POSTED ON February 13, 2020
Solidarity Statement in Support of the Wet’suwet’en people

CUPE 2626 acknowledges that Ottawa is located on unceded Algonquin territory. We acknowledge that the Algonquin Anishinaabe peoples are the traditional keepers of this land and recognize their long-lasting relationship with this territory. We also acknowledge all Indigenous peoples in this region, from various nations across Canada, who call Ottawa their home.

CUPE 2626 stands in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs and activists at the Unist’ot’en Camp defending their territory and the environment against TransCanada Coastal GasLink.

As the Wet’suwet’en Solidarity Leaflet notes:

TransCanada as well as the provincial and federal governments are openly violating Wet’suwet’en, Canadian law, and international law. The Hereditary Chiefs of the Wet’suwet’en and the land defenders holding the front lines will never allow Wet’suwet’en sovereignty to be violated.

We stand as witnesses to this historic moment when the federal and provincial governments are not following their own stated principles of reconciliation or the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. (Wet’suwet’en Solidarity Leaflet)

Since Justin Trudeau’s first election, the Canadian Government has renewed its commitment to restore a relationship with Indigenous peoples, especially through the establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and recognition of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP). Under Article 10, the UNDRIP condemns the forced removal of Indigenous nations from their lands or territories (“Indigenous peoples shall not be forcibly removed from their lands or territories”).

Thus, CUPE 2626 calls for the removal of the RCMP from the Wet’suwet’en territory and asks the Canadian Government to honour its commitment to pursuing a Nation-to-Nation relationship with Indigenous peoples. CUPE 2626 also supports the rights of the Wet’suwet’en to continue protecting their lands and the future of their peoples.  We call on other institutions across Turtle Island to condemn this continued violence against Indigenous nations.

We thank the Wet’suwet’en people and other land defenders who have taken it upon themselves to defend the environment while continuing to have their rights violated at the hands of the Canadian settler-colonial state.

We invite our members to stay informed by visiting this website created by Wet’suwet’en land defenders: http://unistoten.camp/.

Sign the Pledge to support the Unist’ot’en.

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