Romina Maurino
Toronto — The Canadian Press Published on Monday, Mar. 01, 2010 6:59AM EST Last updated on Monday, Mar. 01, 2010 4:14PM EST
Posted Globe and mail
A move toward putting Ipperwash Provincial Park in aboriginal hands is a good first step but still leaves many unanswered questions and could be sending the wrong message to those involved in other land disputes, critics said Monday.
All three parties approved a motion by Natural Resources Minister Linda Jeffrey to convert the park to Crown land.
It's a move that paves the way for the 40 hectares along the shores of Lake Huron to be transferred to the federal government, which has the power to add it to the existing reserve.
Critics supported the long-promised motion, noting it was a key recommendation of the public inquiry into the death of native protester Dudley George, who was killed by police in 1995 during a confrontation over the disputed land.
But NDP critic Gilles Bisson said there are many recommendations still to addressed.
“It's about the government saying: let's be seen as doing something positive in the headlines for our First Nations people but not really tackling the issues that need to be tackled that make a real difference in people lives,” he said.
“There's been no discussion with the federal government as to whether they will recognize this as a reserve once it's deregulated as a park. Will the federal government deal with the treaty issues that have to be dealt with [and] who's going to do the cleanup for the old military base?”
Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak said his party also supported the recommendation, but warned protesters in Caledonia shouldn't read anything into this particular settlement.
“[Premier] Dalton McGuinty needs to make clear that this is not some signal to occupiers that the best way to force a government's hand is to occupy territory,” Mr. Hudak said.
“Otherwise we'll have more trouble down the road.”
Aboriginal Affairs Minister Chris Bentley said last week he wasn't ruling out the handover of another part of disputed land that's been the site of a long-running aboriginal occupation in Caledonia, Ont., to the Six Nations.
That dispute erupted in violent clashes between protesters and local residents in the town south of Hamilton and has cost taxpayers millions of dollars.
The government has said protesters can remain there while all sides negotiate a resolution to the land claim, and Haldimand County Mayor Marie Trainer said last week she felt the government was leaning towards a handover.
At Ipperwash, the actual transfer is still years away, but provincial officials said that once the land becomes part of the reserve, the First Nation will have complete control over its use.
“We are doing our part to help right a historic wrong,” Jeffrey said in introducing the motion.
“At the end of this process the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation will be able to use the property to benefit from the economic development opportunities, employment and revenue generation.”
The provincial government formalized the transfer last May by signing an accord that provided a road map for the handover.
The First Nation has long argued the park is part of the original Stoney Point Reserve, an unceded tract of land established in an 1827 treaty but whose history with aboriginal groups goes back thousands of years.