KIIWETINOONG – Sol Mamakwa, the ONDP Candidate for Kiiwetinoong, solemnly recognizes the 30th anniversary of Neskantaga First Nation’s long-term boil water advisory with the following statement:
“On February 1, 1995, a boil water advisory was issued for Neskantaga First Nation. Three decades and many promises later, the long-term boil water advisory remains in effect. At 10,957 days, Neskantaga has the longest long-term boil water advisory in Canada. This anniversary is a cause for reflection and action.”
When Mamakwa worked as a Health Advisor for Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN), he joined NAN’s Deputy Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler, then-Minister of Indigenous and Northern Affairs Carolyn Bennett, and Assembly of First Nations then-National Chief Perry Bellegarde to visit Neskantaga First Nation and hear from leadership on the effects of the long-term boil water advisory – which was then just over 20-years.
Mamakwa recalls the visit: “I remember listening as the Minister committed to ending the boil-water advisory by 2018. Nine years have passed under the same federal administration, and they have failed to deliver on this promise.”
“The people of Neskantaga deserve to have their dignity and human rights recognized and respected. It is past time for the federal and provincial governments to end this injustice and deliver the promise of safe drinking water to Neskantaga First Nation.
“There is no question that if a boil water advisory was issued in Toronto, Thunder Bay or Kenora, the Canadian and Ontario governments would take every possible measure to resolve it within hours or days – no matter how complicated the cause. But what will it take for the Ontario and federal governments to finally resolve the water crisis in Neskantaga First Nation?”
Background:
- The Matawa First Nations Chiefs Council released a statement on January 31, 2025, to mark this grim milestone.
- Of the 31 active long-term drinking water advisories that remain in effect in Canada, 20 are located in Ontario. Most of these are in northern Ontario, and 12 are in the riding of Kiiwetinoong.
- The boil water advisory for Neskantaga was set on February 1, 1995, and became long-term in February 1996.
- The United Nations General Assembly recognized water and sanitation as a human right in 2010, through Resolution 64/292. It acknowledges that clean drinking water and sanitation are a prerequisite to all human rights.
