MOHAWK+GRAND RIVER

Gazette No. 19 — Citizenship Determination Rules

Be it known and placed on record: That the Citizenship Determination Rules of the Mohawk Nation of Grand River Secretariat are hereby established, defining the criteria for membership in the Haldimand Beneficiary Class — the posterity for whose benefit the Haldimand Proclamation of 1784 was made.

I. The Haldimand Beneficiary Class

The Haldimand Proclamation of 25 October 1784 was made for the benefit of “the Mohawk Nation and such other of the Six Nations Indians as wish to settle in that quarter.” William L. Stone, in his 1838 biography of Joseph Brant, recorded that the grant was “notoriously made for the exclusive benefit of the Mohawk nation.” The Secretariat represents the Haldimand Beneficiary Class as constituted by the Mohawk posterity — specifically the posterity of the three named villages from which the Loyalist Mohawks came.

II. The Three Named Villages

The qualifying class for Haldimand posterity rights is the Mohawk Loyalists of the three named villages:

1. Canajoharie (Lower Mohawk / Turtle Clan)
2. Tikondarago
3. Aughquaga

III. Criteria for Membership

Membership in the Haldimand Beneficiary Class is determined by any of the following:

• Documented descent from the Mohawk Loyalists of the three named villages, confirmed by UELAC certification or equivalent documentary evidence
• Matrilineal clan membership in the Turtle, Bear, or Wolf Clan of the Mohawk Nation, established by clan mother recognition or documented genealogy
• Determination by the Registrar General with concurrence of the Attorney General on the basis of documented heritage evidence
• Formal reception under Mohawk law and custom with concurrence of the Secretary-General

IV. Indian Act Registration Not Determinative

Indian Act registration under a Six Nations band does not determine, confer, or deny membership in the Haldimand Beneficiary Class. R. v. Desautel, 2021 SCC 17, confirms that hereditary rights run to members of the beneficiary class by descent and do not require recognition by the Six Nations Elected Council or any Indian Act body. A person who is not registered under the Indian Act may nevertheless be a member of the Haldimand Beneficiary Class. A person who is registered may not be.