Yesterday’s torrential downpour forced us to have a slow evening. Lit by the glow of candles and lulled by the drip of raindrops on tarps, some of us played Scrabble, while others read out loud. Today, despite the constant drizzle, the mood remains energetic at the River Camp. We have learned that Junex will suspend work for four months, providing time for the MMS as well as the band councils of Gespeg, Gesgapegiag and Listuguj to hold public consultations for the residents of these three reserves to give input on fossil fuel development projects on unceded Mi`gmak territory.
Three weeks ago, an anonymous blockade of the access road to the Galt sites considerably destabilized the oil company, which until this point had been operating under the radar as much as possible, not even having held a preliminary public consultation on their project. We want to underscore the fact that this new development, which was announced yesterday by the band councils, would probably never have happened without the enormous efforts of the many people struggling on the ground: those who were active during the blockade, the indigenous people and settlers who have been working together at the River Camp, as well as the environmental groups who have been struggling for years in Gaspésie.
The River Camp is alive, active, and here to stay. The temporary halt of Junex’s work is no guarantee that the work will stop forever, nor does it signal the end of fossil fuel exploitation on the territory. We are thus determined to pursue this struggle. The River Camp is a place for organizing, sharing information and exchanging ideas. The need for such spaces, which inspire and make waves far beyond the limits of the camp as such, remains essential. We want an active public conversation, one that takes place horizontally, and it is this that we will continue to nurture. The strength of the relationships created or maintained by the camp is significant.
In this perspective, we reaffirm our call for a week of actions, starting with a demo in Gaspé on the 4th of September. Join us for the march at 14h, after a delicious corn roast! And pass by the Camp by the River at any time, whether for a brief stay, to talk around the fire, or for a long term involvement. We also invite you to our banner-making and circus workshops, as well as a slam night on September 2nd. The last rays of summer sunshine are giving way to the coolness of autumn, and we are still there, enthousiastic and determined.
Comments Off on Call for a week of actions against the oil lobby, in solidarity with the fight against Junex in Gaspesie: September 4 to 10
Aug252017
Anonymous submission to MTL Counter-info
Several groups are currently fighting against the exploitation of hydrocarbons in Gaspesie in order to prevent Junex, Petrolia, Squatex and others industries from sacking the peninsula.
The moment is opportune to put an end to their bullshit because our balance of power is growing and because the petroleum industry is not yet entrenched in people’s mentalities.
With this in mind, we are calling for the organization of actions through September 4-10 in support of the blockade of the Junex oil wells, the river camp in Gaspe and in solidarity with the municipality of Ristigouche Sud- Est. On September 5, Ristigouche’s lawsuit will be launched by Gastem for $ 1.5 million for a regulation to protect the drinking water sources of its 168 citizens.
Any means are appropriate to put an end to their activities. We’re calling on your imagination to demonstrate your support. Here are some suggestions to inspire you:
Banners, conferences, calls for donations, family events, occupations, blockades, sabotage, party, flyering, graffiti, music, poetry, street performance, sculpture, demonstrations, damage with molasses, youtube video, seed bomb, eating organic or taking out your recycling bin, hunger strike, put balloon gum in the gas gun, fireworks, eating dessert before the main course, cans of tomatoes that trail behind your car, asking for subsidies to the government to dig anything and everything, buy claims, create an oil company (as a diversion for the stock exchange), flash mob, etc. etc. etc.
BACK OFF OIL INDUSTRIES!
Here is a non-exhaustive list of different bodies or targeted actors belonging to the large family of the oil lobby in Quebec.
– Petrolia, Junex, Gastem and Squatex Offices
– Raymond Savoie, President of Gastem
– Martin Bélanger, President of Pétrolia
– Jean-Yves Lavoie, President of Junex
– Pierre Arcand, Minister for Natural Disasters
– David Heurtel, Minister of the Environment
– Bernard Lemaire, investor in Junex and founder of Cascades
This call is part of an anti-colonial, anti-oppressive and anti-capitalist struggle to create bonds of solidarity between different groups or individuals throughout the territory.
Comments Off on Traditional Mi’kmag 1st and 7th District Chiefs oppose Junex projects
Aug232017
Today, we traditional council chiefs from the 1st and the 7th Districts of Mi’kma’ki have gathered at the Junexit Banquet organized by the Camp by the River. We are here not only to support the occupation that has been set up on August 7th against Junex but also to assert our inherent rights and title over our unceded and unsurrendered territory, as affirmed by the 1763 Royal Proclamation. We assert our presence here to protect our territory under the Protection clauses for unceded lands, as protected by Constitutional Rights, Charter Rights, Human Rights, and International Rights.
