AboutUs page for Kahnawà:ke Community Decision Making Process
Kahnawà:ke Community Decision Making Process
What is the community decision making process?
In 1995, the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke delegated the Kahnawà:ke Justice Commission (KJC) to develop laws for the community. Although this was needed, it was also problematic due to the composition of the KJC, which was comprised of Court personnel, Justices of the Peace, Peacekeepers and Community Services. These individuals were developing community legislation (or laws), and they also had the responsibility to enforce and interpret these laws. This was interpreted as a conflict.
Additionally, considerable criticism from the community in how decision-making occurs resulted in the Mohawk Council of Kahnà:wake (MCK) mandating the Office of the Council of Chiefs (OCC) to develop a community decision-making model that could address the community’s wish for more direct involvement.
The OCC conducted research into various legislative models, held focus group sessions and conducted stakeholder and community consultation. They also consulted with the MCK Traditional Working Group on the possibility of developing a more “traditional” (culturally based) model that could be used to address the need for community participation, input and consultation.
As a result, the Community Decision-Making Model was drafted. This model, which is a form of direct democracy, is not the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke’s version of “traditional government”, but rather a consensus-building model that incorporates our traditional principles and meeting format so that we may educate ourselves in that area and work towards the eventual implementation of the 1979 Mandate (to move towards a more traditional form of government).
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