Screening of YINTAH: in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en land defenders

By Elena Dumitru, Amnesty International, St. Marys London Stratford

The Amnesty International St.Marys London Stratford Area Group invites you to a special screening of YINTAH, a compelling documentary that takes us deep into the land the Wet’suwet’en call “Yin’tah” – a territory in northern B.C. they have governed under their own laws and customs for generations.

Amnesty International works to support human rights across many fronts – from racial justice and gender justice to Indigenous rights and environmental justice. The case of the Wet’suwet’en land defenders falls squarely at the intersection of these issues. 

In December 2023, Amnesty International published a major report titled “Removed from our land for defending it: Criminalization, Intimidation and Harassment of Wet’suwet’en Land Defenders.” The report documents years of violence, harassment, surveillance and criminalization of Wet’suwet’en land defenders. The Wet’suwet’en Nation has never surrendered rights to their territories and maintains that their Hereditary Chiefs, under their law (Anuc niwh’it’en), have the authority to govern access to their lands. 

Yet the 670-kilometre-long Coastal GasLink Pipeline Ltd. (CGL) pipeline, owned by multiple interests including TC Energy, cuts through Wet’suwet’en territories and proceeds without their free, prior and informed consent. Amnesty International’s report documents how large-scale RCMP raids (with helicopters, dogs and armed units) occurred on Wet’suwet’en territory, resulting in arrests, intimidation and what defenders described as attempts to push them off their land. 

As one Wet’suwet’en defender and woman land-defender said:

“The reason we’re here, why we’re fighting so hard for our rights, our land, our water, our animals … the way we live our life is off the land, and they’re destroying it all.” 

The organization has highlighted that land defenders were arbitrarily arrested, surveilled, intimidated, and sometimes subjected to disproportionate police raids involving the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).  

Amnesty International has called on both the Canadian federal government and the government of British Columbia to drop criminal contempt charges against Wet’suwet’en land defenders who are simply defending their territories. 

 The documentary, Yintah, gives lived experience and human faces to these issues. It reminds us that the questions of development, energy and extraction are not abstract – they are rooted in the lives and territories of Indigenous peoples defending their home and future.

Why you should attend

- Witness a powerful story of land-defence, community and Indigenous resilience.

- Understand how human rights, Indigenous sovereignty and climate justice converge in real time.

- Engage with a movement of solidarity: learn how organizations like Amnesty International Canada are working alongside defenders, and how you can show support.

- Reflect on your own role: attending the screening, discussing the film afterwards and possibly taking action to amplify the voices of those on the front lines.

Screening details

Date and time: Thursday, Nov. 13. Doors open at 6 p.m. for light refreshments. Screening starts at 6:30 p.m.

Venue: Riverwalk Commons, 84 Water St. S, St. Marys

Admission: Free event. Donations appreciated.

Special segment: Following the film, we will hold a brief discussion and share how you can learn more about the issues and take action.

We hope you will join us for this important event. Let’s come together, witness their story and commit to standing in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en land defenders.