An old growth activist blockade known as ‘Cougar Camp’ had been raided by police who were enforcing an injunction.
This blockade raid took place on Tuesday, November 25th, as Vancouver Island RCMP members moved to enforce the BC Supreme Court injunction order, which was granted in mid-September to Tsawak-qin Forestry Inc.
The injunction essentially prohibits anyone from impeding the forestry company from gaining access to the site on which they plan to commence logging activities.
Cougar Camp was set up in the Upper Walbran region of the Carmanah Valley, and has been blocking logging activities along a logging road there since August 28th.
The camp gained notoriety when it was established due to the massive driftwood effigy of a cougar that was positioned in the middle of the logging road to block traffic.
RCMP say their Critical Response Unit – British Columbia (CRU-BC) and Police Liaison Team (PLT) spoke with protesters camped along the logging road at approximately 8 a.m.
During this interaction, police read the court-ordered injunction to the protesters and provided them with options of how the scenario could unfold.
Police say the old growth activists were provided an opportunity to abide by the terms of the injunction and leave the area, move to the side of the road or be arrested.
According to RCMP, there were between 15 and 20 protesters at Cougar Camp at the time.
Throughout the day, police say that most of the protesters peacefully cleared the area; however, some refused to leave.
In total, four people were arrested. Of those arrested, two women and one man face charges of breaching the court injunction, while one man is being charged with criminal mischief.
RCMP say that all arrested individuals have since been released on conditions with scheduled court appearances in January.
As the police raid took place, members of the protesters positioned at Cougar Camp managed to get out one last statement before their means of communication were cut off.
The Cougar Camp blockade is just the latest attempt by activists to halt the logging of old growth forests in BC.
During the police raids of the Fairy Creek blockade in 2021, protesters were similarly read a BC Supreme Court injunction to stop impeding Teal-Jones logging activity in the area.
Over 1,100 arrests were made at the Fairy Creek raids, for which the RCMP came under massive scrutiny regarding their ethics, and for their gatekeeping of the media, who were often kept from the site where they were trying to report from.
