First, let me remind you that we are now at around 400 arrests of peaceful, unarmed people doing the job the premier promised to do: protect the very very very last of the old growth.
For this week, I want to draw attention to some of the various court cases going on around the old growth debacle. These examples show HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO ARREST THE REAL CRIMINALS when what they’re doing is “legal” and every little thing must be painstakingly dealt with in the eye-poppingly expensive courts. Oh, and they have a heavily armed police force.
The legal systems are set up for corporate profit, insulation of rich people, and lack of transparency. The legal systems are also set up to divide First Nations, while giving them the tiniest slice possible of any profit pies.
The saddest fact is that Premier Horgan; “Minister of Forests+” Conroy; “Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation” Rankin; and “Minister of Public Safety” and Solicitor General Farnworth (and the rest of the government MLAs through their complicit silence) all act as if their hands are tied and they are only following laws. This is super messed-up spin because, as majority members of the LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY, they have the ability to change laws, especially if they got elected promising to do so.
- Teal Jones trying to pass the buck: A big thing hitting the courts is Teal Jones applying to the BC Supreme Court to apply for Criminal Contempt of Court charges to apply to peaceful “protesters” (i.e. forest protectors/land defenders) at Fairy Creek who would otherwise be charged with Civil Contempt of Court upon arrest. This means that Teal Jones is trying to make the charges against “protesters” more serious (criminal records). It also means that the company is trying to get the Crown (i.e., the taxpayers) rather than their paid legal team to take on the very expensive burden of prosecution.
Let me also remind you that this is going on in an escalating CLIMATE CRISIS while the forest industry is subsidized by the BC government at $365 million per year, employs less than 1% of BC’s population (as compared to 12% in culture/accommodation/food service), and amounts to less than 3% of BC’s GDP.
If you’d like to write a letter to Attorney General and NDP MLA David Eby, a longtime human rights advocate,regarding this travesty, I’ve attached a great letter you could reference, written by Neelam Chadha.
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Journalists and elders going to court to stand up for lawful protest and reporting: This week in a Nanaimo court, Susan Gage (who will be at this week’s rally) and Saul Arbess are bringing forward a case for a variance to the court injunction (the reason why the RCMP are arresting people) as follows: that the discretion retained by police as to the timing and manner of enforcement of this Order shall not extend to barring access to members of the public who have not violated the terms of this Order.This will reinforce the clause allowing unfettered access of all persons to any area within the injunction zone, including where active blockades exist and should restrain the police from restricting access of members of the public. This case will be heard together with that brought by the Canadian Association of Journalists, who have also been denied access.
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Original injunction stuff: Some of the people named on the original injunction have filed appeals, which are in process. There is also a third party notice to bring the government into the issue making its way through the courts, which is also in process.
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A bit of good news, Tzeporah Berman can go back to Fairy Creek: Berman, of Stand.Earth, was arrested and ordered not to return. Her lawyer argued that the bail condition that constrains people who have blockaded from going back to Fairy Creek was unconstitutional and won. Unfortunately, every arrestee would have to do the same to get the same result. But it’s something!