A second march through downtown Smithers was held today (Wednesday) by the Gitxsan Huwilp Government, voicing issues and calling for action by the provincial and federal government.
One call that was emphasized was to, “Negotiate, not litigate.”
It started in the Sunshine Inn parking lot near Queen Street and Highway 16, ending in front of the Smithers Courthouse.
The focus was on abolishing the RCMP Community-Industry Response Group (C-IRG), and for injunctions on indigenous land to stop.
During speeches by chiefs, the 1997 Delgamuukw v. British Columbia case was mentioned several times and how it said the province couldn’t destroy the First Nations’ way of life.
“Our way of life has been subverted by the Canadian government,” said Hereditary Chief Moolaxan (Norman Moore).
“They issue permits to their friends, the big corporations, which permits them to harvest our resources.”
He claimed the government segregates First Nations and employs the C-IRG to “brutalize them”.
Another call made during the rally was for the dismantling of the C-IRG unit.
Delee Nikal added to that call, referencing the Highway of Tears.
“So many of our women and girls stolen with zero answers and almost no help from police. In some cases, no help at all.”
“They can’t spend any money on searching for our loved ones, but they can spend $100 million dollars on criminalizing my uncle for standing on his own territories,” she continued.
Chief Sakimhigookxw (Vernon Smith) said, “We would like to see an independent judicial review of the corruption in the BC Supreme Court, and the RCMP.”
In November, a similar rally was held with an additional call to end injunctions on First Nations land.
MyBulkleyLakesNow has reached out for a comment from the RCMP, but have yet to receive a response.