Letter to the Editor

Kanaretiio Case Calls for Diplomacy

The arrest of Kanaretiio last week presents the Mohawk leadership with an opportunity to use their abilities to arrive at a resolution without having to resort to external courts, particularly those with no understanding of the complexities of life at Akwesasne.

Kanaretiio took a strong stand on the land issue since he, like all Mohawks, knows that not only did we lose most of our ancestral territory (9.9 million acres) through fraud but large sections of the reservation, as set by the terms of the Seven Nations Treaty in 1796, were alienated when New York State deliberately violated US federal law through a series of land cessions beginning in 1802.

Kanaretiio rightly refuses to acknowledge that those transactions are binding on the Mohawk people and he acted accordingly.  He also knew that bringing the land issue into US courts was bound to fail as proven when the Oneida Nation of New York gambled with all the Iroquois land claims only to suffer an historical loss in 2005 when the Supreme Court brushed affirmed the Doctrine of Discovery by which Christian nations gave themselves the right to take Indian lands without compensation if they so desired.

This racist, nonsensical ruling is, sadly, the law of the land in the United States.

Kanaretiio was aware of this. Without access to a tribunal where he, and others, might have secured justice, Kanaretiio was left with no option but to claim by physical possession what belongs to the Mohawk people.

Predictably, the Americans responded by issuing an indictment for theft against him. Sadly for all, the Saint Regis Tribal Police decided to get involved in what is a political issue by doing what the New York State troopers would not – arrest a Mohawk man for defending his aboriginal rights.

Officials at the Tribe should act decisively to insure this is not repeated.  Kanaretiio’s fight is not with other patriotic Mohawks, but a system that undermines our sovereignty.

The Tribe has had its problems with Kanaretiio and the Kanienkehaka group and has wisely elected not to use force in resolving these differences.  Tribal officials must direct the police to stay out of this issue and not increase internal tensions by carrying Mohawks off to an alien jail at the pleasure of a District Attorney who seems to believe that most Mohawks are criminals.  Diplomacy and tact are essential; using our traditional principles and our family and clan ties can preserve the peace and prevent confrontations the Tribe cannot win.

But we also have to see Kanaretiio’s situation as the result of our collective failure to solve the land claims issue when we had the opportunity to do so in 1988. Remember, we had New York State ready to acknowledge not only the return of the Ft. Covington and Hogansburg sections but to return to us 22,000 acres of land south of the reservation. The State was also prepared to discuss how Barnhart Island, the Grasse River lands and the waters which flowed from these areas might be best used for mutual benefit.  We were in a position to have an annual fee of $32,000,000 tendered to the Mohawk people in exchange for the licensing of the St. Lawrence Power Dam, which would have also included free electricity for all Akwesasne homeowners.

We also had the chance to adopt a distinctly Mohawk justice system with peacekeepers enforcing our own laws to the exclusion of all others. This would have led to the elimination of the international border and the creation of a Mohawk Free Trade Zone with attendant economic growth based upon our ancestral values.

We lost that chance and the ensuing twenty-four years of tension and frustration are understandable as is Kanaretiio’s decision to act when none of the three Mohawk councils were prepared to take direct control over the land.

There are steps the leadership – this includes all councils – can take to restore calm at Akwesasne. They can issue a joint statement affirming Mohawk title to the land in question. They can meet with Kanienkehaka to work on better relations. They can insist that Franklin County drop the criminal charges. They can meet with the Franklin County District Attorney to inform him New York State laws do not apply at Akwesasne. They can reach out to Horst Wuershing, the man who claims 240 acres of Mohawk land,and listen to his concerns, then propose a mutually acceptable resolution.

It is the duty of the leadership to defend our people and our lands; it is not within their authority to cede our ancestral rights. It is the obligation of every Mohawk who cares for their respective families and the community to protect Akwesasne against challenges to our peace and security in whatever forms such threats may take.