MOHAWK+GRAND RIVER

Gazette No. 9 — Notice of the Haldimand Obligations

Be it known and placed on record: That the Haldimand obligations of the Crown to the Mohawk Nation — arising from the Haldimand Pledge of 1779, the Haldimand Proclamation of 1784, the Dorchester Order-in-Council of 1789, and the Simcoe Proclamation of 1796 — are formally entered in the Register of the Nation as continuing and operative constitutional obligations.

I. The Four Obligations

1. The Obligation of Perpetual Dedication — the Grand River corridor is set apart for the Mohawk Nation and their posterity forever. The Crown has an ongoing obligation to ensure that this dedication is not defeated, compromised, or encroached upon by domestic legislation, Crown grants, or administrative action.
2. The Obligation of Good Faith — the honour of the Crown, as affirmed by the Supreme Court of Canada, requires that the Crown engage in good faith with the constitutional obligations it has undertaken. The Crown may not resile from its own instruments.
3. The Obligation of Administrative Remedy — where a constitutional obligation exists and the Crown’s administrative apparatus lacks the mechanism to give effect to it, the Crown is obliged to create that mechanism. Director Petoran’s confirmation of the administrative gap (1 April 2026) establishes this obligation.
4. The Obligation of Substantive Engagement — the Crown may not deflect, delay, or procedurally avoid the Secretariat’s constitutional demands. Fourteen documented instances of acknowledgment without resolution constitute evidence of systematic avoidance.

II. The Chain of Innocence

The Secretariat’s approach to the constitutional programme is grounded in the chain of innocence doctrine: at each step, the Secretariat has done everything that could reasonably be asked of it. It has filed Notices of Interest. It has broadcast to all municipal clerks. It has written to the Governor General, the Chief Justices, and the Attorneys General. It has filed constitutional questions. It has offered peace. The burden of continued avoidance now rests entirely with the Crown.