Noise Demo in Support of Wet’suwet’en People Greets BC Premier John Horgan

Report back on solidarity action outside of office of BC premier John Horgan in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en people.

In the morning of January 8^th John Horgan, the premier of so-called British Columbia (‘BC’), received a noisy wake up call by supporters of the Wet’suwet’en people and Unist’ot’en Camp at his Langford community office, urging him to step up for Indigenous rights.

A group of 15 people gathered in front of the office making noise with a tuba and bells declaiming “Wake up! Respect Indigenous law!” These Settler activists acting in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en people, the Unist’ot’en Camp, as well as Gidim’ten Access Point, held banners stating “Right Action. Make ‘BC’ Pipeline Free”; “RCMP off Unist’ot’en Land,” as well as a banner of artwork by Indigenous artist Gord Hill.

Sam, an activist talking to community members, said, “It’s contradictory that ‘BC’ prides itself on being the first province to implement the [United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People] while not respecting the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chief’s opposition to having any pipelines on their territory.”

The action responds to the “International Call for Week of Solidarity!” from Tuesday January 7^th until Sunday January 12^th 2020 released by members of the Wet’suwet’en people on the anniversary of a brutal police RCMP raid that happened on Wet’suwet’en territory last year.

On January 4^th 2020 hereditary chiefs responded to a ‘BC’ Supreme Court injunction order posted by Coastal Gaslink (CGL) with the eviction of all CGL employees from Wet’suwet’en territory. A release on the Unist’ot’en Camp website states, “The Wet’suwet’en House Chiefs representing all five clans oversaw the successful eviction of CGL employees from Unist’ot’en and Gidimt’en territories. […] The eviction letter clearly stated that workers were not to return to the territory without the consent of the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs. […] As far as we know, CGL intends to commit trespass on Wet’suwet’en lands and continue construction. They will likely rely on RCMP violence to force their way into our territories once more.”

In the next days more actions will follow including a rally under the motto “Stop the Assault on Indigenous Sovereignty!” at the Legislative Assembly of ‘BC’ at 12pm on Saturday January 11^th 2020.