TRUDEAU CHANGES STRATEGY
Prime minister says railway barricades ‘must come down now’
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau declared Friday that crippling rail blockades must end immediately, setting the stage for confrontation as Indigenous leaders said they were not yet prepared to move.
“Canadians have been patient. Our government has been patient, but it has been two weeks and the barricades need to come down now,” Trudeau said at a press conference Friday, as the crisis entered its third week.
The prime minister said he could no longer wait for Indigenous leaders to enter negotiations. He said his ministers had asked repeatedly for hereditary leaders from Wet’suwet’en territory for a meeting, but had not heard back.
“You can’t have dialogue when only one party is coming to the table,” he said. “Our hand remains extended should someone want to reach for it. We have come to a moment where the onus is now on Indigenous leadership.”
He added, “Let us be clear: all Canadians are paying the price. Some people can’t get to work, others have lost their jobs. Essential goods cannot get where they need to go.”
The situation was “unacceptable and untenable,” he said. “The injunctions must be obeyed and the law must be upheld.”
The hereditary Wet’suwet’en chiefs are opposed to the Coastal Gaslink pipeline in northern British Columbia. With a court injunction in hand, RCMP officers moved in last month to clear a protest camp that was blocking construction on the project. Protests have emerged across the country in support of the hereditary Wet’suwet’en chiefs, including several rail blockades that brought freight and passenger traffic to a halt in large parts of the country.
The Wet’suwet’en leaders want the RCMP out of their territory, which the force announced they would do on Thursday, provided the road to Coastal Gaslink’s project site stayed open.
Wet’suwet’en leaders were in Ontario Friday, in Tyendinaga Mohawk territory near Belleville, Ont., where a major rail blockade has been set up. Wet’suwet’en Chief Woos, who also goes by Frank Alec, thanked the Mohawk community for their support.
He said the rail disruptions were a minor problem compared to the long list of broken promises Indigenous people had experienced.
“There is a difference between inconveniences and injustice,” he said. “Don’t confuse one with the other. There is a big difference.”
Woos demanded that before any talks take place with the government, RCMP officers had to be fully removed from Wet’suwet’en territory and work on Coastal Gaslink suspended.
Woos said their demand to the RCMP was clear and unequivocal.
“The RCMP are completely removed from our territory and patrols stop,” he said. “Out means out.”
Trudeau has faced mounting pressure this week to end the protests, with business groups warning they were causing significant damage to the economy. Canada’s premiers demanded and received a meeting with Trudeau Thursday, with most pushing for a quick end to the crisis.
Provincial police in Quebec and Ontario have been at the railway blockades since the protests began.
On Friday evening, protesters blocking the CN tracks in St-lambert, Que., peacefully dismantled their camp.
Trudeau said it was time for the court orders to be respected, but also stressed the police were independent.
“No politician gets to say you need to do this now.”
Trudeau was adamant the army would not be used to resolve the dispute.
“I think all of us, Indigenous and non-indigenous, want to see this situation resolved peacefully.”
Trudeau said the country still had a lot of work to do on reconciliation and real issues to be resolved with Indigenous peoples, but he said there were other groups using those issues to advance their own agendas.
“It’s not anchored in the deep wrongs that have been done and (it’s) ignoring and marginalized Indigenous leadership and Indigenous voices in this country,” he said.
Trudeau said the government wanted to avoid the possibility of violence, but Canada could not wait endlessly for someone to reach out.
Conservative leader Andrew Scheer, who has been calling for swift action since Tuesday, said Trudeau had gone from encouraging the protests at the start of the week to denouncing them now.
“Justin Trudeau has caused this problem. He elevated these protests to the same level as efforts for reconciliation,” he said. “This is nothing more than phoney resolve. If there is any improvement in the coming days it won’t be because of him.”
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called for Trudeau to co-ordinate a national response to bring an end to the crisis.
“This is a national emergency and innocent people from coast to coast are being hurt. The federal government must co-ordinate action to take down these illegal blockades across the country,” Ford said on Twitter.