A group of protestors camping out in front of the legislative building for nearly 100 days has been handed an eviction notice.
The notice was issued Saturday by the Provincial Capital Commission -- the commission that oversees the area. According to the Trespassing Act, the Justice for our Stolen Children camp must disband. The act says people can’t stay in the park overnight, put up tents or other structures, or burn wood or other combustible materials.
The group has to be off the property by 5 p.m. on Tuesday.
One protestor posted a counter-notice on the commission’s building, saying the provincial government isn’t in compliance with the Treaty 4 contract, and that the legislative building and all other provincial structures in the park should also be removed by Tuesday evening. The creator of the notice says it has since been taken down.
Richard Murray, the deputy minister of Central Services, says the eviction notice was issued respectfully on Saturday. He hopes the camp will comply with the notice. He also said the camp is in a space needed for park functions as summer approaches.
“One of our big worries is the security contingent advises us that there may be a requirement to move Canada Day festivities because of this camp,” Murray told CTV News on Monday. “That’s not acceptable to us. We are expecting somewhere between 40 and 50,000 people out for Canada Day, and we just thought that now would be a suitable time to provide notice.”
If the camp hasn’t been packed up by 5 p.m. Tuesday, Murray says the government will reassess the situation and decide what actions need to be taken next.
With files from CTV Regina's Gina Martin
