Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 3, Number 1, 1 January 1986 — On With the Trial [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

On With the Trial

By Rodnev Kealiimahiai Burgess III T rustee-at-Large

The question is often asked: Are the indigenous people of these islands entitled to a portion of their home lands to perpetuate their culture, lifestyle and eeonomie freedom — a eulture of aloha that has eon tributed substantially to the Hawaii we know today and has set it apart from the rest of the world?

Most of us agree that indigenous and endangered birds, fish, animals and environment should be protected to allow for co-existence. I must then ask what about the people of a separate culture — the Hawaiian. There are strong moral reasons as to why the indigenous people of Hawaii are entitled to special treatment. Some of these reasons are: • The Hawaiian people were illegally ouerthrown by the United States in 1893. • Hawaii was annexed without the consent of the Hawaiian people in 1898. • Hand-picked gouernors selected by the U.S. president ruled Hawaii from 1898 to 1959 when Hawaii became a state. • The public land trust is composed of the former crown and gouernment lands whieh were the property of the Hawaiian people prior to 1893. The people of this state ratified the establishment of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, an agency created for the sole purpose of bettering the conditions of Hawaii's indigenous people and the many problems they face in today's contemporary Hawaii. OHA was created as a result of the 1978 Constitutional Conuention and the Hawaii State Constitution was subsequently amended to include this agency. The 1980 legislature passed a law whieh provided that a portion of the ineome whieh the state generates from the use of what was onee Hawaiian Home Lands be set aside to OHA. This law did not exclude certain lands such as harbors and airports whieh are also part of this ceded land trust. T rustees in their capacity as elected leaders of their people haue attempted for over five years now to implement the laws of this state whieh entitles OHA to 20 percent of the revenues from all ceded lands. The present administration, however, has failed to implement the law to its fullest intent. The current administration has hidden behind the shroud of "sovereign immunity" and the unconstitutionality of OHA in denying the agency's 20 percent from these ceded lands. OHA has sued the state to get its money and the court has reaffirmed the agency's right to do this. As we mentioned earlier, the people voted to establish OHA whieh is included in the Hawaii State Constitution. Why then is the current adminstration giving us all this flak? You tell us! With Circuit Court Judge Edwin Honda's reaffirmation ruling on Dec. 9, we ean now go to trial. So be it. Keep tuned!