Latest news with #Passamaquoddy
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Relatives seek justice for missing and murdered relatives
The ICT Newscast for Friday, May 16, 2025, features stories about a missing government website, plus news from the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. Plus, an honor for a Passamaquoddy culture bearer. Check out the ICT Newscast on YouTube for this episode and more. In Wisconsin, a rally at the State Capitol spotlighted the crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous People, with families and advocates calling for action. A two-night documentary premieres May 27 on the History Channel. It features Michael Spears as legendary Lakota leader Sitting Bull. Geoffrey Roth, Vice Chair of the U.N. Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, shares insights as the forum wraps up its work on global Indigenous rights. Erica Moore is the new president of Sinte Gleska University, leading the tribal college on the Rosebud Reservation into its next chapter. In Maine, culture bearer Dwayne Tomah was honored at a university commencement, highlighting Indigenous knowledge and language revitalization. View previous ICT broadcasts here every week for the latest news from around Indian Country. ICT is owned by IndiJ Public Media, a nonprofit news organization. Will you support our work? All of our content is free. There are no subscriptions or costs. Support ICT for as little as $10 or less.. Sign up for ICT's free newsletter.
Hamilton Spectator
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Province wants intervenor status in case against Maine lobster fisher
A lawyer for the province is asking to be included in a constitutional challenge being brought by a Maine lobster fisher accused of fishing illegally in Passamaquoddy Bay. Erik D. Francis, 55, of Perry, Maine, faces two charges under the Coastal Fisheries Protection Act related to allegations that he illegally fished for lobster off the coast of Deer Island on Nov. 15, 2022. Francis, who is self-represented, has claimed Indigenous fishing rights as a part of the Peskotomuhkati (Passamaquoddy) Nation, which has communities on both sides of the border but is not federally recognized in Canada. In February, Peskotomuhkati Nation at Skutik lawyer Paul Williams was granted status to intervene on behalf of the nation's three chiefs. The nation argued that it needed to take part in order to protect and promote their treaty rights. The Peskotomuhkati people, which were part of the Peace and Friendship Treaties of 1725, have not been federally recognized in Canada as a First Nation since 1951. They have three communities, one known as Skutik, in Charlotte County, and two in Maine, including Sipayik (Pleasant Point), where Francis lives. In provincial court, federal Crown prosecutor Len MacKay said Thursday that Francis had been instructed to provide formal notice of a constitutional challenge and had given it to both the federal Crown and to the province. That led to the province also asking to be included as an intervenor, citing the need to protect the interest of Indigenous and non-Indigenous citizens of the province. Lawyer Edward Keyes, representing the office of the Attorney General, argued that the government may have the right under the Judicature Act to participate without having to pass the normal test because the case relates to whether a law is constitutionally valid. Additionally, Keyes said rulings in this case may affect three ongoing court cases involving claims of Aboriginal title, including a claim from the Wolastoqey Nation , another from eight Mi'kmaq chiefs and a third from the Peskotomuhkati Nation at Skutik. For years, the community has been seeking recognition of its Aboriginal title claims, and its lawsuit asks a judge to order the provincial and federal governments to the negotiating table. The Peskotomuhkati Nation at Skutik had argued in its intervenor application that the province must negotiate before litigation, Keyes said, which would have 'vast consequences' for any other legal proceedings if it was found to apply here. 'The defendant is a resident of Maine, belonging to an Indigenous group in Maine that is seeking to establish and exercise Aboriginal treaty rights in New Brunswick,' Keyes said. He argued there has been 'no fulsome judicial treatment' of the status of the nation's traditional territory or the 'status or scope of rights' a member of the nation from Maine can exercise in New Brunswick. Keyes said that the province would only participate relevant to constitutional issues, which he said addressed a concern from federal Crown prosecutor Len MacKay that his participation amounted to having two prosecutors. While he acknowledged that intervenors in criminal or quasi-criminal cases are 'rare,' he said there's precedent, including the decision to let the Peskotomuhkati Nation into the current case. MacKay said that while a previous version of Francis' constitutional notice mentioned Aboriginal title, the defendant's current argument centres solely on treaty rights. 'The main issue is whether Mr. Francis enjoys a treaty right to fish in Canadian waters,' MacKay said. 'Nothing, to be fair, falls under provincial jurisdiction.' He said the Judicature Act provision allowing the province to jump in automatically applies to the Court of Appeal and Court of King's Bench, but not provincial court. Francis also opposed the province's participation, saying it infringed on his treaty rights and created 'significant jurisdiction concerns.' Keyes answered that the title claims in other cases refer to New Brunswick waters as well as land. He said he wasn't sure what the Peskotomuhkati Nation would argue, and said the province needed to participate due to the risk that the outcome could impact the rights of other Indigenous groups. Judge Kelly Ann Winchester asked for time 'to reflect' and asked the parties to return June 10. The case is also scheduled for a trial date to be set. The facts of the case have been agreed to as part of an agreed statement of facts. Court documents state Francis' boat Bug Zappah was stopped by fisheries officials in Lobster Area 36 near Deer Island and the U.S. border on Nov. 15, 2022, leading to the seizure of 36 lobster traps. Francis is also facing Coastal Fisheries Protection Act charges related to a second incident Sept. 20, 2023, of unlawfully fishing for lobster in a foreign vessel and obstructing a fisheries officer along with Erik S. Francis, 28, of Perry, Maine, and Tyler Francis, 26, of Herrington, Maine. That case is set for trial in December. - With files from John Chilibeck
