Protesters and land defenders are occupying rail lines and intersections across Canada to draw attention not only to the pipeline, but also to Indigenous land rights on the whole.
Wet’suwet’en land is unceded, meaning it was never signed over on paper to Canada through a treaty. This is important, because the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs assert a legal right to the land and a right to decide who uses it for what. Of course, it’s important to note than even if a treaty was signed between Canada and existing Indigenous peoples, that doesn’t mean the land was “given up” or given away. There’s a lot of complexity behind the legacy of the treaty system. (Woods, 2020)
Land has religious, historical, and spiritual significance to indigenous and First Nations people, and the government's attempts to build on contested territory tap into a deep-seated tension in Canada. And even though British Columbia introduced a bill to uphold UNDRIP during its 2019 legislative session, few believe that policymakers will actually consider the resolution given that it was Prime Minister Trudeaus administration that approved pipeline expansion in the first place, hoping to work with oil and gas export businesses.
Many activists supporting indigenous sovereignty have said that the Canadian government's efforts to support pipeline construction are part of a broader scheme to further diminish the social and political power of tribal nations. For example, activists say an interim land negotiation policy called Comprehensive Land Claims is explicitly built to “extinguish” the rights of indigenous people if they are not able to prove, by way of certificate or deed, their ownership and stewardship of the land.
Woods, M. (2020). Wet’suwet’en Coastal GasLink Pipeline Dispute: Every Word You Need To Know
https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/wetsuweten-coastal-gaslink-protest-injunction-definition_ca_5e4423edc5b61f8ad4e283c3?ncid=fcbklnkcahpmg00000001&fbclid=IwAR0ihYCoPxS9W6WDhaN6FPAJ7elRrzFu9oHbs-Jn6VK25Pc-c27Xj6Yrgj8
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