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Chief Albert Hunter of the Rainy Lake First Nations (http://rainyriver.firstnation.ca) stated in the press release ...

“In signing this agreement, we honour our past by remembering our ancestors and relatives who endured. We honour our present by paying homage to our community, our people, our leaders, and our elders who remain steadfast and proud. We honour our future by sustaining the future of our children, grandchildren and those yet born. We say to all that the legacy of the Rainy River First Nations will endure and flourish, that the spirit of renewal, of our determination and of our autonomy will likewise endure and flourish. We will continue to contribute to secure sustainable economies and to the shared values of our own citizenry and to those of our neighbours.”

Click here to read the press release on the INAC web site.

Click here to read the Fact Sheet - Rainy River First Nations' Land Claim Information Sharing and Consultations

Click here to read the backgrounder of Rainy River Land Claim

• In 1873, seven separate First Nations, now known as the Rainy River First Nations, signed Treaty #3 with the Government of Canada. Treaty #3 provided that the First Nations would receive an allocation of land for reserve land together with other rights and benefits. The Rainy River First Nations selected and accepted seven reserves which were surveyed in 1875.
• At the time that Treaty #3 was signed, Ontario maintained that land could not be set apart for reserve without Ontario's confirmation. A court decision in the 1880's supported Ontario's position. Ontario made the surrender of six of the seven Rainy River reserves a condition of its agreement to enact legislation to confirm all the remaining Treaty 3 reserves in Ontario.
• Canada agreed to obtain the surrenders and took a surrender for sale of the Reserves (except for Manitou Rapids Reserve) from the Rainy River First Nations in 1914-1915. The total land area involved in these surrenders (which is referred to as the "claim area") is approximately 46,269 acres or 72 square miles (18,725 hectares). Following the surrenders, five of the Rainy River First Nations were relocated to Manitou Rapids Reserve to join the two First Nations already residing at that reserve. Canada administratively amalgamated the seven First Nations into one First Nation in the 1960's.
• In September 1982, the Rainy River First Nations filed a claim with Canada and Ontario claiming that the reserves were wrongfully taken and that the First Nations had been subjected to undue duress and influence which meant the First Nations had never freely consented to the surrenders resulting in their invalidity. The First Nations also claimed damages for their relocation to Manitou Rapids Reserve and that Canada misadministered the sale proceeds of the surrendered land.
• After extensive research and legal review, Ontario accepted the claim for negotiation in January 1987. The First Nations initiated a lawsuit in 1989 against Canada and Ontario. Following a thorough historical and legal review, Canada accepted the claim for negotiation in April 1994. The lawsuit was deferred after the claim was accepted for negotiation by both Ontario and Canada.
• A negotiation framework agreement was signed at the Manitou Mounds with the representatives of all three parties on May 6, 1997. The Settlement Agreement was initialled by the negotiators on January 11, 2005, signalling the completion of negotiations. It was then ratified by the First Nations through a referendum of all members (on- and off-reserve), by Ontario and by Canada.
• The settlement negotiated by the parties includes both financial compensation and a land component and brings legal closure to the outstanding issues raised through the claim. In addition, it resolves any uncertainty for residents in the claim area about interests in land forming part of the surrendered Reserves.
• The settlement consists of approximately $71 million in compensation contributed equally by Canada and Ontario. This includes the First Nations' negotiation costs and the market value of approximately 14,945 acres (6,048 hectares) of provincial Crown land, which Canada has agreed to set aside as reserve land for the RRFNs, subject to the terms and conditions of its Additions to Reserves Policy and the settlement agreement. Under the settlement, the RRFNs will also be entitled to purchase up to 31,300 acres (12,677 hectares) of replacement land on a willing-buyer/willing-seller basis over a 40 year period and propose that land for reserve status.
• The Crown land to be set apart as reserve for the Rainy River First Nations under the settlement is located in the Hay Bay area of Lake of the Woods, at Sphene Lake and the Gates Ajar area of Pipestone Lake. Also included are four islands in the Rainy River and three land blocks near the Manitou Rapids Reserve. These areas were chosen because of their traditional purposes and the historic and cultural significance to the Rainy River First Nations.
• The boundaries of the Crown land component are based on the input and comments received through an extensive public consultation process which began in the fall of 2002 and concluded in June of 2004. It involved a series of open houses advertised through local media, distribution of several follow-up newsletters, and a comprehensive series of face-to-face meetings with directly affected parties.
• The settlement agreement sets out a process by which the RRFNs will consult with affected municipalities on issues stemming from reserve creation, such as reasonable compensation for any necessary tax adjustments, municipal servicing agreements and the integration of bylaws and land use planning. The RRFNs and municipal representatives have been discussing issues of mutual concern over the past five years and are confident that the impact of reserve creation can be minimized with the co-operation of all parties.
• The settlement funds will be set aside in the RRFNs trust to be administered by a board of trustees, appointed by the First Nations, who must abide by the rules and regulations set out in their claim Trust Agreement, which was also ratified by First Nation members.
• The RRFNs will use its settlement funds to purchase replacement land and for community purposes, including economic development, social and cultural activities and other endeavours for the advancement of its membership both on- and off-reserve. The settlement will enable the First Nations to expand on their successes in economic and business development, which already make a significant contribution to the District's industry, economy and tax base. The successful resolution of this claim enables the parties to put the past behind them and get on with the business of building a more promising future for the RRFNs, its members and ultimately for everyone in the district.

