RCMP has been working through the night and morning to prepare a massive law enforcement mobilization to the Unist'ot'en & Gidimt'en checkpoints of the Wet'suwet'en Nation located in so called British Colombia. B.C. Supreme Court Justice Marguerite Church expanded an injunction to include the Gidimt'en checkpoint. With this Injunction update RCMP's indicated that specially trained tactical forces will be deployed to forcibly remove Wet'suwet'en people from sovereign Wet'suwet'en territory. The RCMP's ultimatum, to allow TransCanada access to un-ceded Wet'suwet'en territory or face police invasion, is nothing short of an act of war on the sovereign, un-ceded nation.

An Impending Raid on Sovereign Territory

A Statement from the Wet'suwet'en Nation

Yesterday, members of the RCMP's Aboriginal Police Liaison met with the Wet'suwet'en Hereditary Chiefs and indicated that specially trained tactical forces will be deployed to forcibly remove Wet'suwet'en people from sovereign Wet'suwet'en territory.

Police refused to provide any details of their operation to the Dini'ze and Tsake'ze (hereditary chiefs) including the number of officers moving in, the method of forcible removal, or the timing of deployment.

By rejecting the requests for information by the Dini'ze and Tsake'zethe RCMP indicated that they intend to surprise and overwhelm the Wet'suwet'en people who are protecting their territories on the ground.

The RCMP's ultimatum, to allow TransCanada access to un-ceded Wet'suwet'en territory or face police invasion, is an act of war. Despite the lip service given to "Truth and Reconciliation", Canada is now attempting to do what it has always done - criminalize and use violence against indigenous people so that their unceded homelands can be exploited for profit.

The RCMP were advised that there are children, elders, and families visiting and present at the Gidimt'en Access Point, to which they did not respond.

Since it was established, the Gidimt'en Access Point has hosted gatherings, workshops, and traditional activities for Wet'suwet'en, and provided an essential space for Wet'suwet'en to reconnect with their traditional territories.

Article 10 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples clearly states "Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their land or territories." Any removal of Wet'suwet'en peoples by the RCMP, or any other authoritarian forces, will directly violate UNDRIP and the Trudeau government's promise to implement UNDRIP.

We are now preparing for a protracted struggle. The hereditary chiefs of the Wet'suwet'en and the land defenders holding the front lines have no intention of allowing Wet'suwet'en sovereignty to be violated.

In plain language, the threat made by RCMP to invade Wet'suwet'en territories is a violation of human rights, a siege, and an extension of the genocide that Wet'suwet'en have survived since contact.

Canada knows that its own actions are illegal. The Wet'suwet'en fought for many years in the Delgamuukw-Gisday'wa court case to have their sovereignty recognized and affirmed by Canadian law.

On the Ground: Reports as They Came In

Early this morning activist around the area began to notice RCMP gathering at several points to organize for a raid on Uni'stot'en & Gidimt'en Territories. Convoys began to mobilize through out the morning, setting up road blocks denying access into the Wet'suwet'en Territories. Reports are already coming in of RCMP attacks & a breech on the first checkpoint at time of writing. The Wet'suwet'en people have never signed treaties with Canada or sold their lands, a fact confirmed by Canada's Supreme Court in 1997 in a landmark case known as Delgamuukw. Chief Na'mocks Hereditary Chief of the Wet'suwet'en said the Hereditary Chiefs have never signed a paper or had a conversation about giving up authority over their land.

"How can there be reconciliation when they don't even acknowledge who we are. We are the rights and title holders, we are the highest ranking Hereditary Chiefs of the Wet'suwet'en Nation," said Na'mocks.

Wet'suwet'en land defenders at the Unist'ot'en checkpoint facing RCMP mobilization

These advances upon what is un-ceded territory is an act of war on these sovereign peoples. The RCMP are acting as the private mercenaries of the oil & gas industry of North America. The Wet'suwet'en Nation is prepared to resist this further colonization of its indigenous lands. Over 150 officers & 30 + Vehicles were spotted headed towards the blockades this morning.

A call to action for an international day solidarity has gone out by the Wet'suwet'en people. Actions have already been planned at over 40 locations around the globe, and more actions are being planned as this article is written.

This story is still developing we will release a full report on the events that have transpired today, as well as the back story behind this tomorrow stay tuned.