Morning Update: Ottawa ‘hopeful’ blockades will end; Wet’suwet’en matriarchs speaks out about pipeline conflict

Good morning,

These are the top stories:

The latest on the pipeline blockades

• The RCMP are offering to move a temporary post in northern B.C. to a nearby town. The government is “very hopeful” the move will satisfy the protesters’ demands and help to restore halted rail service. However, there are other demands not yet met.
• Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a conference call with premiers on last night to discuss the issue. Ottawa wants a peaceful resolution, but is putting emphasis on Canada’s railway system needing to be fully functional for the economy.
• The rail blockades are congesting ports in Vancouver and Halifax, forcing some shipping companies to reroute to U.S. ports.
• A report by the civilian RCMP watchdog validates concerns about Wet’suwet’en protests regarding police conduct to ward off protests against pipeline construction.
• Conservative leadership candidate Peter MacKay deleted a tweet that praised the actions of counter protesters who tried to clear a blockade, leading to accusations he was supporting vigilantism.

‘That’s not the way of our ancestors’: Wet’suwet’en matriarch speaks out about pipeline conflict

A Wet’suwet’en hereditary subchief who helped translate a seminal Supreme Court decision that laid the foundation for greater control for Indigenous communities over their land says she opposes the blockades that have been roiling the country.

“There is no love, there is no respect. That’s not the way of our ancestors,” Rita George said, saying she is speaking on behalf of the matriarchs and elders of her community. “If I keep quiet, if I don’t come forward to address our point of view, it will look like we are supporters. We are not.”

Opinion:

• (Gary Mason): In the Wet’suwet’en dispute, we’re not hearing from the voices that matter
• (Jula Hughes and Elizabeth Blaney): As the RCMP retreats from the Wet’suwet’en blockades, the delicate trust it is building with Indigenous women remains at risk
• (Robyn Urback): If this is all Trudeau can offer on the blockades, perhaps he should have gone to Barbados

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In the Maritimes’ rising tide of population growth, rural communities flounder as cities float

Cities such as Moncton and Halifax are getting bigger, younger, richer.

Meanwhile, in the province’s rural communities, people are worried about their future. Family farms are closing, schools are being shuttered and towns are aging and shrinking.

The possible dissolution and efforts of survival in Shelburne, N.S., exemplifies how the recent prosperity in East Coast urban areas isn’t being shared with folks in the countryside.

All public schools in Ontario to close today as teachers strike provincewide

About 200,000 Ontario teachers and education workers from the four main teachers’ unions will be on the picket line today in the first ever provincewide strike that will close all publicly funded schools, with the threat of more labour action next week. The Globe and Mail revealed this week that benefits funding is a main sticking point in discussions, and one of the issues that led to a recent breakdown in talks.

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ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Canadian-developed drug shows dramatic outcomes in reducing damage caused by strokes: Developed by NoNo Inc., a private Toronto-based company, Nerinetide has been more than two decades in the making and reduces the mortality rate of stroke to 11 per cent from 19 per cent.

Telus CEO says company will cut 5,000 jobs if forced to open wireless networks to resellers: The chief executive officer of Telus Corp. says he has been instructed by the company’s board to cut $1-billion in network investments and slash jobs over the next five years if carriers are forced to drop their prices by 25 per cent or open their networks to wireless resellers.

Anti-West candidates likely to recapture Iranian parliament: While the parliament has little policy-making power, a conservative-dominated Majlis would signal that Iran is preparing for deeper confrontation with the West, with fewer pragmatist voices calling for the country to abide by a 2015 nuclear deal.

Nine people killed in shootings in Germany: The gunman had posted a rant calling for the “complete extermination” of many “races or cultures in our midst” before he shot and killed nine people of foreign background in an attack on a hookah bar and other sites in a Frankfurt suburb.

MORNING MARKETS

Global stocks head for worst week in four as coronavirus spreads: Shares across the world fell on Friday and were set for their worst week in four as investors dumped riskier assets for the safety of bonds and gold, with coronavirus cases in China and elsewhere spreading. Just before 6:30 a.m. ET, Britain’s FTSE 100 was down 0.23 per cent. Germany’s DAX lost 0.12 per cent and France’s CAC 40 fell 0.22 per cent. In Asia, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended down 1.09 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.39 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index bucked the trend, closing up 0.31 per cent. New York futures were weaker. The Canadian dollar was trading at 75.38 US cents.

WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT

Sudan’s Omar al-Bashir may finally face justice for Darfur. But the work is not yet done

Mark Kersten: “If it is indeed Sudan’s plan to ‘hand over’ Mr. al-Bashir, the ICC needs to be ready: His trial would be the highest profile in its history. It would be the first time the ICC hears allegations of genocide, a notoriously difficult crime to prove given the need to show genocidal intent.” Kersten is a senior consultant at the Wayamo Foundation.

No joke. The next PQ leader could be a comedian

Konrad Yakabuski: “The PQ and its next leader have a lot riding on an eventual Supreme Court of Canada ruling on the constitutionality of Bill 21. As one PQ activist said at Mr. Bastien’s campaign launch, the legal challenges constitute ‘a wonderful springboard towards independence.’ "

TODAY’S EDITORIAL CARTOON

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LIVING BETTER

Opinion: Why there’s value to be found in dinners on repeat

Parents shouldn’t feel bad about pulling out old standbys; dinner doesn’t always need to involve some level of inventiveness to be appealing. And when it comes to what we eat, predictability and repetition can be a comfort and familiarity, especially for children. There might be an argument for regularly rotating weeknight dinners instead of always asking the most sigh-inducing daily question: What are we having for dinner tonight?

MOMENT IN TIME

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Polaroid’s instant camera introduced

Feb. 21, 1947: Edwin Land took a picture of his daughter on vacation, and when the three-year-old asked why she couldn’t see it right away, Land became obsessed with figuring out a way to do just that. Four years later, Land unveiled his invention, the first Polaroid camera, at a meeting of the Optical Society of America on this day in 1947. The following year, the camera was sold to the public for US$89.75. It developed a black and white photo in less than one minute and people loved it. Polaroid cameras became even more popular with the debut of colour film in 1963. Polaroid’s ethos of instant gratification and encouraging amateur creativity is still alive on Instagram and other online photo-sharing platforms. The advent of digital photography led Land’s Polaroid Corporation to file for bankruptcy twice, in 2001 and again in 2008. By then it had stopped producing instant cameras and film. But the company was eventually acquired, allowing Land’s legacy to live on. Sometimes you have to lose something for its importance to come back in to focus. - Dave McGinn

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