A fresh blockade emerges on the road to Brady Landfill while the debate over probing the Prairie Green Landfill for the remains of two indigenous women intensifies in the province’s corners.
By Wednesday evening, protesters could be observed seated in lawn chairs, brandishing placards with the words ‘Search the Landfill;’ another on the road with the same demand, followed by a parked vehicle and its occupants.
Responding to the development, a spokesperson for Winnipeg City relayed via email that officials were fully aware of the blockade, subsequently opening an alternate route as a brief respite. Nonetheless, he iterated that the court injunction restraining the road’s blockade still firmly held. He added that the Winnipeg Police were in the know about the situation and were actively engaged with the protesters at the scene.
The protest against inaction began in earnest in July’s early days. The Brady Landfill route was closed following Heather Stefanson’s public statement that the Manitoba government had no intention of probing the Prairie Green Landfill in search of two women’s remains, believed to be Morgan Harris and Marcedes Myran.
On July 14, the court granted a temporary injunction to lift this blockade, enforced on July 18 eventually.
The issue of the landfill probe has claimed the limelight over the past week. The Progressive Conservatives have vocalized their steadfast decision against the search in their campaign, which has consequently fuelled public outcry.
Stefanson underscored this divisive matter during a leaders’ debate on Sept. 21. Additionally, an advertisement circled in the Winnipeg Free Press on Sept. 23 cited electing not to search the landfill.
The politically charged atmosphere in the region grows denser as the date for the provincial elections, Oct. 3, draws near.
