by Jacob Moore
Protestors have blocked a couple of highways in the province after a raid of a cannabis store in Potlotek First Nation.
At around 1 p.m., Thursday, RCMP say Highway 102 at exit 10 is reduced to one lane “due to a protest and people on the highway”.
It comes after police searched an illegal cannabis store along Highway 4, according to an emailed statement from RCMP.
But afterwards, a group of protesters blocked the road, they say.
The officers who remained at the scene have left on foot, and a police team “continues to be engaged and communications are ongoing with community leaders,” the statement says.
Although there are police cars on scene, it is unclear if any officers are still there, according to one of our Acadia Broadcasting reporters, who says a helicopter is now overhead.
Several RCMP cars are parked outside of a cannabis store along Highway 4 in Potlotek First Nation on Thursday. PHOTO: ACADIA BROADCASTING
Shortly after noon, the protesters were letting a few cars through at a time, then waving the line of traffic through, but only a few minutes later, they began turning cars around.
It comes just a few months after the province started a cannabis crackdown.
In December, Nova Scotia announced they would be increasing police enforcement around concerns about safety and that unregulated market.
This sparked disappointment from First Nations, one who even threatened legal action.
On March 13, Sipekne’katik First Nation created its own law on the matter, which is in effect, now.
In a post on social media, Chief of Sipekne’katik First Nation Michelle Glasgow says it’s not about “weed shops” getting raided. “It’s about the government asserting jurisdiction over Our Communities and over Our Unceded Mik’maq Lands.”
“If we allow this to continue then we are allowing the assimilation of Mi’kmaq into a society that was meant to destroy us.”
More to come…
