A year ago today, top provincial politicians and Innu leaders held a splashy news conference to announce a historic land claims deal that removed a key hurdle to the potential Lower Churchill hydro megaproject.
A year later, the agreement - called Tshash Petapen, or New Dawn - has not been ratified, and no one will say what is going on.
New Dawn must be approved in a ratification vote by the Innu of Natuashish and Sheshatshiu.
That vote was initially scheduled for Jan. 31.
At the time, Innu sources told The Labradorian weekly newspaper the vote was postponed because the feds were somehow excluded from previous talks.
And some community members expressed disappointment with the lack of consultations and transparency in the process.
The planned date for a vote was then shifted to late June. It didn't happen then, either.
Nalcor, the provincially-owned energy corporation that is leading the Lower Churchill process, steered inquiries to the government.
The premier's office declined comment, other than suggesting The Telegram contact the Innu about the timing of any vote.
Peter Penashue, deputy grand chief of the Innu Nation, was in St. John's for meetings late in the week.
In a brief text-message reply to The Telegram, Penashue said he would call to discuss New Dawn if he could. He didn't.
The current cone of silence contrasts with a year ago, when all sides were touting New Dawn as the rise of a new era.
The deal announced last year resolved issues in three key areas: Innu rights, redress for the Upper Churchill project, and benefits for the proposed Lower Churchill.
The agreement gave the Innu legal title to 5,000 square miles of lands and hunting rights in 13,000 square miles.
It also provided compensation of $2 million per year, after ratification, for redress on the Upper Churchill until 2041. After that date, Labrador Innu will be entitled to a percentage of revenue from the project.
On the Lower Churchill, the Innu were given the choice of taking an equity position or equivalent royalty option. They chose the royalty option - five per cent of net project revenue, and $5 million per year from project sanction until commercial power.
