NEWS RELEASE: NAN WILL CONTINUE TO STRIVE FOR A POSITIVE WORKING RELATIONSHIP WITH PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT

For the web’s largest database of articles on the Ring of Fire mining camp, please go to: Ontario’s Ring of Fire Mineral Discovery

Friday October 7, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

THUNDER BAY, ON: Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) Grand Chief Stan Beardy congratulates Premier Dalton McGuinty and will continue to strive for a positive working relationship with the returning official government of Ontario and bring forward the issues affecting the people of Nishnawbe Aski.

“NAN is mandated to work with all political parties and all levels and therefore we will continue to push for meaningful dialogue with the elected officials of Ontario,” said NAN Grand Chief Stan Beardy.

Dalton McGuinty’s Liberals managed to secure a third straight mandate, but fell just shy of a third straight majority. The Liberals had won 53 ridings, one short of the 54 needed for a majority. The Liberals had captured 37.6 per cent of the popular vote, with the Progressive Conservatives close behind at 35.4 per cent. NDP support was at 22.7 per cent.

NAN’s expectations of the Liberal minority government are to uphold free, prior and informed consent as a requirement of any proposed private development or Canadian government policy that affects any part of the NAN territory as stated in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

NAN will continue to demand that jurisdictional and treaty rights be honoured and acknowledges that there are major fundamental difficulties with the Far North Act which was unanimously opposed by NAN Chiefs.
“There must be a clear plan in place on how the Ontario government is going to engage First Nations as an equal partner on areas of infrastructure; energy, transportation and communications as well as the economic spin-offs from the major resource development opportunities within our traditional territories,” said NAN Grand Chief Beardy.

The overall objective is to create certainty for investment in the north and maintain economic prosperity and this can only happen with strong meaningful participation of NAN First Nations.

Nishnawbe Aski Nation is a political territorial organization representing 49 First Nation communities in James Bay Treaty No. 9 and Ontario portions of Treaty No. 5 – an area covering two thirds of the province of Ontario.

For more information please contact Jamie Monastyrski, Communications Officer – Nishnawbe Aski Nation(807)625-4978 or (807) 630-7087 cell or by email jmonastyrski@nan.on.ca.