In Canada, two First Nations have signed a pact to preserve their rights to offer gaming, and oppose the liberalization of sports betting in most provinces.
Signatories include the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake (MCK) and the Six Nations of the Grand River (SNGR). They issued a joint statement saying they were disappointed at changes to Canada’s Criminal Code, which allowed the government of Ontario to launch an online gaming market beginning April 4.
In a joint statement they said, “Renewal of this longstanding relationship founded on nationhood is the first step needed to strengthen our joint efforts in defending our interests and maintaining a stronghold in the gaming industry and other key areas we identify in the future.”
Chief Mark Hill of the Six Nations of the Grand River said in a statement: “Today’s agreement signifies an important milestone as our communities come together to address our collective concerns.” He added, “This type of partnership is the first step in demonstrating the possibilities of what we can achieve as Iroquois communities if we work together.”
These nations are joining a growing opposition to Ontario’s online gaming market—as well as a push to be included in it.
The Six Nations added, “Both communities have been frustrated by recent changes to Canada’s Criminal Code that have effectively shut out First Nations by willfully ignoring the legitimate interests of Indigenous Peoples in the gaming industry.”
They criticized the government of Ontario, “which has unilaterally reinterpreted the ‘conduct and manage provisions of the Criminal Code of Canada and established an ‘iGaming’ initiative under its authority, iGaming Ontario.”
This initiative, they say, “will not benefit SNGR or Kahnawake’s socio-economic business, Mohawk Online, as it closes off access to one of its largest local markets.”
MCK has offered online gaming under its Kahnawake Gaming Commission since before the turn of the century and launched its own site, Mohawk Online, in 2015 which offers a sportsbook.
Besides opposing Ontario’s online gaming launch, the MCK and Six Nations intend to “begin development on a national body of Indigenous gaming regulators.”
Chief Mark Hill added, “We are much stronger not as individuals, but as a collective, and these relationships will strengthen us as we assert our rights and jurisdiction within the gaming industry and beyond.”
Several weeks ago the Shawanaga First Nation called for the creation of an independent Indigenous Gaming Authority. Chief Adam Pawis stated, “Once again, we call upon the province to immediately halt the launch of the iGaming market in the province and to diligently and honorably hold discussions to consult with First Nations.”
When Canada’s parliament last summer amended the Criminal Code to allow provinces to regulate sports betting, an amendment that would have included First Nations did not pass.
