APTN National News
KAPUSKASING, Ont.–A Cree community lumped in and registered under a reserve hundreds of kilometres away took another step Sunday in its fight to create a stand-alone First Nation.
The community, which has named itself Kapuskasing Cree First Nation, issued a statement saying it ratified its constitution and membership code and formalized its political and legal structure during a general assembly attended by about 100.
The Kapuskasing Cree claim Aboriginal rights and title to territory within the Mattagami River watershed in northern Ontario which has seen intense hydro electric development since 1922.
“This is a historic day for our community,” said Chief Gaius Napash, in the statement. “We have lived on our traditional territory for over 8,000 years as a people. We have not signed any treaties nor are we part of any other First Nation.”
The Kapuskasing Cree say they were unilaterally lumped in with the Moose Cree First Nation, which sits about 400 km northeast of the community’s claimed territory.
“We are inland Cree and have lived inland for many thousands of years. We have no cultural, spiritual, political or other affiliations with the Moose Cree,” said Napash.
The Kapuskasing Cree have also launched court action against Ontario Power Generation, the Moose Cree, Ottawa and Queen’s Park over lack of consultation in relation to the massive retrofitting of the dams on the Mattagami.
“We were the ones whose lands were flooded and poisoned,” said Napash. “We are the ones who suffered the irreparable damage and harm to our community our land and our culture because of the building of these dams.”
