Protest continues near site of cleared rail blockade
Posted Feb 25, 2020 11:57:00 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
After police cleared away a 20-day rail blockade near Belleville and rail service begins the process of resuming in much of eastern Canada, protests across the country show no signs of stopping.
The demonstrations are in solidarity with the hereditary chiefs of the Wet'suwet'en Nation, who oppose the development of a natural gas pipeline project that crosses their traditional territory in northwestern British Columbia.
Live video posted on social media, around 2 a.m. Tuesday, show a small group of protesters with a banner that reads, “Hands Off Wet'suwet'en.” Indigenous songs and chants play over a loudspeaker as the protesters stand firm, just steps from a line of OPP officers enforcing a court injunction to clear the rail line.
Ten people were arrested as the blockade was cleared, Monday morning, angering some Indigenous leaders, community members and advocacy groups who had hoped for a peaceful resolution.
In Ottawa, hundreds of demonstrators marched through the streets in solidarity, in a demonstration that was planned before the police cleared the Tyendinaga rail blockade.
Another rail blockade, on railway tracks between Hamilton and Toronto, has forced the cancellation of some commuter rail trains, Tuesday morning. Members of a group called Wet'suwet'en Solidarity said they were occupying the tracks in response to the OPP's removal of protestors on the CN Rail line at Tyendinaga.
Even though the Tyendinaga railway blockade has been cleared, Via Rail says its passenger service between Ottawa and Toronto is cancelled through at least the end of this week.
