Sit-in camp being dismantled at legislature grounds after 2 weeks

Edmonton -

A sit-in camp constructed on the south lawn of the Alberta legislature grounds has been dismantled about two weeks after it was first put up.

Officers with Edmonton Police Service and Alberta Sheriffs Branch visited the camp Monday morning, asking those there to leave.

About 50 people had been participating in the sit-in as of last week. They said the camp, consisting of five teepees and about a dozen tents, was to highlight ongoing injustices against Indigenous communities.

A court injunction granted last week allows officers to enforce rules around overnight use of the grounds.

Last week, a spokesperson for Alberta Infrastructure said everyone has a right to protest at the legislature, but no one is allowed to spend the night.

“To keep the legislature grounds open, safe, and accessible for all Albertans...overnight use or setting up unauthorized structures on the grounds is strictly prohibited,” Haydn Place wrote in an email.

“All Albertans are welcome to use the grounds between sunrise and sunset each day when the grounds are open to the public, including for protest. These rules are applied equally, without consideration of the nature of the protest." 

With files from Sean Amato