B.C. Green leader makes public safety announcement, misses Vancouver rally

B.C. Green Party pitches public safety plan Sonia Furstenau said her party will launch a taskforce on missing and murdered Indigenous women and scrap a controversial RCMP unit.

On the heels of a commanding performance at the only televised leaders’ debate of the 2024 provincial election, the leader of the BC Green Party was scheduled to speak at a lively rally after making a public safety announcement in downtown Vancouver, but lost her voice and missed it at the last minute.

Sonia Furstenau laid out a vision for judicial reconciliation with First Nations that includes a review of the justice system and incarceration of First Nations and Black people, a task force dedicated to investigations into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls, in addition to the dissolution of the RCMP’s critical response unit.

Furstenau told reporters she witnessed the Mounties’ surveillance tactics and protection of a pipeline work site first-hand two years ago, prompting the policy.

When CTV News asked what her response is to people who might see her as anti-police or critical of police as a result, she didn’t hesitate in her response.

“Sonia Furstenau is pro police ensuring that there is safety in community for everybody and that's the role police play,” she said. “I think when police are actively engaged in working with people in community, when the police are working with Indigenous leadership, when the police are working with leaders from racialized communities and creating greater safety for everyone, we all win.”

She went on to say that public safety could be improved when root causes and basic services – including housing, food, and healthcare – are addressed for people living in extreme poverty.