Police and riot squad members almost outnumbered protesters yesterday at a rally outside the Canadian Consulate General on Gadigal Land, Sydney, Australia.
Around 50-70 people gathered to demonstrate solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en people on Turtle Island, Canada, who are currently blockading their land against a militarised Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) force that are enforcing a court decision to build a gas pipeline through traditional lands. The blockade has been in place since January and has seen several violent arrests. Traditional owners are insisting that their land was never ceded and that no permission has been given to build the pipeline. Other clans and First Nations across Turtle Island are coming together to support the Wet’suwet’en, including the Sipek'ne’katik, who are also fighting a battle against a gas storage facility. These actions are opening up a wider discussion on Indigenous sovereignty and the history of Canadian colonialism.
The situation on Turtle Island closely mirrors that of First Nations people across Australia, many of whom are railing against mining operations and the further degradation and dispossession of their traditional lands.
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