The Chief of Mi’kam’ki 1st District, Unamaki, which is currently involved in its own struggle against oil and gas exploration by Alton Gas, as well as the 2011 historic and victorious struggle against fracking in Elsipogtog (6th District), thus adds her support to the 7th District’s current opposition to exploration and extraction on its land by Junex.
After the dismantling of the blockade, the struggle is just beginning, and coalitions are being formed between Mi’kmaq District Chiefs from the northern and southern ends of our Nation, as well as with land and water protectors from other nations.
As Traditional Mik’maq council Chiefs, we affirm our complete and inviolable sovereignty over the land Junex is illegally attempting to destroy. We are not concerned by the Indian Act (INAC) leadership, who’s authority lies exclusively within the border of the Federal Indian Reserves as stated in the Chapter 91.24 of the Constitution of Canada (Indians and land reserved for Indians). INAC describes only boundaries of reservations, and not traditional hunting and fishing territories. Outside of Federal Indian Reserves, the authority and jurisdiction lies with the rights holders, i.e. traditional district chiefs.
We demand an immediate moratorium on all exploration and/or development of oil and/or gas on traditional mik’ma’ki territory, District 7.
As Mi’kmaq peoples, we have a duty and obligation to defend and protect our Ancestral District territory. We cannot remain silent and condone any oil drilling within our territory that will poison our lands, waters, fauna and wildlife. We call all groups and individuals concerned by the protection of water and land on Gespegawagi territory to voice their support, take action, and join the struggle on site.
Suzanne Patles, 1st Unamaki district Gary Metallic, 7th District Gespegawagi
Comments Off on Sabotage of heavy equipment in the terrain vague, Montreal.
Aug172017
Anonymous submission to MTL Counter-info
3 machines were sabotaged by various means- removing air filters, contaminating oil, anti-freeze, and fuel reservoirs, emptying other fluid reservoirs, and disconnecting hidden electrical wires.
This terrain, abandoned for many years, is now part of a development plan to expand the port of Montreal.
– https://www.strategiemaritime.gouv.qc.ca
– http://journalmetro.com/local/mercier-anjou/actualites-mercier-anjou/1041553/des-citoyens-sopposent-au-projet-de-transport-de-marchandises-a-mhm/
An excursion through the terrain vague shows the area is being cleared, the ground moved, and roadbeds established in preparation for further construction.
Comments Off on Junexit: Beyond the Masks and the Media
Aug172017
Anonymous submission to MTL Counter-info
The blockade of the Junex Galt oil wells in Gaspésie has had much written about it in recent days. Nevertheless, information on what was happening at the site of the blockade has been hard to come by. The cops, as the blockaders, have not been particularly forthcoming.
I won’t elaborate on the how or the why of this action.
I only want to share moments of an incredible power that will never be relayed by the media, but that were quite real.
The view was stunning from Galt 5 (transformed by Junex into a wasteland of gravel and drilling residues), from the top of the mountain surrounded by dense forest, and the daily life among admirable people was gentle. The horn sounded three times per day, announcing meals, everything was discussed, in between some relays for the watch shifts at the barricades.
I won’t forget the mischievous joy that seized us at the sight of the front-end loader belonging to Junex being used to block their own road, nor the absurdity of seeing masked up people attending to their daily activities, or walking around with a chainsaw or an axe in hand, all while wearing the Junex uniform embellished by a fluorescent yellow construction helmet.
The barricades that improved by the minute, transforming from a few trees lying across the road to a wall of branches, reinforced with earth, scaffolding in the form of a watchtower, blocks of concrete and heavy machinery placed across the road. Everything gave the impression of an impregnable fortress.
What to say of the crazy collective laughter at the cops’ total incomprehension faced with our silence (above all when they gave us an injunction in the name of Gab Luneau).
Of course, not everything was perfect. We faced our share of pitfalls, tears, questioning, doubts, and tense moments, but however this story ends, victory is already ours. To have opened a world of possibilities in so short a time, the ball is rolling for what comes next.
The only interview we accepted to give to Radio-Canada and which you surely haven’t heard about, went as follows: (sung perfectly falsely)
Nous aurons des corbeilles pleines De roses noires pour tuer la haine Des territoires coulés dans nos veines Et des amours qui valent la peine
Nous aurons tout ce qui nous manque Des feux d’argent aux portes des banques Des abattoirs de millionaires Des réservoirs d’annees lumieres
Et s’il n’y a pas de lune Nous en ferons une
[We’ll have trashes full Of black roses to kill hate Sunken lands in our veins And loves that are worth the pain
We will have everything we lack Bonfires of money at the doors of banks Slaughterhouses for millionaires Reservoirs of light years
And if there isn’t a moon We will make one]
Junex and all the others, go fuck yourself, you will never find us, and we will not let you go.
Freddy, our thoughts and all of our respect are with you.
