clark Drive during rush hour.

The protesters then marched north on Clark Drive before turning east on 1st Avenue later in the evening.

Although the injunction prevented the demonstrators from stopping SkyTrain service, the impacts to traffic meant that some buses were affected.

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Metro Vancouver’s public transit operator has obtained a court injunction preventing protesters from obstructing its SkyTrain facilities.

The injunction for TransLink came shortly before a threatened 5 p.m. protest and rally outside the SkyTrain station at Broadway and Commercial Drive in Vancouver.

Rally organizers said they planned to demonstrate in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs against the construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline in their territory.

TransLink says the injunction only applies to SkyTrain facilities, including the Broadway-Commercial station where the protest was planned.

TransLink says in a statement that bus customers should be aware that the injunction won’t prevent protests on the street and riders should prepare for bus detours and delays.

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Via Rail says it will resume full service in southwestern Ontario by tomorrow morning but plans for partial service to begin between Montreal and Quebec City were cancelled until the end of day on Friday.

It says a new blockade near St-Lambert, Que., left the company no other option but to cancel the resumption of service between Montreal and Quebec.

Via Rail announced last Thursday that it would be shutting almost all of its operations because of a blockade east of Belleville, Ont., erected in support of Wet’swuwet’in hereditary chiefs who are opposed to a pipeline through their territory in northern B.C.

Chief executive Cynthia Garneau says the service interruption is “unprecedented” in Via’s 42-year history.

Almost 600 trains have been cancelled because of the blockades, affecting more than 111,000 passengers.

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Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe says Canada’s premiers are asking for a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about ongoing rail and transportation blockades.

Moe and other premiers held a conference call today to discuss the blockades that have sprung up across the country in opposition to a pipeline project in northern B.C.

Moe says in a statement the premiers discussed the impacts that blockades are having on their respective jurisdictions and economies.

He says premiers want to meet with Trudeau tomorrow via teleconference to discuss paths to a peaceful resolution and an end to the blockades.

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The operator of Metro Vancouver’s public transit network has filed an application with B.C. Supreme Court in an attempt to prevent protesters from occupying its facilities.

TransLink says in a statement that it has asked for an injunction blocking protesters from all its properties to ensure hundreds of thousands of people who rely on the service get to their destinations safely.

The statement says there is word that a protest is planned for the Commercial-Broadway SkyTrain station in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a pipeline project.

That station is one of the busiest in the system and TransLink says and is a vital link for 25,000 people who travel through it each day.

TransLink says the injunction won’t prevent protesters from blocking roadways and bus customers should be prepared for delays and detours.

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An Edmonton judge has granted an injunction to stop the blockades on all CN rail lines in Alberta for 30 days.

Justice Paul Belzil issued the ruling in the Court of Queen’s Bench after being asked to do so by CN lawyers.

The lawyers successfully argued that the protesters were trespassing on CN land and causing severe impact to business.

The lawyers said a train was bearing down on the blockade around 4:30 a.m. when CN received an anonymous phone tip about the protest on the tracks.

They said the train stopped just 20 cars short of the blockade, threatening the safety of the protesters and the train crew.

The lawyers said the blockade had held up 14 trains by lunch time, backing up traffic and threatening perishable and hazardous goods.

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The federal minister for Crown-Indigenous relations says she and her B.C. counterpart are ready to meet the hereditary Wet’suwet’en chiefs opposing a natural gas pipeline.

In an open letter, Carolyn Bennett says she and B.C.’s Scott Fraser will be available in Smithers, B.C., near the site of long-standing protests against the pipeline project.

The hereditary chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en First Nation have said they’re willing to meet with representatives of the Crown but only after the RCMP leave their traditional territory and so do workers on the pipeline.

Also, some of the chiefs are leaving B.C. to visit Mohawk territory in Ontario, the site of a blockade of a major rail line.

Bennett’s letter says she and Fraser will return to talk with any of the hereditary chiefs who aren’t available tomorrow.

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Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister says protesters have the right to be heard, but they don’t have the right to keep protesting when it doesn’t go their way.

Pallister says if people cling to the belief that a project will be defeated as long as they keep blockading or protesting, then nothing will be built in this country.

He made his comments before a conference call with other premiers about protests that have sprung up across the country in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline being built in their territory.

Pallister says a lot of people have legitimate concerns about how such projects impact them and the environment and the current approval process is onerous and time-consuming.

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A blockade set up on a Canadian National rail line on the western edge of Edmonton in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs is being dismantled — at least temporarily — after a handful of counter protesters showed up.

A group of about 20 people called Cuzzins for Wet’suwet’en staged the protest Wednesday in solidarity with the chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline in British Columbia.

The blockade consisted of wooden pallets on the tracks and signs saying “No Consent” and “No Pipelines on Stolen Land.”

One of the organizers, who called himself Poundmaker to protect his safety, says they had planned to maintain the blockade until Prime Minister Justin Trudeau intervenes and the RCMP leaves Wet’suwet’en territory.

However, conflicts with counter-protesters at the site led Poundmaker and the others to abandon the blockade because they said they wanted to keep it peaceful, and the counter-protesters started taking down the obstruction shortly afterwards.

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A new blockade has forced the closure of a commuter rail line linking Mont St-Hilaire to Montreal.

