UN Human Rights Experts To Pursue Dialogue With Canada On Constructing Pipeline - Chair

UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd January, 2020) The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination will continue to engage in dialogue with Canadian authorities on the issue of constructing a natural gas pipeline on an indigenous community's land in the province of British Columbia, Committee Chairperson Noureddine Amir told Sputnik.

"The Committee will pursue its dialogue with Canada on this issue within the framework of its monitoring functions," Amir said on Wednesday.

Wet'suwet'en Nation activists have contested the construction of the Coastal Gas Link pipeline on their ancestral land citing international law and a Canadian Supreme Court decision, which reaffirmed indigenous land claims and recognized hereditary chiefs.

Amir also recommended that Canada should seek technical advice from the UN Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples when engaging in consultations with the activists.

In December, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination released a memorandum in which it renewed calls to the Canadian government as well as pipeline owners and operators to halt construction on a number of projects, including the Coastal Gas Link, on indigenous lands in British Columbia until proper consultation can occur with all stakeholders.