News stories tagged with "cornwall"

(09/02/10) The temporary border checkpoint in Cornwall will remain in place another year. Canada had said it wanted a permanent solution by now. The port of entry was moved last year when Akwesasne Mohawks protested border officers being armed. As David Sommerstein reports, a return to the original checkpoint on Cornwall Island seems unlikely.

(08/12/10) The Canadian government announced Tuesday it will begin building a new bridge between Cornwall and Cornwall Island next spring. The lower, shorter span will open up acres of land along the St. Lawrence River. City of Cornwall and Mohawk officials applauded the project, which will cost $75 million.

We'll have more next week on what the new bridge could mean for the ex-paper mill town of Cornwall. Construction was to have begun last summer.

But a standoff between Canadian border officials and Akwesasne Mohawks delayed the project and led to the closure of the customs checkpoint on Cornwall Island. The dispute over arming border agents shut down the international bridge between Cornwall and Massena for six weeks.

Today, Canada still operates a make shift checkpoint in the city of Cornwall. Locals report delays of up to two hours. Canadian and tribal officials haven't met in months. And Mohawks on Cornwall Island say they're stuck in a netherworld between two borders. David Sommerstein reports. more

(12/24/09) A Canadian court has rejected a motion that Akwesasne Mohawks face hardships in reporting to the temporary customs in Cornwall. The Mohawks sought to stop border officers from forcing tribal members to cross a bridge twice to get home. David Sommerstein reports. more

(12/16/09) A three-year inquiry into claims of widespread sexual abuse of children in Cornwall, Ontario concluded yesterday. Commissioner Normand Glaude faulted local institutions like the Catholic church, the Children's Aid Society, and the police for looking the other way as children and teens were abused. In a statement delivered yesterday in Cornwall, Glaude said the institutions "failed to serve the interests of justice and the goal of protecting the vulnerable against abuse." Andrew Carroll is managing editor of the Cornwall Standard Freeholder. He told David Sommerstein the report points the finger at high-profile leaders of the community.

(10/02/09) Canada will continue to impound cars and impose fines on Mohawks who don't check in with customs officers in Cornwall, Ontario. Five vehicles have been seized in the last week. Canada's border agency resumed the controversial policy last Friday after a grace period. Akwesasne Mohawk leaders say tribal members are being punished for last summer's stand-off that closed the border crossing for six weeks. David Sommerstein reports. more

(09/28/09) Controversy continues as Canadian border officials and Mohawk tribal leaders struggle with an ongoing dispute over the international crossing on Cornwall Island. Martha Foley has more.

(07/14/09) For the first time in six weeks, the general public could cross the border between Massena and Cornwall, Ontario yesterday morning. Canada set up a temporary checkpoint on the Cornwall end of the bridge. The move brought relief to a region that's been hammered economically by the closure. But it also raised new questions about long-term fixes for the port of entry. David Sommerstein reports.

(07/10/09) Mohawk chiefs and Canadian officials were back at the negotiating table yesterday in Ottawa after a reported deal to re-open the international bridge in Cornwall never materialized. Canada closed the port of entry on Cornwall Island six weeks ago in the face of native protests over the arming of customs officers there. Meanwhile, Mohawks and the Canadian customs officers' union are sparring in a war of words. David Sommerstein reports.

(06/19/09) The impasse at the border near Massena is almost three weeks old. The international crossing remains closed to almost all traffic. Neither Canada nor the Mohawks are showing any signs of giving an inch in their dispute over the arming of customs officers on Cornwall Island. The customs station is located on sovereign Mohawk territory. Across the St. Lawrence River in the city of Cornwall, people are getting fed up, mostly with their own federal government. David Sommerstein spoke with Bill Kingston, assistant news director at Cornwall radio station AM 1220.

(06/09/09) The Seaway International Bridge near Massena reopened to limited traffic yesterday. But Mohawk protesters are still only allowing certain cars to travel from the city of Cornwall in Canada to Cornwall Island. All traffic from Canada to the United States remains suspended. Todd Moe has more.