A group of activists occupied the office of Victoria riding Liberal candidate Nikki Macdonald Friday afternoon to protest fish farms on the sa国际传媒 coast and their impact on First Nations culture and the environment.
Tsastilqualus, a matriarch of Ma鈥檃mtagila First Nation, organized the demonstration with members of the environmental group Extinction Rebellion, known for shutting down bridges and blocking intersections to call attention to the climate crisis.
鈥淭he message is fish farms out now,鈥� said Extinction Rebellion member Howard Breen.
鈥淲e support the matriarchs in their efforts to rid the coast of these fish farms that are bringing about the cascading collapse of sa国际传媒鈥檚 biodiversity because of the impacts on wild salmon.鈥�
A few dozen people gathered outside the office holding hand-painted signs of fish skeletons and waving Extinction Rebellion flags. Tsastilqualus and a small group engaged with staff inside, and three demonstrators stood on the roof holding a large, green banner that read: 鈥淩ebel for Life.鈥�
Macdonald was out door-knocking in the final days of the campaign, her staff said.
Tsastilqualus said the three fish farms near her community in the Broughton Archipelago have decimated the salmon population.
鈥淢y people went two years without one sockeye fish. Last year we got a bit. This year, we鈥檙e out again,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really, really important to worry about salmon because of all the other animal kingdoms that need it.鈥�
On top of the environmental impact, salmon is an important part of First Nations culture, Tsastilqualus said.
鈥淲e鈥檝e had salmon DNA in our bodies since time immemorial,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 in our dances, in our songs, everything. You remove sockeye, then who are we? We鈥檙e known as the salmon people.鈥�
The group said they chose to demonstrate at Macdonald鈥檚 office because they鈥檙e frustrated with what they see as a lack of action by the Liberal government to put an end to fish farms.
Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has promised to transition salmon farming in sa国际传媒 from the oceans to closed containment systems by 2025.
But those protesting Friday don鈥檛 believe that promise is genuine. 鈥淲e鈥檝e heard this before. It鈥檚 all just regurgitated stuff from the last election,鈥� Tsastilqualus said.
A statement by Nikki Macdonald鈥檚 office defended the Liberals鈥� commitment to preserving the salmon population.
鈥淥ver the past four years, our Liberal government has restored critical funding to fisheries protections gutted by the Harper government through the new Fisheries Act. When salmon reached critical levels this past spring, Minister [Jonathan] Wilkinson made the decision to drastically half fishing to allow stocks to revive.
鈥淎 re-elected Liberal government will continue to make serious investments in the protection of wild fish stocks.鈥�
The Liberals pledged to work with sa国际传媒, First Nations and the fishing industry in the transition to a closed containment farming system.
Extinction Rebellion, which has chapters around the world, has held several rallies in Victoria in recent weeks to protest what it sees as government inaction to address climate change.
During a week of climate action in late September, the group occupied the intersection of Government and Belleville streets for eight hours. On Oct. 7, it closed the Johnson Street Bridge during rush hour.