Strength and courage.
Comments Off on Urgent: Legal fund and solidarity demonstrations for Freddy Stoneypoint, Indigenous Land Defender
Aug162017
Legal defense funds are urgently needed for Freddy Stoneypoint, an Anishinaabe man who was arrested Monday night in a police raid of the anti-fracking blockade on Mi’gmaq territory in so-called “Québec”.
People had erected barricades and blockaded the site for over a week before a Sûreté Québec (SQ) tactical unit assaulted the camp. Protectors of the land and water are always confronted by the machinery of the police, in service of the oil companies. Solidarity and support for the defenders will be necessary for the struggle to be able to stop the destruction of territories.
Freddy currently faces charges of breaking and entering, mischief over $5000, and theft over $5000, and is being detained at least until a Thursday hearing on his release. He is being held at the New Carlisle provincial prison.
Freddy has consistently demonstrated an inspiring fortitude, determination, and strength of conviction in standing for Indigenous sovereignty and defending the land, air and water on which all people, animal species, and future generations, depend.
It’s now time for all of us who see ourselves in this struggle to help defend Freddy against the onslaught of the colonial “Canadian” justice system. We refuse any separation between “good” and “bad” water and land protectors. Rather, the fault line is between those who are safeguarding the land, and the partisans of the ravages of the extractivist economy.
Join us Thursday, August 17, at 1:00pm in front of the Palais de “Justice” of Percé for a demonstration in support of Freddy Stoneypoint in his legitimate struggle. Facebook here.
If you’re in Montreal, join a solidarity demonstration meeting on the north side of Parc des Faubourgs (close to metro Papineau) at 1 pm! Facebook here.
Funds are urgently needed to pay Freddy’s legal fees and his legal team’s travel costs. Please contribute according to your means. Youcaring link here.
Gary Metallic: My name is Gary Metallic. I’m the District Chief of the Gespegawagi Overseers Tribal Council.
Frank Sorby: And I’m Frank Sorby, subchief of Gespegawagi Tribal Council.
Ni Quebec Ni Canada:We’re here to talk about what’s going on around the Junex company, Galt projects and the blockade. What do you think about what’s going on?
GM: What do we think? From what we’ve heard, we support the blockade, and I think a lot of our people support it. We don’t want oil or fracking exploration or extraction being done on our territory because it’s going to hurt the environment, water, wildlife and so forth.
FS: Basically, you said it all.
NQNC:What do you think about all those people who want to be in relation to Mi’gmaq people and fight together against this project that is devastating the land?
GM: I think we have to form those alliances because, as we spoke about earlier, it’s okay to have protests and blockades but that alone will not be enough to stop whatever governments and mining, gas, oil, or fracking are trying to do. They have the courts at their service and it’s just a matter of time before they’re dismantled. But we have to form the alliance that we talked about, where our legal defence in Aboriginal title claim is combined with what your people are trying to do over there. When we put the two together, it would be, I think, very hard for Quebec to challenge Aboriginal title.
NQNC:What do you think of this resurgence of settlers who want to make links of solidarity and struggle with indigenous people, in this case with Mi’gmaq people, in different ways and on different fronts?
GM: Well our position has always been, as the 7th District Tribal Council, we have to co-exist. No one’s going anywhere. We’ve lived together several hundred years. May have not been the most peaceful relationship, but right now the way things are going, governments and corporate raiders are destroying our lands and resources, and environment. And it’s time for the people to stop them. And the only way to do it is to form these alliances, whether it’s Mi’gmaq, French, Acadian, English, this is the only way that our voices will be heard.
NQNC:What did you think about the reaction of Manon Jeannotte, the band-council chief of Gespeg?
GM: It’s a typical reaction from a band-council, especially if they are doing business with governments and oil and gas companies. I think that’s what we have here in the district, that’s the relationship that has existed since, I believe, 2005. And just her statement alone, saying that if we did oppose what’s happening in the oil extraction or gas by Junex or Squatex, they would meet face to face. But they’ve already been meeting face to face for almost a decade. And I don’t think they have any intentions of opposing what’s going on, based on her statement.
NQNC:What should be done right now?
GM: Right now, as I mentioned earlier, the alliances have to be formed, together with the people who are at the site, and our traditional Tribal District governments. We have the means to provide the legal and constitutional arguments that this land still belongs to us. Quebec had no business or no history giving any licenses to anybody without our consent, so what we do is challenge them on that. And I think bringing up this Aboriginal title land claim, with the constitutional arguments that go with it, that it’s still unceded Mi’gmaq lands, we will get their attention for sure.
