MOHAWK+GRAND RIVER

Gazette No. 29 — Notice of Sovereign Immunity (MNDRSI)

Be it known and placed on record: That the Mohawk Nation of Grand River Secretariat and its officers, when acting in their institutional capacity, claim the sovereign immunity of the Mohawk Nation from administrative seizure, regulatory interference, and judicial process without reservation of all rights.

I. The Basis of Sovereign Immunity

The Mohawk Nation of Grand River is a sovereign nation. Its sovereignty predates the Crown’s presence in North America. The Haldimand Proclamation was made between the Crown and the Mohawk Nation as between two sovereign parties. The Two Row Wampum (Kaswentha) — the foundational treaty governing the relationship between the Haudenosaunee nations and the Crown — establishes that each party travels in their own vessel, with their own laws and customs, and does not interfere in the affairs of the other.

II. Application of Sovereign Immunity

Sovereign immunity applies to: the officers of the Secretariat acting in their institutional capacity; the vehicles and property of the Secretariat marked as operating under the authority of the Haldimand Proclamation; the institutional funds of the Secretariat; and the constitutional proceedings of the Secretariat in courts and tribunals of the Crown.

The Secretary-General does not submit to the jurisdiction of the Ontario Court of Justice in Matter No. BR26001881 as a private individual. He appears as the institutional representative of the Secretariat. The distinction is material and is pleaded in all constitutional submissions.