MUSHKEGOWUK COUNCIL

P.O. Box 370

Moose Factory, ON P0L 1W0

Tel: 705-658-4222
Fax: 705-658-4250

August 7, 2020

Honourable Doug Ford

Premier of Ontario
Legislative Building
Queen’s Park
Toronto, Ontario
M7A 1A1

Via Email: premier@ontario.ca

Re: Bill 197

Dear Premier Ford,

I am writing as the Grand Chief of Mushkegowuk Council, the regional First Nations’
body representing seven Omushkego Cree First Nations on the shores and rivers of
western James Bay in Ontario’s far north, to express our deep concerns about the
changes to the province’s Environmental Assessment Act in Bill 197, and to respectfully
remind your government of the specific Treaty obligations in place regarding resources
and projects in our aski/homeland territories.

My great-grandfather was one of the Cree leaders who met with government
representatives when those representatives came to our Omushkego aski/homelands in
1905 to negotiate an overall treaty between Canada, Ontario and the Omushkegowuk
about the fundamental relationship between our peoples for the long term future. My
great-grandfather heard what those government representatives had to say, face to face,
and when my great-grandfather heard what they promised, he signed his name to
Treaty 9. I have seen the original Treaty document, and I see his signature with a mark
of an X.

But there is more to the story. During those treaty negotiations at various locations in
our aski/homeland, the government treaty representative appointed by Ontario, Mr.
Daniel MacMartin, kept a personal handwritten diary recording in detail what was said
and promised to the First Nations representatives. Those are the things my great-
grandfather heard, and took seriously respectfully, and those promises made are why
my great-grandfather signed the Treaty.

The promises recorded in the personal handwriting of the Ontario representative go

beyond what is written in the English legalese of the Treaty 9 document (written in a
language my great-grandfather did not read nor understood). Those promises say that
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my people could continue to use their homelands for hunting and fishing and trapping
as they wished, wherever they wished, as they always had. Premier, each time our
Leaders responded to the commissioners, they responded; “We agree to as stated” or
“what was said”. There was never a mention or statement to “agree to what was
written”. My peoples’ use and control of our homelands was recognized and affirmed,
permanently. Premier, you can read those promises yourself, in the handwriting of the
official Ontario government representative, who was writing down what he saw and
heard.

Premier, we believe that promises made should be promises kept. We hope that you
agree. To be specific, a Treaty was signed because they recognized Mushkegowuk
Ininiwuk/Peoples as a nation in which they had their own governance, laws, language,
culture etc and this was a “nation to nation” sacred Treaty.

The courts in Canada have confirmed that solemn oral promises made at Treaty time
are as much a part of the binding Treaty as the words written on the Treaty parchment.
Those promises are now recognized as part of the constitutional framework of Ontario
and Canada, as limits on what Ontario and Canada can do in our aski/homeland, and as
obligations to the Omushkegowuk Ininiwuk/people and Omushkego Aski that must be
respected. Those promises are part of the bedrock of our nation to nation treaty
relationship.

Bill 197 abolishes many of the environmental assessment rules that have been in place
for decades. This is a major step back from the great work that had often occurred in
and was never perfect, but in a blink of an eye, with no due process, your government
has changed all that. We regret that, because we think that those rules and regulations
have helped protect the forests, rivers, wildlife, plants and land of the territories that
the Creator gave to us as stewards thousands of years ago, long before the first
European ships sailed into James and Hudson Bay in the 1600s, landed on our shores,
and began a relationship with my ancestors.

But most importantly, despite those changes, Bill 197 explicitly recognizes the
continuation of the constitutional rights of my people and the obligations of your
government to my people that are referred to in s. 35 of the Canadian Constitution.
Those rights and obligations continue to stand, regardless of changes to the
Environmental Assessment Act. Those rights and obligations, which my great-
grandfather discussed and agreed on, face to face, with your government
representatives and the federal government representatives, more than a century ago,
continue today, after the passage of Bill 197.

Those rights and obligations require that your government, and resource companies
given permits by your government, cannot proceed with projects in our Aski/homeland,
in our forests, on our waterways, on our ore-bearing lands, without our consent. Your
government’s representatives, lawyers, resource managers and project planners must
secure our consent, as they go forward under the new Bill 197 regime.

If your government wishes to obtain Omushkego/Ininiwuk peoples’ consent to resource

projects, forestry projects, mining projects, and other development in our Aski/lands,
you will need to consult with us from the beginning. You will need to show how these
projects respect the integrity of our environment. Further, you will need to demonstrate

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how these projects will benefit the Omushkego/Ininiwuk. That has not changed, despite
Bill 197.

We thank you for your time and consideration at this time. We hope that your
government and our people can work together in our aski/homelands for a better
future for us all and not give us other options to seek.

Meeg wetch
Sincerely,

Grand Chief Jonathan Solomon

Cc:
Mushkegowuk Council of Chiefs
E. Beck, Executive Director, Mushkegowuk Council
V. Cheechoo, Director, Lands and Resources, Mushkegowuk Council
GC Alvin Fiddler, Nishnawbe Aski Nation
ORC Archibald, Chiefs of Ontario
NC Perry Bellegarde
Guy Bourgouin, MPP
Sol Mamakwa, MPP
Minister Rickford, Minister of Indigenous Affairs
Minister Yurek, Minister of Environment
Charlie Angus, MP