VANCOUVER - The B.C. Supreme Court has granted an injunction to a forestry company to halt a blockade against old-growth logging in the Walbran Valley on Vancouver Island, with the judge saying it "appears clear" the protesters' action is criminal.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Amy Francis said Friday that protests "are part of a healthy democracy. Criminal conduct is not."

Tsawak-qin Forestry Inc., which is co-owned by Western Forest Products and the Huu-ay-aht First Nations, had sought an end to the blockade outside Port Renfrew, B.C., that began in late August.

Tsawak-qin Forestry filed a lawsuit against the blockaders last week, claiming the "unknown individuals" have prevented the company and its contractors from accessing the site by erecting structures and "a large wooden sculpture"

See Full Page