The RCMP arrested three more people on Nov. 26 at a blockade at a forestry operation in the Carmanah Valley, near Lake Cowichan.<\/p>\n
The total number of people arrested at the site since Nov. 25 is now seven, with six arrested for breaching an injunction granted by the B.C. Supreme Court in September that prohibits people from obstructing forestry operations on the Walbran Forest Service Road.<\/p>\n
The seventh was arrested for criminal mischief.<\/p>\n
Following the arrests, the area was closed off by the police to allow forestry workers to clear the roadway and resume their operations.<\/p>\n
A blockade made up of individuals, vehicles, and wooden items had been established on the service road within the injunction area for several months, preventing road access and violating the court order.<\/p>\n
The police moved in on Nov. 25 to enforce the injunction granted by the court to Tsawak-qin Forestry Limited Partnership and Tsawak-qin Forestry Inc.<\/p>\n
It stated that during the course of that day, most of the 15 to 20 old-growth activists at the blockade — known as Cougar Camp — peacefully cleared the area.<\/p>\n
But a number of protesters had set up a new blockade at a nearby site on Nov. 26 and were asking people to come and protest with them before the RCMP moved in again and made further arrests.<\/p>\n
A statement released in support of the protesters said that if the province wasn’t breaking its promise to stop logging in old-growth forests, people wouldn’t have to be arrested.<\/p>\n
“It’s crazy to spend millions of dollars to persecute and arrest people who are just trying to protect the last of B.C.’s old-growth forests,” the statement said. “Past RCMP operations at forest protection camps in B.C. have included violent arrests, injuries, and blocked access to legal observers and media.”<\/p>\n
Joan Rosenberg that without communication, there is no accountability.<\/p>\n
“We urgently need the media’s help to ensure people at Cougar Camp are safe and that RCMP actions are being independently scrutinized,” she said.<\/p>\n
“The RCMP will continue to monitor the situation and work with all partners to provide assistance as necessary in maintaining peace and keeping everyone safe,” the police statement said.<\/p>\n
The blockade by protesters who are connected to the Fairy Creek protests in 2021 was set up in August to block logging trucks in the area.<\/p>\n
The Tsawak-qin Forestry Limited Partnership (Tsawak-qin Forestry) is a forestry company that operates Tree Farm Licence 44 in the Carmanah Valley.<\/p>\n
It is a limited partnership between the Huu-ay-aht First Nation and Western Forest Products.<\/p>\n
The company manages approximately 137,000 hectares of land and emphasizes that it operates under an Indigenous-led integrated resource management plan that aims to blend traditional values with modern forestry practices.<\/p>\n
A statement from the forest company in September when the courts granted the injunction said the harvesting taking place prioritizes ecological integrity while allowing for limited, carefully managed forest harvesting to support local economic resilience.<\/p>\n
The Pacheedaht First Nation owns the land where the logging is taking place. Chief Arliss Daniels said when the injunction was granted that, as the rightful stewards of the land, the First Nation asserts its inherent rights and authority over all the activities taking place within its territory.<\/p>\n
“The protestors’ blockade is an unlawful obstruction directly interfering with lawful forestry operations that the government of B.C. and Pacheedaht have authorized,” Daniels said at the time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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