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Governor opposed to latest change to Settlement Act backed by Wabanaki Nations
Passamaquoddy attorney Corey Hinton requests the Judiciary Committee amend legislation prohibiting eminent domain on tribal lands on April 4. (Photo by Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star) Discussion of legislation to afford the Wabanaki Nations more authority over their land revealed that Gov. Janet Mills does not support the change, presenting a steep path for a plan that otherwise has bipartisan support. After not testifying during the public hearing last week, the governor's counsel, Jerry Reid, told the Judiciary Committee on Wednesday that Mills' concerns stem from the inability to predict the future needs of state government, an issue also raised in written testimony from the Maine Department of Transportation, which was made available after the hearing. When pressed by committee members, Reid said he doesn't have a specific example of an infrastructure project that would warrant seizing tribal land but that, 'We need to write the law mindful of the potential for problems.' While Reid and Wabanaki leaders noted that progress has and continues to be made to improve the relationship between the state and Wabanaki Nations, Reid added, 'the fact that we have such a good relationship right now might not always be true.' The U.S. government can seize private property for public use, a principle known as eminent domain, however that authority is restricted by the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which requires just compensation for land taken, as well as some federal laws. The 1834 federal Indian Nonintercourse Act prohibited land transactions with tribes unless authorized by Congress. However, the 1980 Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act specified that that federal law was not applicable to the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the Passamaquoddy Tribe and the Penobscot Nation. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX This is the act that has overall resulted in the Tribes being treated more akin to municipalities than sovereign nations. So far, sweeping changes to the act have failed due to opposition from Mills, but the governor, lawmakers and Wabanaki leaders have successfully made some targeted adjustments, including expanding tribal authority to prosecute crimes last year. The legislation being considered this session, LD 958, would amend the Settlement Act to prohibit the state from exercising eminent domain on trust and reservation land, which is protected under federal law, though fee land — or private property for which the owner owns the title — would still be subject to the state taking. The bill would also amend the 2023 Mi'kmaq Nation Restoration Act to make this change for the Mi'kmaq Nation, which wasn't included in the Settlement Act. On Tuesday, the Taxation Committee unanimously voted in favor of a bill to ensure equal tax treatment among all of the Wabanaki Nations, which Mills supports. LD 982 would provide the Mi'kmaq Nation the same rights to sales tax revenue on its land that the other three tribes of the Wabanaki Nations were granted in 2022 through an amendment to the Settlement Act. The state hasn't exercised eminent domain over tribal lands since the Settlement Act. However, testimony from Wabanaki leaders and state government officials underscore that it is a possibility. In its testimony, MDOT raised concern about the uncertainty over the future location of tribal trust land, which is land the federal government holds the legal title of on behalf of a tribe. Bipartisan lawmakers, Wabanaki leaders propose next change to Settlement Act Each of the Wabanaki Nations are eligible to acquire up to 150,000 acres of trust land in specific areas identified in the Settlement Act. Several tribes have already acquired most of that. 'It is impossible to know how the eventual location of these lands could impact public transportation needs in coming years, and certainly not decades into the future,' wrote Meghan Russo, director of government affairs at MDOT. Reid said the governor shares that concern. While noting that Mills doesn't like the concept of eminent domain, he said, 'it's one of those things that when you need it, it suddenly is critically important and it's an essential tool that government needs in order to be able to deliver on the needs of modern society.' The governor believes the state needs to be mindful of the interests of the 1.4 million non-tribal Maine citizens as well, Reid said, to which Passamaquoddy Tribal Rep. Aaron Dana questioned whether the relatively small acreage the tribes could acquire would make a sizable impact on the state's ability to do so. 'We don't know,' Reid said, 'but it could be.' While arguing for the state's right to eminent domain over tribal land, Reid emphasized the state's record in the past several decades of negotiating with the Tribes rather than exercising that authority, an apparent contradiction pointed out by lawmakers. 'If the state is saying that they won't do this and they don't need to and they would never be bad neighbors like that, then ask the state, why can't they abide by this law?' questioned the bill sponsor, House Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor). 