Negotiations underway for memorandum of understanding with Quebec

A memorandum of understanding (MOU) could soon be signed between the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) and Quebec, Cody Diabo shared with The Eastern Door.

The MCK grand chief said he hopes to see the document finalized and signed before the new year.

The proposed MOU lays out in clear terms how the band council and government hope to form a collaborative and productive working relationship moving forward. It’ll be similar in nature to the one the MCK already has signed with Canada as of the spring.

“At the end of the day, it’s meant to ensure that we try to peacefully coexist and understand each other’s positions on various things,” Diabo said.

The MCK grand chief shared the update following a virtual meeting between him and Quebec premier François Legault earlier last week. In attendance was also Indigenous affairs minister Ian Lafrenière and Council chief Ryan Montour, among other MCK staff and government officials.

The 30-minute discussion centred on the MOU, as well as the 211 acres Quebec still owes Kahnawake.

Negotiations are still underway to adjust wording in the MOU so that the document meets the interests of both parties, Diabo said.

Quebec officials had proposed wording that would establish a “nation-to-nation” relationship, according to Diabo, and had also suggested mentions of the Canadian constitution, two items he and other Council chiefs weren’t on board with.

“That’s why I had simply suggested we just really bring down the wording to basics, about how we need to learn to coexist going forward with mutual respect,” he said. “They had wanted to utilize a nation-to-nation terminology. But again, for us, we don’t speak for the nation, so we can’t put that in.”

The MCK is still waiting to hear back from Quebec about their most recent rewrite of it.

“There’s nothing set in stone yet, except maybe some talks about another meeting in about three to four weeks with myself and the premier to sign the MOU,” Diabo said.

Land debt

A parcel of land equating roughly 150 acres has been offered up to Kahnawake by Quebec, Diabo also shared. The MCK is in the process of studying whether it’ll accept the land.

The province still owes 211 acres of land to Kahnawake to make up for the expansion of Highway 30 – a promise that’s stalled for several years now. Lafrenière previously told The Eastern Door that he intends to resolve the debt by the fall.

“There was a guaranteed portion of about 150 acres, so we’re asking for another one close by it to see if it can be all grouped together, which would probably bring it under 200 acres,” Diabo said. “It would be a sizable area that we can hopefully get returned, if everything works out with it. And then we would just have to look at some other areas to complete the whole debt.”

St. Nicholas Island east of St. Bernard Island is another option he’s brought to the table.

Until the early 1900s, Canada respected the community’s title to the five-acre island, but that changed after 1906 when the Quebec government staked claim to it and sold it. The Canadian government took Quebec to court over the dispute, but subsequent court proceedings ultimately sided with the province.

As it stands today, the Quebec government describes the island as a piece of “non-organized territory” under the regional county municipality of Roussillon.

“Anything, in my view, is possible at the end of the day,” Diabo said about seeing the island returned. “They have a debt to pay.”

Asked to comment on the MOU and the outstanding land debt, Lafrenière said he preferred to hold off until both items are finalized.

“There are discussions currently underway between the (MCK) grand chief, myself, and our respective teams,” Lafrenière said in a written comment. “We’re both determined to resolve these two issues as quickly as possible, as part of our intention to forge a strong foundation between our two nations. My hope is that, alongside the grand chief, we’ll be able to achieve results that’ll be beneficial to both our nations.”

The Eastern Door also sought comment from premier Legault’s office, but did not hear back by deadline.

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