May 2005

The report "A Sociological Analysis of Aboriginal Homelessness in Sioux Lookout, Ontario" by
Debra Sider M.A. of the Sioux Lookout Anti-racism Committee (SLARC) presents information about the challenges facing Aboriginal people who come to this community in northwestern Ontario. Click here to read the entire report is available on the Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF) web site 

• Click here for the CRRF press release
• The release of the report was webcast and is now available online (click here to watch the 1:20hr webcast) 
• Click here for the CNEW press coverage

The various section of the report highlights the challenges and includes a Call to Action for the community and the government to address these issues. Some of the recommendations include:

• support for Sioux Lookout's new Transitional Support Program
• A Call for a Land-Based Healing Program
• A Call for Detox and treatment services in Sioux Lookout
• The Sioux Lookout District Must Work Together to Address the Issues
• Correcting Distortions of History- More Opportunities for the Municipality and northern First Nations to Work Together
• A Need for Affordable, Supportive, Transitional Housing, and Innovative Development in Sioux Lookout
• Policy implications under the headings ...
  • Rethinking Ontario Works
  • Merge Traditional and Wage Economies
  • On-Reserve Housing
  • Aggressive Drug and Alcohol Awareness Campaigns

Nibinamik First Nation leadership is supporting the development of a local broadband service that provides community members with access to telehealth and high speed data services. The local wireless community network is connected to a Kuhkenah Network T1 service that can support video conferencing from different locations throughout the community.

K-Net's Network Manager (Dan) and Systems Analyst (Terence) are in Summer Beaver working with their local technician on the local network to ensure their broadband network is able to manage the different traffic properly.

May 26 is being set recognized by groups across Canada as our National Day of Healing and Reconciliation. Events are being planned by different groups across the country to support residential school survivors.

From the official National Day of Healing and Reconciliation web site at http://www.ndhr.ca

Mission Statement

National Day of Healing and Reconciliation is a movement of people committed to moving forward collectively within our families, communites and across Canada for the purposes of healing and reconciliation.

Objectives

• To celebrate a positive, collective healing and reconciliation movement within our families, communities, churches and government on May 26th of each year.
• To educate ourselves and other Canadians about our collective history of government policies which impacted Aboriginal communities and other ethnic groups.
• To develop commemoration sites and to encourage communites to join in the National Day of Healing and Reconciliation.

Keewaytinook Okimakanak (K-Net Services) is working with Attawapiskat, Peawanuck and Marten Falls First Nations to construct a C-Band satellite earthstation for the community's broadband connection. FedNor is providing the funding to Keewaytinook Okimakanak to coordinate this construction project with the three remote First Nations.

On May 2, Carl Seibel (FedNor Telecom Project Officer), Blair Electronics (the contractors for installing the C-Band earthstation and cable plant), Cal Kenny and myself flew to Attawapiskat (on the James Bay coast) and then Peawanuck (on the Hudson's Bay coast) the next day. Cal took along the video camera to capture a short story about the community and the work being done in preparation for their new broadband satellite connection that is being installed over this summer.

The links to his 3:30 minute video are ...

           Chief Shepherd Ministries

Presnts

Holy Ghost Meeting 2005

Guest Ministers:

Evangelist Steve Williams- Oklahoma

Chief Arnold Ouskan - Winnipeg, Mb

When:    May 20, 21, 22

Where:  Oliver Community Center - Thunder Bay, On 

Time:    7:00 p.m. Nightly 

Info:     Bruce 1-807-473-8516 

Everyone Welcome!                                                                

Slate Falls residents are finally getting telephones installed throughout their community.

Working with Windigo First Nations Council and Keewaytinook Okimakanak's K-Net Services, Slate Falls recently completed construction of their local cable plant that includes the cable connections to every building in their community. Funding for this construction project was obtained from Industry Canada's FedNor and BRAND programs, INAC and the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund. Blair Electronics did the construction work. The connection outside the community is completed through a satellite link to Sioux Lookout which is made possible through Industry Canada's National Satellite Initiative, Keewaytinook Okimakanak's earthstation in Sioux Lookout and the partners involved with the Northern Indigenous Community Satellite Network (NICSN).

This past week, working with their K-Net partners, the Asterick IP phone management system was successfully installed in the community and training of a local technician took place to manage their own phone system. This week, new phones are now being installed in some of the buildings and further training is taking place.

Along with the IP phone system, high speed data connections are available for each of the buildings in the community. Video conferencing services that also includes telehealth applications are also now in place in Slate Falls.

Grades 5 and 6 students from Pic River First Nation bid their new friends from Qikiqtarjuaq on Baffin Island farewell on Monday morning. Click here to read the Thunder Bay Chronicle Journal news story entitled "Student exchange a hit"

The student exchange between these two Aboriginal communities is an important component of the Kids From Kanata program that both school classes are participating in and where they were first paired and introduced. Keewaytinook Okimakanak sponsored Pic River School's participation in this year's Kids from Kanata program through Industry Canada's First Nations SchoolNet program.

The CRACIN team made up of Andrew Clement (prof at UofT), Adam Fiser (PhD candidate at UofT), Prabir Neogi (Industry Canada) and Brian Walmark (KO Research Coordinator) were successful at having their proposed paper entitled "The K-Net model of First Nations broadband community networking" accepted for presentation at the 33rd international research conference on Communication, Information and Internet Policy.

This annual Telecommunications Policy Research Conference (TPRC) is being held at the National Center for Technology & Law, George Mason University School of Law, Arlington, Virginia on Friday, September 23, 2005 through Sunday, September 25, 2005

This annual TPRC forum is for scholars, industry  and government engaged in publishable research on policy-relevant telecommunications and information issues, and for public- and private-sector decision makers engaged in telecommunications and information policy. The purpose of the conference is to acquaint policy makers with the best of recent research and to familiarize researchers with the knowledge needs of policy makers.