The blockade was erected at the CN tracks in St. Lambert, south of Montreal, around noon.

Protesters say in a statement they are acting in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en in northern B.C. and will remain in place until the RCMP leaves their territory.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault says he wants Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to issue an ultimatum to protesters to take down blockades across the country within days.

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The Conservatives have put a motion of no-confidence in the government on the House of Commons order paper.

Their House leader Candice Bergen says the Opposition has no faith in the Liberals’ ability to end the transportation blockades over a natural-gas pipeline in B.C.

The motion would require the support of all the opposition parties to bring down Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and force an election, though, and two of the leaders of those parties all but dismissed the idea.

Yves-Francois Blanchet of the Bloc Quebecois called it an “idle threat,” considering the Conservatives are without a permanent leader themselves, while

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh called the motion “ridiculous,” and said an election would plunge Canada into further crisis.

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An emergency injunction will be heard in an Edmonton courtroom this afternoon to address a blockade that has been set up on a CN rail line on the western edge of the city.

A group called Cuzzins for Wet’suwet’en says it intends to maintain the blockade until Prime Minister Justin Trudeau intervenes and the RCMP leaves Wet’suwet’en territory.

CN says in a statement that trains are stopped and they will be taking necessary legal actions.

Alberta Justice Minister Doug Schweitzer says the rail company will be seeking an emergency injunction, which the government fully supports.

The Confederacy of Treaty Six First Nations, which represents 16 First Nations across Alberta, says in a statement that it supports the hereditary chiefs.

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Ontario’s Indigenous affairs minister says the provincial government is concerned that bringing rail blockades down isn’t one of Ottawa’s central objectives.

Greg Rickford says the federal government needs to bring forward a co-ordinated plan to remove the blockades, including one in eastern Ontario.

Rickford says Ontario wants a peaceful resolution, but he’s concerned the federal government hasn’t taken a leadership role with a view toward bringing the blockades down.

Premier Doug Ford is set to take part in a premiers’ call this afternoon to discuss the blockades that have sprung up in opposition to a planned natural-gas pipeline that crosses Wet’suwet’en territory in northern British Columbia.

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Alberta Premier Jason Kenney calls the extended protests of Canada’s rail lines “anarchy,” and he says he expects police to enforce court orders.

The CN line on the outskirts of Edmonton is being blocked by protesters in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline running through their B.C. territory.

Kenney says the illegal protests are shutting down large parts of the Canadian economy and putting public health and safety in danger.

The premier says reconciliation doesn’t mean allowing a couple of people to shut down the national economy, it means listening with respect and ensuring that Indigenous people can benefit from responsible development.

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An Indigenous leader in Quebec is backing away from comments he made yesterday urging rail blockaders to lift their protests — at least temporarily.

Kanesatake Grand Chief Serge Otsi Simon now says he should not have made those statements and people at the blockades should decide how to proceed.

A group of protesters angered by Simon’s comments began blocking access to Kanesatake band council offices late Tuesday but Simon says it’s hoped the offices can be reopened later today.

Rail, road and bridge blockades have been set up in several areas of the country over the last two weeks in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the construction of a natural gas pipeline across their traditional territories in northwestern B.C.

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Protesters calling themselves “Cuzzins” for Wet’suwet’en have set up a blockade of Canadian National rail tracks on the western outskirts of Edmonton.

The group posted photos on social media this morning showing the line blocked with wooden crates and placards reading “No Consent” and “No Pipelines on Stolen Land.”

CN says in a statement that CN police are responding and the company will be “taking the necessary legal actions.”

Alberta’s Justice Minister issued a response on Twitter, calling the blockade “an offence and will not be tolerated,” and adding that the province will not be “economic hostages to law-breaking extremists.”

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Via Rail says it is temporarily laying off 1,000 employees due to blockades that continue to stop service on CN tracks in Eastern Canada.

The Crown corporation has suspended passenger trains on its Montreal-Toronto and Ottawa-Toronto routes for about two weeks in the wake of protests that have disrupted rail service across the country.

Via says it commends ongoing dialogue efforts between government and demonstrators at rail blockades in support of Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline in British Columbia.

Via says it is proceeding with temporary suspensions of the unionized employees “with sincere regret.”

The company, which has resumed service in some parts of Ontario, has cancelled more than 530 trains since blockades began on Feb. 6.

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A Wet’suwet’en hereditary chief says the chiefs won’t meet with the federal government over their opposition to a natural gas pipeline until both the RCMP and company leave their traditional territory.

Na’moks, who also goes by John Ridsdale, says the chiefs have communicated their terms to Carolyn Bennett, the minister responsible for Crown-Indigenous relations.

Bennett has sought to meet with the chiefs as the federal government faces mounting pressure to take action against protesters and demonstrators whose blockades have halted roads and rail lines.

Na’moks says four clan chiefs who are the highest leaders under the First Nation’s traditional form of governance are travelling to Mohawk territory today to thank members of that First Nation for their solidarity.

But he also says that if the chief’s conditions are met, any meeting with the federal government would have to take place on the Wet’suwet’en territory, which means it wouldn’t likely occur until next week at the earliest.

Na’moks says he’s not concerned that the chiefs might miss a window of opportunity for dialogue with the federal government.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 19, 2020.

The Canadian Press