John Duncan, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development...

John Duncan, Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, joined Grand Chief Mike Kanentakeron Mitchell of the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne and community members at a ceremony Oct. 17 to commemorate the final settlement of a specific claim dating back to the 1820s. The negotiated settlement includes about $5 million in financial compensation. The Kawehnoke specific claim related to lands leased on Kawehnoke (Cornwall Island) between 1820 and 1934. As all the leased lands currently are part of the Akwesasne Reserve, the focus of the negotiations was on financial compensation only. “We are pleased that a past wrong to our people has now been corrected,” said Mitchell.
“Throughout the negotiations, it was important that we worked together to resolve this claim fairly, expeditiously and in the context of respect and good will that now serves as a foundation for our future relationship. We look forward to working together in resolving larger land claims that involve Akwesasne.”