VICTORIA/ UNCEDED LEKWUNGEN TERRITORIES — Groups are hosting a press conference to call on the B.C. government to withdraw Bill 15.
Bill 15, or the Infrastructure Projects Act, has been widely criticized for granting unilateral power to the B.C. government to fast-track major projects. It paves the way for major projects to bypass crucial environmental assessment processes, skirt around regulatory oversight, undermine First Nations’ inherent and Aboriginal rights, title, and jurisdiction, and override municipal authority, which includes civic processes and opportunities for participation. The B.C. government failed to consult and cooperate with First Nations on the development of the bill to ensure its consistency with the United Nations Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, despite their obligation to do so under the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.
Voices from diverse perspectives are united in sending a message to the B.C. government: Send Bill 15 back to the drawing board.
Location
Outside lawns of Mungo Martin House
475 Belleville St., Victoria, BC
https://maps.app.goo.gl/Qow8uCkhMi5C6Des7
Date
Monday, May 26, 2025
Time
9:30 a.m. PT
Participants
Hereditary Chief David Mungo Knox
Kwakiutl First Nation
Chief Don Tom
Chief of Tsartlip First Nation
Vice President of the UBCIC
Hugh Braker
Political Executive
First Nations Summit
Ecojustice:
Sarah Korpan, government relations and campaign manager
Andhra Azevedo, staff lawyer
Stand.Earth:
Kiki Wood, senior oil and gas campaigner
Wilderness Committee:
Torrance Coste, associate director
