Resistance activities continue on Northwest B.C. pipeline construction site, police make 2 more arrests

Blockade activities continue near the Coastal GasLink (CGL) pipeline site in northwest B.C. as two more arrests were reported by the RCMP on Monday, Nov. 29.

RCMP North District spokesperson Cpl. Madonna Saunderson said, while patrolling, the police came upon a blockade on the Morice Forest Service Road near the 44 km mark.

“A vehicle had been placed across the road and three individuals dressed in camouflage were on the road and a fire had been lit on the road near the bridge,” said Saunderson in a statement.

While one individual left, the other two remained and were subsequently arrested for contempt of a court order and mischief. Coastal GasLink vehicles travelling behind CIRG (RCMP Community-Industry Response Group) were then able to continue up the road.

Both individuals have been released from custody pending a future court appearance, added Saunderson.

The arrests were made in the same area near Houston where 29 CGL pipeline opponents, including Gidimt’en Checkpoint’s spokesperson Sleydo’ (Molly Wickham) were arrested between Nov. 18 to 19.

All the arrested individuals were released with conditions, which included complying with the court ordered injunction obtained by CGL, and maintaining adequate distance from pipeline construction sites.

As resistance activities persist on the construction site to prevent the company from drilling underneath the Wedzin Kwa (Morice River), police will continue to patrol the area, Sauderson said, to ensure that the roads remain “accessible and unobstructed.”

However, owing to operational reasons, she would not provide a timeline of how long the police presence is expected to continue in the area, or the number of officers deployed.

In a social media post, Gidimt’en Checkpoint said the group will “never back down.”

“Despite racist, colonial state repression, Wet’suwet’en law will continue to be upheld,” said the group in a Nov. 29 Facebook post.

Binny Paul, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Terrace Standard