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A Letter from Chief Larry Johnson, Caldwell First Nations To the Chatham/Kent Council. January l3, 1999
Dear Sirs: We have been neighbours for more than two centuries. When the first European settlers arrived in this part of the world, our ancestors were already here. We have treaty relations with the Crown going back to the 1760's – treaties that provide for a clear and respectful political relationship based on peace and mutual respect and assistance. Pursuant to those treaties, our men fought in every war the Crown asked us to – from the American Revolutionary War and the War of 1812 to the two World Wars, and the Korean War. Until recently, we have never had any agreement with the Crown about land. When, in 1790, aboriginal title to this territory was transferred to the Crown, our Chiefs, Quenesis and Medwayosh, were not there. The aboriginal people who participated in that transaction ended up with "reserves". We did not. Nevertheless, we continued to live at our traditional home at Point Pelee, and to use the surrounding territory in our traditional ways, for generations afterward. The Crown's Indian Department knew us as the Chippewas of Point Pelee. When settlement began to interfere with our use and occupation of the land, our Chiefs began to make formal claims to the Crown for land and for protection. It has taken more than a century for the Crown to address those claims fairly. Our efforts during thee dark years were supported by the Kent and Essex County Councils, who believed that we were entitled to a fair settlement and to reserve lands of our own. In October 1998 we made an agreement in principle with the Government of Canada concerning land. Canada will provide cash; over time, we will acquire land that will become the Caldwell Indian Reserve. There will be a Caldwell Indian Reserve. Please do not underestimate our determination. Our forebears persevered for over a century to get justice, and we are equally determined to make a fair future for our children and grandchildren. Over the past month, a number of issues have been raised which could affect our future relations. We believe that, with the proper facts and a clear understanding of our intention, we can deal with these issues. We hope that this letter will clarify our views and will provide the basis for an understanding between our two governments. Our Council is a government, one that is recognized in Canadian federal legislation as well as in the Canadian constitution. We have the authority to make laws for our people and our land. We intend to do so – and we intend to do so in a way that also respects the rights of our neighbours. Three basic principles should govern any relations we have:
We propose to apply these principles to each issue. We hope these ideas will help us work toward specific agreements, which will guide our relations for the future. Environmental Protection: Federal environmental protection laws regulate many aspects of the use of Indian reserve land. We are strongly committed to environmental protection, and are prepared to agree to meet specific standards -though we would expect you to agree to maintain the same standards. Expropriation: There won't be any. We will buy our land from willing sellers in the existing real estate market. We will take our time. Access: If any person's property is surrounded by reserve land, we will guarantee that this will not interfere with that person's right of access to the property, either personally or for the delivery of utilities. We expect the same commitment of access in respect of reserve land surrounded by private or municipal land. Drainage: We recognize that drainage is an important issue in low-lying agricultural country. We are prepared to enter into an agreement with the municipal government to provide for the identification and management of existing drainage works and the construction or alteration of future drainage works. Basically, we should agree that existing drainage will be maintained - and that where drainage works on our reserve, the responsibility for maintaining them is ours, financially as well as legislatively. Any proposed changes in drainage should be matters in which we would give each other notice, more or less as provided in the present provincial Drainage Act. We would like to see an effective, informal dispute resolution process, accessible to individuals as well as governments, as well as a clear environmental review of any proposed changes. Taxation: The Caldwell Reserve provided for in our agreement in principle with Canada is likely to reach a size of about 4,500 acres, acquired over a 25-year span. That's about 1/4 of one percent of the total acreage of the municipality of Chatham-Kent. The tax impact of this land becoming reserve land will be minimal, as a factor in the municipality's total budget. The impact would be even smaller considering that we are prepared to pay fairly for any municipal services we contract for. We may want to use municipal fire protection and garbage collection services, for example, and we would expect to pay for them at the same rates as people occupying land use for the same purposes as ours. Services we don't expect to use - like political representation from your municipal council - we believe we shouldn't have to pay for. We want to have a clear and pragmatic understanding of this issue, and a fair agreement on the services we may use and the payment we would make for them. Land Use: It is true that our Council would have the authority to make laws about the use of land on the Caldwell Indian Reserve, as your Council has the same authority in the municipality. We don't apologize for having that authority and that right. We are committed, though, to using that right in a considerate way, so as not to injure our neighbours or their land. We expect this commitment to be reciprocal. Cordially,
Larry Johnson, Chief, Caldwell First Nation
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© 1999 Pickens-Slack.
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