Tribal survey results released

CORNWALL ISLAND, Ontario — Akwesasne Mohawks would like Canadian customs agents to come back to the island, but are insisting they come without the guns the federal government has promised them, according to survey results released by the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne.

But the announcement won't change anything, according to the Canada Border Services Agency.

"The CBSA has taken note of the result of the plebiscite, however the CBSA will not return to the island unless they can do so with all the tools they need to do their job, including their duty firearms," spokeswoman Patrizia Giolti said in an e-mail. "While it may be reflective of the opinion of the community, the Akwesasne plebiscite is not binding to the CBSA."

Beginning in October, both the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, which governs the Canadian side of the reservation, and the St. Regis Mohawk Tribal Council, which governs the American side, conducted the survey of about 1,500 residents. The survey asked whether people supported the return of the CBSA to the island and whether agents should be armed.

The promised guns were what prompted protests among Akwesasne Mohawks, who say arming the customs officers infringes on tribal sovereignty. The protests have been ongoing since early May.

In the survey, 75 percent of respondents said they wanted the CBSA to come back to the post that it abandoned at the end of May. But 59 percent said agents should return without the guns the Canadian government promised them. Since the CBSA left the post on Cornwall Island, or Kawehnoke in Mohawk, agents have been stationed in the city of Cornwall at the base of the north span of the Seaway International Bridge.

"Those that did support CBSA's return shared reasonable and realistic suggestions," Mohawk Council Grand Chief Michael K. Mitchell wrote in a letter announcing the results of the plebiscite. "These conditions serve as a reaffirmation of previous measures proposed by Akwesasne leaders to the CBSA, such as a community liaison position and cultural sensitivity training."

The CBSA has agreed to a cultural liaison, but there has been no contact with Akwesasne officials to outline what such a position would look like. The two sides have not met to discuss the situation since September, when negotiations broke down after both parties walked out.

Survey results also indicate that Akwesasne Mohawks support the Mohawk Council's efforts to get a third party involved to mediate the dispute. The CBSA has not reacted specifically to that proposal, saying only that it is "committed to ongoing discussions with important stakeholders," Ms. Giolti said.

"The results indicate that we need to quickly resolve our community's issues with the border agency," Mr. Mitchell wrote. "Mohawk Council is proposing third-party mediation to determine the timing of the CBSA station's return to Kawehnoke and the conditions, as reflected in the plebiscite, under which the CBSA guards would be armed."