'Then put it into statute that they won't do that, because if you need some land or access to some land for a project or something, then go to them and make a deal and buy it.' Faulkingham also pushed back on what he described as a false notion of trust land being the 'boogie man,' given the limited acreage permitted to the Tribes. While eminent domain of tribal land hasn't been used recently, Maine's proposal to build an offshore wind port, although effectively stalled at the moment, has given the Wabanaki Nations cause for concern. Reiterating worry shared by William Nicholas, chief of the Passamoquoddy Tribe at Indian Township, during the bill hearing, Passamaquoddy attorney Corey Hinton said on Wednesday that the state did not appropriately involve the Wabanaki Nations in planning discussions, particularly when considering Estes Head in Eastport as a possible location. The more distant past should also not be dismissed, Hinton added. 'The State of Maine has numerous times relied on the taking of tribal lands and resources to promote industrialization and infrastructure development,' Hinton said. 'It's a simple fact of the history of Maine.' A related line of questioning revealed the persistent tension around tribal sovereignty. Rep. Adam Lee (D-Auburn) said, for him, this bill is easy: the state of Maine can't take another government's land. 'I fundamentally think of our relationship with the tribes as a government to government relationship,' Lee said. The State of Maine has numerous times relied on the taking of tribal lands and resources to promote industrialization and infrastructure development. It's a simple fact of the history of Maine. – Corey Hinton, attorney and citizen of Passamaquoddy Tribe 'We can't take a part of New Hampshire. We can't take a part of Greenland or Panama,' Lee added, referring to President Donald Trump's desires to do so, a comment that received some laughs from other committee members. Reid argued that Lee's view is overly simplistic since the federal government has the authority of eminent domain. The Mills administration, lawmakers and tribes are also at odds regarding whether changes to the Settlement Act are permanent. 'An amendment to the main implementing act is, for all intents and purposes, a permanent change in the law,' Reid said. 'It's the only context in which you all can bind future legislatures. It is a more profound commitment than an amendment to the state constitution, which can be undone by the will of the Maine voters.' Russo with MDOT also made the same point in written testimony, that the Legislature cannot unilaterally repeal or amend the new language if issues arise once implemented. Federal law authorizes the Maine Legislature to make changes to the Settlement Act and Mi'kmaq Restoration Act but only with the consent of the affected Tribes. Dana, the representative for the Passamaquoddy Tribe, asked Reid how he squared that idea of permanence with the fact that the Legislature is currently with this bill deciding whether to amend the Settlement Act, and has made changes in the recent past. 'That's one of the biggest things that you and your office really fight against with the Tribes, yet we have the ability to make those changes as of right now, and why can't we do those in the future?' Dana questioned. Mills' philosophy when it comes to the Settlement Act has been to ensure any changes and consequences are understood by all parties, Reid said, adding that the consequences are too uncertain for the governor in this instance. 'I take your point that it's theoretically possible that, with the consent of the Tribes, this amendment could be repealed,' Reid said, 'but presumably, if there comes a point when there's a contentious issue involving the use of eminent domain in the future the affected Tribe wouldn't be in a position to agree to repeal this law because they wouldn't be on the same page as the state.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
CBC
08-03-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Peskotomuhkati chief, 79, battles a ticking clock in fight for formal recognition
The Peskotomuhkati First Nation, also known as the Passamaquoddy, has sought recognition from the Canadian government for decades but has yet to see any firm action taken. However, recent talks with the new provincial government in New Brunswick are giving hope to Chief Hugh Akagi. The Peskotomuhkati, whose traditional territory includes the St. Croix River and Passamaquoddy Bay watershed,have two communities in Maine and one in New Brunswick, in the southwest. They live in both Canada and the United States, but are only officially recognized in the U.S. Akagi said this is because of the "inconvenience" their existence creates for national boundaries, and a decades-long oversight on the Canadian side of the border. "It's a little bit of magic, that we can be legislated out of existence," he said. "Is it something that somebody forgot to make happen or was there a convenience or an inconvenience because we were seen as a border tribe. Border tribes are seen as problems. "I don't think it was an accident when they said, 'Oh, the Passamaquoddy no longer exists because there are no Passamaquoddy registered in Canada.' So, Canada left us off the books and, as a result, we cease to exist." In 2019, the Peskotimuhkati signed a formal agreement with the federal and provincial governments to begin the process of official recognition in Canada. However, no recognition has yet occurred. "There are numerous reasons. We can call them excuses, we can call them legitimate, but a lot of it has to do with the government," Akagi said. When initially proposed, the government's commitments were very significant. However, as talks went on, he said, they were "watered down." CBC reached out to both the provincial and federal governments about the issue. Each issued brief statements. "We continue to participate in bilateral and tripartite negotiations while the matter of recognition is negotiated between the