BISMARCK, N.D. -A tribal chairman is calling on members of his tribe to avoid traveling to Mandan and Bismarck after a clash Saturday between private security officers hired to oversee construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline and those who are protesting it.
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Native American protesters were reportedly attacked by security guards at the construction site of a multi-million dollar oil pipeline in North Dakota.
This comes after six people were allegedly bitten by security dogs and 30 were pepper sprayed at a protest of the Dakota Access Pipeline construction site.
Law-enforcement personnel were not present at the North Dakota site when the incident occurred, Preskey said.
The security officers were protecting workers and the company’s assets, she said, and “safety is ETP’s top priority and the company is committed to having the appropriate safety measures in place”.
When it did, the researchers found burial rock piles called cairns and other sites that have historic significance to the Native Americans, and which are in a danger from the pipeline.
His contemporaries say he’s the right person at the right time to lead the fight.
Thousands of people from more than 200 Native Tribes have joined the Standing Rock Sioux’s efforts to protect their lands, waters and sacred sites from harm during construction of the 1,200-mile pipeline.
David Archambault II, the tribe’s chairman, said in a press statement construction crews scraped clear several tons of topsoil over a 150 feet wide area stretching almost 2 miles. “In one day, our sacred land has turned into hollow ground”.
The protest was triggered after protesters had marched from their campsite to a construction site west of Highway 1806 found recently to contain Native American graves and sacred sites. Videos show some protesters were bloodied and the sheriff says three private security officers were hurt. FOX News reported that he said, “These grounds are the resting places of our ancestors”. Individuals crossed onto private property and accosted private security officers with wooden posts and flag poles.
The protest was carried out by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and others who are sympathetic to their cause.
Morton County Sheriff Kyle Kirchmeier said it “was more like a riot than a protest”.
Morton County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Donnell Preskey said that four of the guards and two of the dogs sustained injuries during the chaos, and added that all had been treated for the injuries, NBC News reports.
The United States government does not hesitate to harm people to protect its domestic and foreign interests, says a political analyst in IL, citing a violent crackdown on pipeline protesters in North Dakota as an example.
A federal judge is expected to rule within the week if construction can continue.
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Permits to build on the tribal lands in North Dakota were granted by the Army Corps of Engineers in July, according to NPR.
