KAHULUI » Dozens of Maui residents Tuesday night echoed the staunch opposition heard around the islands against possible federal recognition as U.S. interior officials held their 15th and final meeting exploring the possibility of re-establishing a government-to-government relationship with Native Hawaiians.
"This time is yours. We are here to listen to you, and we are grateful for you allowing us in your communities," said Rhea Suh, assistant secretary of interior for policy, management and budget.
Many of those who spoke before a standing-room-only crowd at Pomaikai Elementary School expressed gratitude that the federal meetings have helped unite the Hawaiian community toward a common cause.
"Just you folks coming here, something good has happened. Around the islands we have never gathered like this. Never. My only hope is that when we leave tonight, we do not stop, we keep this canoe going," said Kaui Kahaialii. "Look, Maui, look around you. … This is awesome to see all the kanaka in the room with one voice."
"E paa oukou (We need to), stay strong," Sydney Iaukea told the audience. "Look, Maui, this is amazing!"
Some 158 people had signed up to speak ahead of the meeting, but only about 80 people were able to voice their opinions before the three-hour meeting adjourned promptly at 9 p.m. to boos and complaints.
During the meeting, many shared the same arguments heard over the past two weeks, including that Hawaii remains a sovereign nation, that the U.S. is illegally occupying Hawaii and has no jurisdiction here and that any future Hawaiian nation doesn’t need or want America’s help to reorganize.
Wearing a Hawaiian flag draped over his shoulder, Jonathan Davis said "the people of Hawaii are indigenous to Hawaii, not indigenous to America."
People held signs that read, "We did not concede to this illegal deed" and "There could never really be justice on stolen land."
"You have no business being here because we are not American," Lesley Iaukea told the federal panel. "We will always show resistance to your occupation. The question today is not what the (Department of Interior) can do for us, but what can we do for ourselves."
Clare Apana said her kupuna, or ancestors, "have been waiting for hundreds of years for us to come back and bring back the life to this land, and this is not the way to do it because this is not the correct process."
"You have to go back to the beginning, correct the wrong and recognize that you are in a country unauthorized and occupying it, and go from there," she said.
Kaliko Lewis sang her testimony while strumming an ukulele: "The questions for me you have laid, a simple answer to them: A‘ole (No). We are the best and the brightest, and we will reach for the highest. And we will never stand down, ’cause we are the best and the brightest."
The department will continue to accept written comments until Aug. 16 by mail and online at www.regulations.gov.
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KOKUA LINE: June Watanabe is on vacation. Her column returns Tuesday.