federal government and the Peskotomuhkati," Keith Chiasson, New Brunswick's minister of Indigenous affairs, said in a statement. Eric Head, a spokesperson for Indigenous Services Canada, said discussions with Peskotomuhkati First Nation on "potential formal recognition as a band under the Indian Act are ongoing." He described the discussions as confidential, and said it "would be inappropriate to provide further details" to the public. "More information, including next steps, will be shared directly with the community when it is available." One of the major issues that this lack of recognition causes is the absence of government funding. Akagi said the Canadian government does not view them as legitimate as they do not fit the structure the government uses to view and categorize Indigenous peoples. "Their programs are all based on reserve thinking," Akagi said. "As a result, I don't fit that mould. I don't have access to their resources. So I have no funding for health to support my community. I have no funding for education, all of these things that the other communities have." The Peskotomuhkati launched legal action against the government of New Brunswick before the change in government last fall. Akagi said he hopes that they will have a better relationship with the new government and that officials have been open to meeting with him so far. Akagi, who is 79, has seen how slowly the wheels of government can grind. Asked during an interview with Information Morning Saint John if he was concerned that he might not see the day when the Peskotomuhkati are formally recognized, he said, "to be honest, again, it's not a concern." That said, he would like to witness it himself. "I am running out of time, but I don't have time to worry," he said. "I can only do what I need to do, what I have time to do. I've had incredible support as a nation. I've had incredible support from other nations. I've had incredible support from my own people. I've had incredible people come to the door."
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Group of Maine lawmakers trying to block Sears Island wind port
Jan. 28—A new effort is underway in the Legislature to derail the Mills administration's plan to build a wind port on Sears Island. Proposed legislation — backed by six Republicans, a representative of the Passamaquoddy tribe and a Democrat — directs the state Department of Transportation, with the Maine Coast Heritage Trust, to extend the island's conservation easement to cover all of Sears Island. "The intent of the bill is to stop the state of Maine's wasteful spending," Rep. Reagan Paul, R-Winterport, said in an email. "The Maine DOT has been trying to industrialize Sears Island for decades and has spent millions doing so." A spokesperson for the Transportation Department did not respond to an email Tuesday seeking comment on the progress of the agency's plans for Sears Island or to respond to Paul's criticism. Federal transportation officials rejected Maine's $456 million application to build the port there last fall, but the state said it would pursue "other opportunities to secure funding." Maine has established several laws to fight climate change, promote renewable energy and reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The state is required to have 80% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and 100% by 2040. Offshore wind is one of several renewable energy resources needed to meet those targets. The state also has set a goal of generating 3,000 megawatts of offshore wind by 2040. Sears Island is a 941-acre tract off the coast of Searsport. In 2009, it was, by agreement, divided into two parcels: about 600 acres were placed in a permanent conservation easement held by the Maine Coast Heritage Trust and 330 acres were reserved by the Maine Department of Transportation for future development. The site is eyed for a wind port to assemble wind turbines and other equipment for use in the Gulf of Maine. The Transportation Department issued a report in October reaffirming the state's support for Sears Island as the preferred site for Maine's wind port. Officials said their report explains why it considers Sears Island the best of 23 possible locations for the wind port. It spells out the state's offshore wind port goals, defines the minimum design criteria and other considerations to build a wind port and says Sears Island and nearby Mack Point are the two best options. Paul, who has presented the bill, said Mack Point, the site of a terminal near Sears Island, can be used instead. She has been a consistent foe of wind power, calling it a "green energy pipe dream" that's overrated as a zero-carbon source of energy. "There is no reason to destroy Sears Island, given the irreparable harm already determined when there is a state-owned port across the channel that could be utilized for port development," she said. Paul cited several reasons to allocate money elsewhere: the rejection of Maine's application to build the port, the lack of federal funds that will be available from the Trump administration, a potential lack of private investment "that inevitably comes from a risky venture" and state finances that are stretched thin. Sen. Denise Tepler, D-Topsham, co-chair of the Legislature's Environment and Natural Resources Committee where the legislation was assigned, said in an email that she wants a "robust discussion" among lawmakers for "every bill that comes before us." She said it's too early to predict the bill's impact or how much support it has. A public hearing has not yet been scheduled. Rolf Olsen, vice president of Friends of Sears Island, which manages the conserved part of Sears Island and supports Mack Point for construction of the wind port, does not expect the legislation to overcome opposition from allies of Gov. Janet Mills. "It's hard to believe the state is taking off the table permanently building a port on Sears Island," he said. "It does not have a likelihood of success." Copy the Story Link
