BC Ferries has been granted a preemptive court injunction to prohibit Wet’suwet’en solidarity protesters from blocking any of its terminals.
Spokesperson Deborah Marshall said the company sought the injunction after hearing plans of a protest at the Swartz Bay terminal near Victoria this weekend.
“We viewed this as a last resort,” she said. “We obtained it in the interest of public safety, but our concern was for customers being able to access our terminals.”
The injunction is open-ended with no timeline for when it expires and applies to any protests connected to the fight over the Coastal GasLink pipeline in northern B.C.
Marshall said BC Ferries is working on creating protest areas for demonstrators to gather and “be highly visible” without blocking access to the ferries themselves.
“We certainly respect the rights of individuals to peacefully express their views, as long as it doesn’t jeopardize the safety of our customers and employees,” she said.
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