US govt to pay $500 million in compensation to Indian tribe
The US government will pay more than $500 million to the Native American Navajo tribe in the US southwest, ending decades-old disputes over use of their land, officials said Wednesday.
Under the agreement -- to be formally signed Friday in Window Rock, Arizona -- the Navajo will receive $554 million, the Navajo Nation and US Department of Justice told AFP.
In return, the tribe will waive lawsuits over US management of Navajo resources and funds.
The sum is the largest ever paid by the United States to a single tribe, according to The Washington Post.
"This historic agreement resolves a longstanding dispute between the United States and the Navajo Nation, including some claims that have been sources of tension for generations," Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement sent to AFP.
Half of all Navajo land is rented out for agricultural and forestry purposes, oil and gas production, and mineral extraction, among other uses.
The Navajo reservation, straddling the western states of Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, is the largest in the United States, covering around 70,000 square miles (181,299 square kilometers).
The Navajos are the largest indigenous tribe in the United States with more than 300,000 members.
The US government has already reached similar agreements with other tribes. Including the Navajo payment, a total of $2.61 billion has been paid to 80 tribes since 2010.
In 2012, the United States agreed to give more than a billion dollars to 41 tribes settling a dispute over use of their land and goods.
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