Mounties face online harassment from 'globally well-funded' Fairy Creek protesters, police union says
As the Fairy Creek blockade on southern Vancouver Island becomes the largest act of civil disobedience in Canadian history in terms of arrests, the national RCMP union says police have the support of the public.
On Thursday, the National Police Federation, which represents RCMP officers, released a survey it commissioned about the ongoing old-growth logging protests in the Fairy Creek watershed.
Since May, protesters have been arrested as they block logging company Teal Jones from a small old-growth cut block. A BC Supreme Court injunction has made it illegal for anyone to block industry in the area.
The survey by Pollara Strategic Insights found that 82 per cent of British Columbians agree the RCMP has a duty to enforce court injunctions.
It also showed those polled strongly believe protest is an important part of democracy.
“Our members have maintained their professionalism and composure against a steadily increasing barrage of verbal taunts; racial slurs; engineered physical barriers; human chains and bindings that threaten the health and safety of everyone in the area,” said Brian Sauvé, president of the National Police Federation, in a press release.
The union also says officers at the protest have faced online stalking and harassment from Fairy Creek activists and supporters.
“The protesters are extremely and globally well-funded, many of whom are highly experienced in media manipulation and propaganda, and they have demonstrated that they are increasingly desperate to intimidate our officers and mislead the public in their ongoing campaign against both the licensed forester and the Pacheedaht and Ditidaht First Nations upon whose traditional territory they are imposing,” said Sauvé.
CTV News reached out to the Rainforest Flying Squad, which represents old-growth logging activists and Indigenous land defenders at the remote blockade.
Noah Ross, a lawyer working with the group, says the survey indicates the RCMP is “trying to engage in a battle of public opinion” rather than simply enforcing the law.
“They feel like they’re losing the battle of public opinion and the reason they’re losing that is they’re going beyond their duty, which is to enforce the law, and they’re specifically trying to defeat the movement, which isn’t their job,” Ross said.
Protesters have said for weeks that the RCMP are escalating their tactics and putting activists in serious danger. Dozens of complaints have been sent to the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP.
Twenty-one per cent of survey respondents agreed with the statement: “The RCMP are overreacting to the protesters and need to be held accountable.”
CTV News asked the provincial government for its response to the survey.
"We respect people’s rights to protest peacefully in the Fairy Creek watershed," the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General said. "Enforcement action by the RCMP in response to the court decision is an operational matter for the RCMP and is entirely at arms length from government."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.