OBJECTION TO BRINGING IN NON-NATIVE CITY GARBAGE FOR A “GASIFIER” ON AKWESASNE OF KAIANEREH’KO:WA/GREAT LAW TERRITORY

Date: February 7, 2006

FROM: Women Title Holders of the Kanion’ke:haka Nation

According to Wampum 44 of our law, the Kaianereh’ko:wa, the Women Title Holders are the “progenitors of the soil”. We are the Caretakers of the land, water and air. We also have a responsibility to keep our Men in check. At the moment they seem to be ignoring us and bowing to external pressures.

Re: We refuse to be treated like guinea pigs by outsiders who take advantage of the economic weaknesses of some of our people. Some bright lights want to import big city garbage, 1.5 million tons of it. Phew! They think they can turn it into water, oxygen and gas. The only residue will be “pie in the sky”. We have enough excrement and toxins around here, don't we? Some of the wild life in this area has already been found to be more lethal than toxic waste.

To: Windell R. King, Loran Thompson and Simon P. Romana of First NRG of Akwesasne, their “secret backers”, City of Toronto Ontario, City of London Ontario, Prime Minister of Canada, Premier of Ontario, City of Cornwall, First Nations Indian Territory in Southwold, Ontario, Department of Indian Affairs, Environment Canada, St. Lawrence Seaway Authority, Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe Inc., Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, Toronto Stock Exchange, Montreal Stock Exchange, New York Stock Exchange, Alcoa Aluminum, General Motors, Domtar, Reynolds Aluminum, Courtaulds Chemicals and Comedy Central (Addresses at end of Public Notices).

OBJECTION TO: bringing millions of tons of filthy garbage from the cities of Toronto and London Ontario to Cornwall Island of Akwesasne and other Kaianereh’ko:wa territories. We demand you all come to your senses, including the city of Toronto, if it has any senses left. The People have not given our permission for this wacky and dangerous exploitation of our land and sovereignty. The waste is likely to float downstream raising pollution levels in a river that is just beginning to benefit from major clean up initiatives. Akwesasne is still a long way from full recovery from the pollution caused by the aluminum, chemical and car plants that came with the St. Lawrence Seaway. Most of the people living there can expect a shortened lifespan because of it. The abuses of the past do not excuse increasing the levels of poison to further destroy the inheritance of those yet to be born.

Our relationship is based on the Guswenth/Two Row Wampum Agreement. The Kaianereh’ko:wa and the Constitution of Canada agreed to respect this agreement. The two vessels, the ship of the white man and the canoe of the Indian, will travel the river never crossing each other’s paths. We agreed to follow nation-to-nation protocol. It appears these native businessmen have jumped from the canoe into the colonial ship. Or are they straddling it?

Don’t these native businessmen realize that the purpose of bringing all the non-native garbage onto our land is to get around their own environmental legislation which doesn’t allow this? The city brings in the garbage to a phony plant or one that doesn’t work. The promoters get the money and disappear. The natives get the blame. The people will be left with a big pile of garbage and possible liability. Cornwall Island will become the anus of the city of Toronto. We don’t want rats to move into the ecological space that rightfully belongs to partridges, turtles, beaver and deer.

If the process is so clean, why ship it all the way to Cornwall? Why not process it on Harbour Front in Toronto? What are these men doing?

The proposed garbage gasifier is on sovereign territory under our jurisdiction as respected by the conjunction of our constitution, Kaianereh’ko:wa, the Canadian Constitution and the U.S. Constitution.

NRG et al. never brought this issue to the people. They need the informed consent of a majority of the people to use our sovereignty in any way. Outsiders and their native nominees and investors are attempting to use our people and our land for their gains and interests to the detriment of our health and future. Dumping garbage on our land violates a large number of laws. It may even be a criminal attempt by outside interests to take advantage of our sovereignty to violate environmental laws.

Any foreign entities such as Toronto and London with their garbage wishing to enter our territory for any reason whatsoever must go to Rideau Hall in Ottawa and get permission from the Governor General of Canada to talk to us. Individuals from NRG and their “ghost” partners cannot invite outsiders onto our territory to oppress us, contaminate our land and abuse our sovereignty.

We are registering our objection to this illegal abuse of our jurisdiction. In Canada we took an action in the Supreme Court of Canada – Kanion’ke:haka Kaianereh’ko:wa Kanon’ses:neh v. Attorney General of Canada and He Majesty the Queen in Right of Ontario, Court File: 05-CV-030785. It is attached for you to read.

The native men are going against the philosophy of the Great Law and the Longhouse. We notify these businessmen if they wish to exploit others against the best interests of our People, they can leave us and become Canadian and American citizens. This kind of twisted morality fits in very well there. Wampum 58 provides, “They have alienated themselves and have submitted themselves to the laws of a foreign nation. They shall forfeit all birthrights and claims on the Five Nations Confederacy and Territories”. They cannot take our nation and our sovereignty with them. They leave and become citizens of a foreign nation.

FURTHER OBJECTIONS:
Whereas:

The Canadian and U.S. Constitutions specify that relations with us shall be conducted on a nation-to-nation basis. These businessmen, their “backers” and clients cannot supersede this relationship. Toronto and London, keep your garbage! If it’s so valuable, you shouldn’t be giving it away.

The attempt to dump all of this garbage onto our land is a transparent attempt to commit genocide against us, according to the many international covenants that Canada has pledged to uphold. Therefore:

3. We demand that these parties cease and desist their garbage project in any way, shape or form on our territory. You do not have our consent.

4. We demand that the Governor General of Canada immediately put a stop to this. As a matter of comity between nations, she has a duty to keep her nations’s garbage off of our land.

By: Kanion’ke:haka Women Title Holders
Katenies /s/ ________________________
Kahentinetha /s/ __________________________
Mailing address: c/o P.O. Box 49, Kanatakon, Akwesasne H0M 1A0 Contact: katenies20@yahoo.com 613-575-1550

Sent to:
Comedy Central; First NRG; George Bush, President of the United States; Governor General of Canada; Attorney General of Canada; Attorney General of Ontario; Stephen Harper, Prime Minister; Dalton McGuinty; St. Regis Mohawk Tribe Inc.; Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte; Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, Mohawk Council of Kahnawake; Kanion’ke:haka Kaianereh’ko:wa Kanon’ses:neh at Akwesasne; Cayuga Nation of Indians; Seneca Nation of Indians, Alleghany Reservation; Cattaragus Reservation; Oneida Indian Nation of New York Inc.; Oneida Nation of the Thames; Onondaga Nation; Tonawanda Band of Senecas; Tuscarora Indian Nation; Mohawk Nation Council of Chiefs, Kanatsiohareke; Ganienkeh;

See: Watertown Daily Times article, Wednesday February 1, 2006 Titled: “Mohawk firm says gasifier can turn garbage into energy”