Post by Okwes on Jun 2, 2008 11:02:13 GMT -5
Native Hawaiian group: We're staying
[Mahealani Asing Kahau, center right, spokesperson and head of a group
called itself Kingdom of Hawaii Government, denies access to a common
walkway across the Iolani Palace grounds, after the group took over the
property.] [http://i.usatoday.net/_common/_images/clear.gif]
[Enlarge image] Enlarge By Deborah Booker, Honolulu Advertiser
[http://i.usatoday.net/_common/_images/clear.gif] Mahealani Asing
Kahau, center right, spokesperson and head of a group called itself
Kingdom of Hawaii Government, denies access to a common walkway across
the Iolani Palace grounds, after the group took over the property.
By Dan Nakaso, USA TODAY
www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-05-15-hawaii_N.htm?csp=34
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-05-15-hawaii_N.htm?csp=34>
HONOLULU — Native Hawaiians claiming to be the "seat of government
for the Hawaiian Kingdom" vow to indefinitely occupy the grounds of
historic Iolani Palace in downtown Honolulu, as state officials consider
possible penalties against them.
About 70 members of the organization known as the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government chained the gates of the palace April 30 and barred
non-Hawaiians from the palace grounds, a popular tourist attraction.
Though the palace quickly was reopened to the public, Hawaiian Kingdom
Government members show no signs of leaving.
Mahealani Kahau, who calls herself head of state of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government, said the news media have misrepresented the organization as
a Hawaiian "sovereignty group" or even "protesters."
"We're not protesting against anything," Kahau said. "We're not a
sovereignty group. We are the seat of government for the Hawaiian
Kingdom. We are here assuming and resuming the Hawaiian seat of
government, and we are proceeding as the seat of government."
After the Hawaiian Kingdom Government unlocked the gates of the palace
grounds, state officials issued Kahau a permit to occupy the palace lawn
during the day, and the public is once again able to visit the palace.
The application for the permit was signed by "Her Royal Majesty,
Mahealani."
Laura H. Thielen, the head of Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural
Resources, which has jurisdiction over the palace grounds, said
attorneys are considering legal action against the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government for chaining the palace gates and refusing access to
non-Hawaiians.
Native Hawaiian groups have occupied Hawaiian beaches and other public
places in the past in protest over perceived injustices to Hawaiian
people, but rarely in such a high-profile location.
After Hawaii became a U.S. territory in 1898, Hawaiians were barred from
speaking Hawaiian in school and condemned for dancing hula and following
other cultural practices, said Jon Van d**e, a law professor at the
University of Hawaii who is a consultant to Hawaii's Office of Hawaiian
Affairs.
Though Hawaiian culture now thrives in the school system — "Hawaiian
studies" is a requirement for fourth-graders in public and some private
schools — government-sanctioned entitlements continue to be slow in
coming for many Hawaiians, Van d**e said.
Congress issued an apology in 1993 acknowledging that the U.S.
government illegally overthrew the Kingdom of Hawaii a century before.
Van d**e said many Hawaiians are growing frustrated as they await
passage of the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2007,
commonly known here as the Akaka Bill, after its sponsor, Sen. Daniel
Akaka, D-Hawaii.
Akaka has proposed similar bills since 2000. The current bill would
establish a process for Native Hawaiians to gain federal recognition,
similar to what more than 500 Native American tribes have on the
mainland, Van d**e said.
The bill, passed by the House of Representatives, will be considered by
the full Senate this year, said Regan Lachapelle, a spokeswoman for
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
The Hawaiian Kingdom Government, which does not recognize U.S. or
Hawaiian state authority, is one of the lesser-known organizations that
claim to be the legitimate representatives of Native Hawaiians. Others
include the Reinstated Hawaiian Government and the Independent and
Sovereign National State of Hawaii.
The Hawaiian Kingdom Government has an office from which its leaders
hold regular hours. According to the organization's website
(www.higovt.org), its goals include quality housing for the Hawaiian
people and more affordable education and health care for residents.
Honolulu officials' handling of the Iolani Palace situation has been
both criticized and applauded.
H. William Burgess, a Honolulu attorney and member of the Hawaii
Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, called the
actions by the Hawaiian Kingdom Government "outrageous."
"It harms the interest of the people of Hawaii when (government
officials) sit there idly and allow thugs to take over an important
treasure that all of us own," he said.
"There is an acknowledged wrong that needs to be resolved," Van d**e
countered. "Our local officials have always appreciated the frustration
that Native Hawaiians have."
Kahau maintains that members of the Hawaiian Kingdom Government will
return to the palace grounds each day indefinitely.
The permit, she said, "is just to satisfy them," she said, referring to
the local government. "We are obeying the laws of the Hawaiian Kingdom."
Nakaso reports for The Honolulu Advertiser. Contributing: Gordon Y.K.
Pang, The Honolulu Advertiser; Gannett News Service.
