MoveUP statement on Wet’suwet’en situation

MoveUP statement on Wet’suwet’en situation:

MoveUP stands in solidarity with the labour movement in calls to resume discussions towards a negotiated settlement and find mutual solutions between the Province, Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs, and Coastal GasLink
.

 
 
 

BC Federation of Labour Statement on the Situation in Wet’suwet’en Territory

February 7, 2020 | Statement

On January 14th, 2020 the BC Federation of Labour called on the RCMP to step back and allow for government to government dialogue to address the concerns raised by Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs, in an effort to find mutual solutions to the complex issues constituting this dispute.

Since that time the RCMP did indeed step back, which allowed for government-to-government relations to attempt renewed discussion and negotiation, including formal discussions mediated by Nathan Cullen between Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs and the Province.

Unfortunately, those discussions broke off and renewed RCMP action to enforce Coastal Gas Link’s court injunction have ensued, resulting in multiple new arrests on Wet’suwet’en lands and increased confrontation.

Despite the inability of recent discussions to resolve outstanding issues, the BC Federation of Labour continues to support a negotiated settlement to this dispute and urgently calls for renewed negotiations to find a mutual solution in the spirit of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

 
 

BCGEU statement on Wet’suwet’en events - February 9 - BCGEU

The BCGEU continues to call for a peaceful resolution to the conflict on Wet’suwet’en territory.

As a trade union committed to supporting the full implementation of the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the recommendations of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the BCGEU is deeply troubled by the current and ongoing events on Wet’suwet’en territory including the use of exclusion zones, forceful removal of land defenders, and threats to journalists.

Further escalations threaten to unravel progress towards reconciliation. We urge the RCMP to withdraw and ask for all parties to resume talks to reach a negotiated settlement.

 

BC Teachers' Federation -- Solidarity Statement in support of Unist’ot’en Camp and the Wet’suwet’en Nation

The BC Teachers’ Federation reaffirms our solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en Nation. As a union committed to the Truth and Reconciliation’s Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, we call on the governments of BC and Canada, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Coastal GasLink Pipeline to respect the position taken by the Wet’suwet’en Hereditary Chiefs. They are insisting upon respect for Indigenous sovereignty as they have never ceded their jurisdiction to the lands they have governed and have been stewards of for millennia. All five clans of the Wet’suwet’en Nation have unanimously opposed all pipeline proposals. Forcibly removing peaceful land defenders from their traditional unceded lands is in violation of the UN Declaration.

Our provincial government recently passed a bill that states they will honor the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Actions speak louder than empty promises that First Peoples have faced for decades. If the leaders of our province and country are truly committed to reconciliation and honouring the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, then immediate action is required. Elected leaders must act now by negotiating with the respected leaders of the Wet’suwet’en Nation who hold the inherent right to self-determination including the right to defend their lands.

The 45,000 members of the BC Teachers’ Federation stand in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en peoples and demand that the government of BC and Canada uphold their responsibilities laid out in the Supreme Court Delgamuukw-Gisday’wa decision of 1997. We stand as witnesses at this historic moment when our governments must make a choice to uphold this court decision or continue the ongoing legacy of colonization.

In solidarity,

BC Teachers’ Federation


 

Ontario Federation of Labour -- The OFL stands with the Wet’suwet’en Nation and solidarity protests across Canada

February 13, 2020

The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) affirms its solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en Nation, as they steadfastly defend their territories, and with those who are actively supporting Indigenous sovereignty through protests and blockades across Ontario and Canada.

The recent arrests of land defenders is yet another shameful example of Canada’s failure to implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. The Wet’suwet’en Nation has the inherent right to self-determination, which includes the right to defend their lands. The OFL encourages the RCMP, Coastal Gaslink, and all levels of government to engage in true reconciliation – not just through words, but in meaningful actions that reflect and create a strong nation-to-nation relationship.

Government actions that continue to perpetuate Canada’s ongoing legacy of colonialism and cultural genocide must stop.

Here in Ontario, the Ford government, like settler governments before them, have failed to take action towards reconciliation, even acting to reverse progress. The reality is that Indigenous peoples still do not have access to clean drinking water, shelter, and food security in this province. Further, the Conservative government has halted curriculum development for elementary and secondary students on Indigenous culture, history, and contributions; cut the Indigenous Culture Fund; and dismantled the Anti-Racism Directorate’s subcommittee to combat anti-Indigenous racism, placing Ontario even further behind.

We all share a collective responsibility for reconciliation. Demonstrate your solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en Nation by joining Toronto’s Family Day March on February 17 at 2pm and by signing up for updates at http://unistoten.camp/.



 

PSAC stands in solidarity with the defenders of Unist’ot’en Camp

January 17, 2019

Last week, RCMP officers arrested and detained several Wet’suwet’en people on their unceded territory while they were defending their land from a major pipeline development. The Unist’ot’en community has had a camp set up since 2009 to block TransCanada Corp from building the Coastal GasLink pipeline.

PSAC’s National Indigenous Peoples’ Circle Representatives have been working to protect and defend the rights of Indigenous Peoples in Canada and abroad for a number of years. We condemn the injunction and arrest of those at Unist’ot’en Camp. We call on the provincial and federal governments to respect a nation-to-nation relationship with hereditary leadership at Unist’ot’en.

We ask those in the labour movement to stand in solidarity with the defenders at Unist’ot’en Camp with the goal of defeating this injunction and re-establishing the occupation of the Unist ot’en's healing camp.

Together let’s show all levels of government that they cannot trample on Indigenous rights in favour of private oil and gas interests. To learn more, please visit the Unist’ot’en website at: http://unistoten.camp/


 

Vancouver Elementary School Teachers' Association -- Letter of Support of the Unist’ot’en Camp

The Vancouver Secondary Teachers Association (VSTA) is writing in support of the Unist’ot’en Camp near Houston, BC.  We are concerned about the unjust treatment of the Wet’suwet’en people by the Federal Government’s use of the RCMP to forcibly remove them from their unceded and traditional lands.  The Provincial Government of British Columbia, as well as the Federal Government have both committed to uphold the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.  Article 8.2.b of the Declaration states that “States shall provide effective mechanisms for prevention of, and redress for any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories or resources.” The treatment of the Wet’suwet’en people is in direct contradiction to the aforementioned article.

Canada has made a solemn commitment to reconciliation and as Public School teachers, in light of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action, we have been tasked and honoured with the duty of working towards building relationships between settlers and Indigenous people.  The only way that our nation will ever be able to achieve true reconciliation is by treating all Indigenous peoples with respect, which includes respecting their rightful claim to protect their territory.  We call upon your government to its promise and commitment to the TRB Calls to Action as well as the United Nation’s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.


 

PSAC statement on the ongoing situation in Wet’suwet’en Territory

February 18, 2020

As rail blockades and nation-wide solidarity actions in support of the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs continue, we call on Prime Minister Trudeau to find a peaceful solution to the ongoing dispute through nation-to-nation talks.

RCMP action to enforce the B.C. Supreme Court injunction in recent weeks has resulted in increased tensions and multiple arrests on Wet’suwet’en lands. We oppose any and all attempts to impose a resolution by force.

PSAC stands with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs in calling on the provincial and federal government to uphold the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples that confirms the specific right of  Indigenous Peoples to free, prior and informed Consent, and upholds the right to withhold or withdraw consent to any project that may affect them or their territories. The commitments of the federal and BC governments to reconciliation are hollow if these fundamental rights continue to be denied.

We will continue to stand in solidarity with all those who have courageously been on the frontlines in defending the earth and the rights of Indigenous Peoples.