HILO >> A woman has confessed to writing graffiti on a mountain area considered sacred by some natives.
Hope Cermelj, 64, admitted spray-painting words on asphalt, telescopes and portable toilets on Mauna Kea, but she denied defacing rocks, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported Friday. State officials found “stop bombing” and “stop D.U.” messages spray-painted in the Mauna Kea Ice Age Natural Area Reserve on April 28.
Cermelj said she is part of a sovereignty group known as the Lawful Hawaiian Government and considers herself a subject of the Hawaiian kingdom.
Her actions were in protest to military training taking place nearby, she said. She decided to write the messages after hearing explosions while near the summit. Cermelj said she acted alone and has no idea who vandalized the rocks.
Hawaiian activists who agree with her message nevertheless have called Cermelj’s actions a desecration of a sacred place.
Cermelj is facing $1,000 worth of fines and up to a year in jail, according to the report. She is scheduled to appear in Waimea District Court on June 22.
“I did the wrong thing; I made the wrong decision,” Cermelj said. “And I will suffer the consequences in the de facto state of Hawaii.”
Fire burns former training hut on Maui
A Quonset hut once used to train firefighters went up in flames Thursday evening.
The structure on Kahale Street near Kahului Airport was unoccupied at the time.
Maui Fire Department personnel joined firefighters from the airport’s Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting section in battling the blaze.
The fire was first reported at 5:30 p.m. It was brought under control at 5:48 p.m. and extinguished by 6:06 p.m.
The 1,100-square-foot structure previously had been used to train MFD and ARFF firefighters. Damage was estimated at $3,000. No injuries were reported and no other structures were threatened.
