The internal strife at the Kanesatake Band Council reached new heights on Wednesday after the Grand Chief passed a no-confidence motion to expel five chiefs from a rival faction. The resulting tension outside the building led to the closure of a nearby high school.
Posted at 4:43 p.m.
Grand Chief Victor Bonspille, who with his twin sister Shirley Bonspille was isolated against the five dissident leaders, had the motion approved in a vote Tuesday evening attended by fewer than fifty of 2,700 community members.
He claims the five other leaders so expelled “responded by attempting to incite some form of violence.” Mr. Bonspille then sent all band council employees home to work and on Wednesday padlocked the building’s doors so no one could enter.
The situation caused some excitement outside the building. The Sûreté du Québec says it was on site on Wednesday as a preventive measure but did not intervene. The Mohawk Territory has not had Peacekeeper police since the 2004 seizure of its agents, particularly by brothers Gary and Robert Gabriel, during a crisis that forced the exile of former Grand Chief James Gabriel and whose home was set on fire .
Former chef Serge Simon, against whom the motion of censure is directed, reiterates that Mr. Bonspille’s maneuver was “completely illegal.” “It wasn’t even a secret vote and only certain groups in our community took part,” he says.
The dispute between the two political factions is not in itself new. Former Grand Chief Serge Simon, who was removed from the band council after Mr Bonspille challenged his election in January, went to the Federal Court to seek his reinstatement.
Since then, there has been an open dispute between the two groups, paralyzing the decision-making body. The sensitive issue of the illegal Recyclage G & R landfill, owned by the Gabriel brothers and which, according to an investigation by La Presse, continues to release toxic and disgusting water into the environment, is directly affected by the hostilities. The federal and provincial governments want to decontaminate the site, but Mr. Simon’s faction refuses to return the title deeds to the Gabriel brothers’ land to the Band Council without obtaining written assurances that elected members of the Mohawk community will not do so are held responsible for the environmental disaster.
Given the impasse, Grand Chief Bonspille asked Ottawa last July to appoint an outside observer to help him deal with this crisis. However, this request for statutory administrative oversight was denied because the Band Council’s services nevertheless continue to be provided to the community.
Serge Simon now wants to hold a vote of no confidence against Victor Bonspille because he submitted this application for guardianship.
According to our information, Ottawa offered to organize mediation between the two parties in September, but this solution was rejected by some leaders.
The Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs says it has noted the new developments but declined to comment.