[Mahealani Asing Kahau, center right, spokesperson and head of a group
called itself Kingdom of Hawaii Government, denies access to a common
walkway across the Iolani Palace grounds, after the group took over the
property.] [http://i.usatoday.net/_common/_images/clear.gif]
[Enlarge image] Enlarge By Deborah Booker, Honolulu Advertiser
[http://i.usatoday.net/_common/_images/clear.gif] Mahealani Asing
Kahau, center right, spokesperson and head of a group called itself
Kingdom of Hawaii Government, denies access to a common walkway across
the Iolani Palace grounds, after the group took over the property.
By Dan Nakaso, USA TODAY
www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-05-15-hawaii_N.htm?csp=34
<http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2008-05-15-hawaii_N.htm?csp=34>
HONOLULU — Native Hawaiians claiming to be the "seat of government
for the Hawaiian Kingdom" vow to indefinitely occupy the grounds of
historic Iolani Palace in downtown Honolulu, as state officials consider
possible penalties against them.
About 70 members of the organization known as the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government chained the gates of the palace April 30 and barred
non-Hawaiians from the palace grounds, a popular tourist attraction.
Though the palace quickly was reopened to the public, Hawaiian Kingdom
Government members show no signs of leaving.
Mahealani Kahau, who calls herself head of state of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government, said the news media have misrepresented the organization as
a Hawaiian "sovereignty group" or even "protesters."
"We're not protesting against anything," Kahau said. "We're not a
sovereignty group. We are the seat of government for the Hawaiian
Kingdom. We are here assuming and resuming the Hawaiian seat of
government, and we are proceeding as the seat of government."
After the Hawaiian Kingdom Government unlocked the gates of the palace
grounds, state officials issued Kahau a permit to occupy the palace lawn
during the day, and the public is once again able to visit the palace.
The application for the permit was signed by "Her Royal Majesty,
Mahealani."
Laura H. Thielen, the head of Hawaii's Department of Land and Natural
Resources, which has jurisdiction over the palace grounds, said
attorneys are considering legal action against the Hawaiian Kingdom
Government for chaining the palace gates and refusing access to
non-Hawaiians.
Native Hawaiian groups have occupied Hawaiian beaches and other public
places in the past in protest over perceived injustices to Hawaiian
people, but rarely in such a high-profile location.
After Hawaii became a U.S. territory in 1898, Hawaiians were barred from
speaking Hawaiian in school and condemned for dancing hula and following
other cultural practices, said Jon Van d**e, a law professor at the
University of Hawaii who is a consultant to Hawaii's Office of Hawaiian
Affairs.
Though Hawaiian culture now thrives in the school system — "Hawaiian
studies" is a requirement for fourth-graders in public and some private
schools — government-sanctioned entitlements continue to be slow in
coming for many Hawaiians, Van d**e said.
Congress issued an apology in 1993 acknowledging that the U.S.
government illegally overthrew the Kingdom of Hawaii a century before.
Van d**e said many Hawaiians are growing frustrated as they await
passage of the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2007,
commonly known here as the Akaka Bill, after its sponsor, Sen. Daniel
Akaka, D-Hawaii.
Akaka has proposed similar bills since 2000. The current bill would
establish a process for Native Hawaiians to gain federal recognition,
similar to what more than 500 Native American tribes have on the
mainland, Van d**e said.
The bill, passed by the House of Representatives, will be considered by
the full Senate this year, said Regan Lachapelle, a spokeswoman for
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
The Hawaiian Kingdom Government, which does not recognize U.S. or
Hawaiian state authority, is one of the lesser-known organizations that
claim to be the legitimate representatives of Native Hawaiians. Others
include the Reinstated Hawaiian Government and the Independent and
Sovereign National State of Hawaii.
The Hawaiian Kingdom Government has an office from which its leaders
hold regular hours. According to the organization's website
(www.higovt.org), its goals include quality housing for the Hawaiian
people and more affordable education and health care for residents.
Honolulu officials' handling of the Iolani Palace situation has been
both criticized and applauded.
H. William Burgess, a Honolulu attorney and member of the Hawaii
Advisory Committee of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, called the
actions by the Hawaiian Kingdom Government "outrageous."
"It harms the interest of the people of Hawaii when (government
officials) sit there idly and allow thugs to take over an important
treasure that all of us own," he said.
"There is an acknowledged wrong that needs to be resolved," Van d**e
countered. "Our local officials have always appreciated the frustration
that Native Hawaiians have."
Kahau maintains that members of the Hawaiian Kingdom Government will
return to the palace grounds each day indefinitely.
The permit, she said, "is just to satisfy them," she said, referring to
the local government. "We are obeying the laws of the Hawaiian Kingdom."
Nakaso reports for The Honolulu Advertiser. Contributing: Gordon Y.K.
Pang, The Honolulu Advertiser; Gannett News Service.