Well the bridge is still closed. If rhetoric were gold this would be an awfuly wealthy area.
The latest rumblings from the MCA is the consideration of opening their own border crossing if Canada chooses to move its station off of the reserve.
While the legality of this is questionable it seems an odd choice. If the positon of the MCA and Akwesasne is for Canada to not retain this customs station why make such a fuss when you get your wish?
Minister Van Loan in the meantime is saying some things; just not to the MCA who he still basically refuses to meet with. He has stated that his concern for safety overrides the concern for the local economy which should make those Conservative voters in this riding just tickled pink.
Traffic seems to be diverting to the Ogdensburg crossing with no major issues other than less complaints as their bridge for some reason isn’t as ratty as the bridge over this crossing.
So the people of Cornwall have to detour to go to the US and the Massena folks jonesing for steamed hot dogs and other Canadian fare also have to detour. Illegal ciggy sales prices have risen as supply diminishes. Bingo Palaces around Eastern Ontario are seeing more business, and life goes on.
Some local links:
Chief Larry King says threats to Canada Customs Officer’s idle
Van Loan has concerns over safety
“The reasons the bridge was closed were to maintain the safety and security of the community, the travelling public and the border services personnel,” Van Loan said. “That (the economic impact) is unfortunate, but that’s not a circumstance created by the federal government.”
Mohawks to Open Own Customs Crossing?
“The idea is gaining traction among community members, according to Chief Nona Benedict who said she considers it a plausible option.
“Personally, it sounds good. A lot of things would have to be worked out, but we would be expressing our own sovereignty by having that,” said Benedict. “A lot of people expressed they liked the idea.””
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