Canada: CFWIJ condemns the restrictions imposed by RCMP against journalists covering the protests at Fairy Creek

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May 19, 2021 - The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) temporarily restricted press access to the headwaters of Fairy Creek, the last unlogged old-growth valley on southern Vancouver Island. The press was present to cover the protests of The Rainforest Flying Squad, who have been protesting and successfully blocking logging of an old-growth forest in the region since last year. CFWIJ is alarmed by the RCMP’s restrictions on the press and we call on the authorities to allow journalists the necessary access to report on the events. 

Journalist Jen Osborne was one of the many journalists who revealed the repression of the free press at the Fairy Creek blockade on Twitter. When she reached the site to cover protests on May 17, she was denied access by the RCMP. The officers then redirected Jen to another entrance, a kilometer away. Given the police restrictions, the journey would have taken three hours on unpaved roads. Instead, the police gave Jen the number of the media relations officer, Christopher Manseau. The journalist drove over an hour to find adequate cell reception, reaching another police checkpoint equipped with radios and possibly even satellite phones. The journalist asked the authorities to contact the media liaison on her behalf, but they refused. Once Jen was finally able to call Manseau, she realized she was given the wrong number. After returning home, the journalist received an email from Manseau, inviting her to the press junket. The journalist returned to the Caycuse blockade the following day to photograph the events after being granted access by the police despite the ongoing injunction against protestors.

On May 19, Jen returned to the blockade, and the environment became increasingly contentious. The journalist reported to CFWIJ that the RCMP had granted access to advocacy journalists who were “particularly belligerent and problematic”, making the situation considerably more difficult for the other journalists present. The advocates were adamantly defending press freedom as a means of protest, but it inevitably interfered with the journalists trying to report on the blockade and the related arrests.  The RCMP contained all of the journalists for most of the day, at a distance.  Jen disclosed that they were too far away to capture any decent footage or photographs. When asked to comment about the situation, Jen shared, “Media should expose corruption. It should not be a tool to be used by the corrupt.  Although officers made an attempt to allow press access to the arrest events of May 19th, they did not work hard enough to accommodate our needs to report freely and fairly.”

According to the journalist, the RCMP made two forceful arrests on the morning of May 20, before the press had arrived at the scene.  Two hours later, the authorities extended a media invite as a feeble attempt at transparency. Jen believes this is a tactic used by the RCMP to control the narrative, “the RCMP is only allowing media access when the situation is stable and when our reporting can provide positive PR for their organization.” she concluded. 

The issue was also addressed by the Canadian Association of Journalists, who criticized the broad scope of powers granted to the RCMP by legal authorities, which usually results in institutional overreaches.  This is not the first example of police interference with journalists in an RCMP-patrolled area. In February, Brandi Morin was intimidated by RCMP officers when she tried to visit the Unist’ot’en Healing Camp. The RCMP has regularly attempted to suppress outlets covering the struggle of Indigenous tribes in Canada against corporate greed and environmental destruction. 

The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the abuse of power regularly demonstrated by the RCMP and the silent permission for the police to continue their harassment and restriction of the press. Protest and freedom of the press are democratic rights promised in the Canadian constitution, and any attempts to curb these liberties must be stopped. The press has the right to report freely, without arbitrary police interference.  The authorities must make better efforts to ensure that journalists have unobstructed access to cover developments as they unfold.  While CFWIJ supports the right to protest, journalists should not be held by the same restrictions as activists on the scene. We stand in solidarity with Jen and all journalists battling to provide free and fair coverage of current events.