Some members of the Innu community of Labrador are preparing for a marathon protest on the outskirts of Gull Island to stop the studies of the Hydro-Québec site for the hydroelectric project proposed in the Lower Churchill River.
Some 20 protesters gathered Wednesday night.
Translated into English by the protester Madeline Sillitt, organizer Matthew Andrew told CBC in Innu-Aimun that he hopes that many people join the protest to help preserve the earth, despite the multimillionaire agreement of the Innu Nation in principle with Hydro-Québec.
“He said there could be enough people soon once this protest really begins. He said that if not, he will go to Ottawa and protest there,” Sillit said for Andrew.
The agreement in principle with Hydro-Québec was reached in June.
He will make Hydro-Québec pay $ 87 million to the Labrador Innu, members of Sheshatshiu Innu First Nation and Mushuau Innu First Nation, in the form of annual payments to a reconciliation fund for 16 years.
The tentative agreement also includes a framework for the potential development of the island of La Gaviota. To end the agreement in principle, the Nation Innu will present it to people in Sheshatshiu and Natuashish, who will vote at some point between September and October.
Blocked roads
The roads that lead to Gull Island were locked until Wednesday night.
Chris Dyke told CBC News that the objective of protesters is to prevent Hydro-Québec employees from entering the land where Labrador Innu communities join for an event known as the Manishan Nui meeting.
“The meeting site is to unite people, not destroy it,” he said. “I take my grandchildren to hunt for partridge and let them drive. I teach my grandchildren here.”
Dyke says he wants his grandchildren to do the same. He said that the loss of land is not worth the tentative agreement of $ 87 million.
“The best thing about this place is to gather everyone,” he said. “Everyone loves money. I also love money, but only a couple of days of money will have here.”
Do not leave
Antonia Katshinak says that she does not think the treatment is fair.
“There will be water everywhere. Everything will be destroyed. The earth is more important than money. Money does not last long, but the earth will last forever,” Katshinak told CBC.
She says she cares about animals.
“They are going to drown, I suppose,” Katshinak said. “I’m not coming here anymore.”
With shelters who are already standing at Gull Island for events such as the meeting, Katshinak said that he will perform on Thursday ready to protest the long journey.
She expects others to join her.
“Tomorrow, my husband and I will come to stay,” Katshinak said. “We will stay all the time we can.”
Drilling and cleaning of trees to take place
Hydro-Québec spokeswoman Lynn St-Laurent, told CBC News on Wednesday that the Hydro-Québec survey will not affect the Mainishan Nui meeting, which takes place during the third week of September.
She anticipates that workers will be in the area until the end of September or mid -October, with 40 on the site at the peak of the study.
But protesters say they don’t buy it. For the dike, surveying the earth means destroying it.
“They want to bring loaders and exercises, so we locate it so that no team hit the earth,” he said.
St-Laurent confirmed that Gull Island’s inspection will imply some perforations and cleaning of trees, but she called it a standard process.
“This is a great effort and there is a lot of information we need to prepare,” he said. “There are also some components that are standard to reach the final agreement.”
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