NQNC:Why do you think that a lot of environmental groups, mostly settlers, don’t understand the relationship between capitalism and the band-councils? Like they don’t take this into consideration when they speak about relations with indigenous people. This makes a lot of people mixed up and surprised about band-councils signing agreements with companies, or just supporting, or just not resisting or whatever…
GM: Well that’s a big problem, because even we have that amongst ourselves. Our own people don’t understand it. Because of these back room, closed-door negotiations with governments and oil and gas companies, we don’t know what’s going on. But we as the traditional district government know that the relationship is not legitimate. Because there is a definition of band-councils and the traditional ancestral governing systems. And that means that traditional ancestral systems were here long before the band-councils were created in 1876. And therefore, the band-councils are only a federal entity, actually one entity negotiating itself for land claims and rights. And that’s the key. Our defence for court purposes, is that specifically points that out. And to add to that, we also have that clause for co-existence with non-native settlers, that this can be done easily. As I said, we’ve lived together for over a century.
NQNC:Outside of this situation, and more largely, what do you think we can build as a relation in more concrete ways, to build better relations between indigenous and non-indigenous people?
GM: Better relations, I think there is one common factor that will bind us all together. Mother Earth and the resources have to be protected. Because if you look around the globe and what’s happening, global warming and so forth, water being contaminated like in North Dakota. If water is contaminated, water provides life to everyone, humans and species. Now if we don’t protect that, if we can’t do that as human beings, well what’s going to happen?
And the other reason why we have to form these alliances and co-exist is our governments, whether federal or provincial, have done a terrible job of managing our lands and resources, as we can see today. The result of it is global warming. We have scientists saying that if this doesn’t stop, the use of fossil fuels, mankind will just disappear, almost like the dinosaurs. But nobody is listening. So the alliances between our people have to be formed, to take that authority back from these governments that have abused the authority that was given to them. Either by your system, the voting system, and our people have to now assert that aboriginal title, and take that back as well. And that’s where the co-existence will come in.
Sunday, August 6, a group of native and settler land defenders blocked access to Junex’s fracking drill pads Galt 4, 5, and 6 in Gaspésie on Mi’kmaq territory, land of the 7th district in Gespegawagi, 20 km from the town of Gaspé.
After securing funding from the Quebec government, Junex announced their plans to start unconventional horizontal drilling on this site in September.
In the heart of the forest, the land defenders set up a blockade, the “mountain camp”, and called for others to join in the struggle.
Gary Metallic, Sr., the 7th District Chief of Gespegawagi called for supporters to join the camp:
“We as the District Tribal Council members call for the support of these Defenders and for travel to the Gaspé protest site, we as Mi’gmaq peoples have a duty and obligation to also be the defenders and protectors of our Ancestral District territory. We cannot remain silent and condone any oil drilling within our territory that will poison our lands, waters, fauna and wildlife.”
Madonna Bernard, a Mi’kmaq land defender fighting a 100M$ Alton Gas storage facility on her territory also declared her support for the blockaders: “I applaud and stand in solidarity with them for their stance against Junex. We have the same fight against Alton Gas here in Sipekne’katik district in Nova Scotia. Treaty supersedes all other laws in so called ‘canada’ and it is time for all indigenous nations and allies in Turtle Island to come together and unite against canada the corporation to protect the environment and future generations.”
The river camp was erected in support of the occupation at the base of the access road by the 198.
After several days of police harassment, the SQ succeeded in taking down the blockade at the mountain camp and making one arrest.
A second camp has been constructed at the base of the access road beside the 198 highway. The River Camp is determined to continue the struggle against resource extraction and colonial expansion.
Urgent support and solidarity are needed for this ongoing struggle. Specifically financial support for the river camp and legal funds are immediately necessary. In the coming days material and physical support is needed. The river camp continues to welcome land defenders.
Comments Off on Call for Supporters from Gary Metallic, Sr., 7th District Chief, Gespegawagi
Aug152017
Our 7th District Overseers Tribal Council is in full support of the defenders at the Junex Galt protest site near Gaspé.
We have been in direct communication with the defenders in the past days and they attended our District Tribal council meeting last night in Listuguj asking for our support in the protection of our District lands, waters, fauna and wildlife.
We as the District Tribal Council members call for the support of these Defenders and for travel to the Gaspé protest site, we as Mi’gmaq peoples have a duty and obligation to also be the defenders and protectors of our Ancestral District territory. We cannot remain silent and condone any oil drilling within our territory that will poison our lands, waters, fauna and wildlife.
We ask you to join us this Saturday to be at the defenders’ support camp [river camp] where they have invited our people to share with them a meal prepared by them to form and cement our alliance with them to defend our lands and resources from being damaged because of the oil drilling by Junex.
Yours,
Gary Metallic Sr., 7th District Chief, Gespegawagi, and the Listuguj Overseers Tribal Council sub chiefs and family members.