Close to 18,000 acres of the municipality of Dundee is the subject of a possible land claim by the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne. Known as “Tsikaristisere” or « Dundee Lands » by the Mohawks, the land in question makes up a large part of the Township of Dundee—and has many wondering what the final outcome will be.
The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne has claimed that the land was illegitimately purchased in the 1800s by the Canadian federal government for the amount of $50,000 (the federal government had rented the land for a number of years before purchasing the acreage). As a result, the council has reopened a case at the federal level. After agreeing that the sale process may not have been valid, the federal court is now in the process of trying to determine the status of the land. In the meantime, the federal government has offered the council 239 million dollars to purchase the land rightfully, an offer that has not yet been accepted by the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne.
The settlement, which was offered last year, may not have been addressed due to the recent changing of council chiefs, which means that it may take some time for the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne to hold a referendum in order to make a decision. If accepted, the Mohawk Council would permanently renounce claims on the municipality of Dundee—but they would still be able to purchase the land from willing sellers. Additionally, there lies the potential of annexation, which would mean that any purchased land could be converted to become part of the reservation—a process that can usually take up to ten years in ordinary cases.
As for the municipal council of Dundee, the whole process has just been a waiting game, and a frustrating one, as the end result may seriously affect the community. “I requested a meeting with head negotiator at the federal level in order to be properly informed. They have scheduled four meetings with me, and each one has been cancelled,” said Dundee’s Director General David Fraser. “It has been eight months since I scheduled the first meeting, and there seems to be no willingness on the part of Ottawa to explain situation. We also have no idea what the implications of the settlement are—all I have is what I have been told.” Fraser, a long-time landowner in Dundee, is hopeful for a conclusion. “As director of the municipality, I feel upset that my citizens have been wilfully kept in the dark,” he added.
