Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 6, Number 2, 1 February 1989 — The Rape of the Kohala Coastline [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

The Rape of the Kohala Coastline

by Moanikeala Akaka, Trustee, Island of Hawai'i

It has been brought to my attention that 19,000 acres of land in North Kohala (from the end of the road at Pololu Lookout to Mahukona) were sold by Kohala Corp. (Castle & Cooke) to Japanese inves-tor-owned Chalon Corp. president Sitoichi Koman. These foreign investors reportedly have plans for

condos, resort complexes, hunting lodges, two boat harbors, two beaches, shopping centers, and high rises as time goes on. In the recent past, some developers have been disturbed because public eoneem has been raised about proposed development. Let these buyers beware! Beware that the Big Island community is concerned about what happens to our precious Kohala coastline. This region is one of the few remaining untapped, unblemished areas we have.

Why should we turn it over to foreign investors? How mueh of our aina must be sold to foreign investors before we wake up to the fact that we are allowing them to control the destiny of these Hawaiian islands. The loss of the Hapuna initiative to the Japanese Seibu Corp. , one of the largest in the world, has been disturbing to those who love

and care about this island. Now comes this possible sale of the precious Kohala coastline to yet another Japanese developer. Cooke of Castle & Cooke was the headmaster at Royal School in the 1800's whieh is where the chief's children were educated near 'Iolani Palaee. My ancestors attended that school and the

Cookes were the Trustees of one ancestor's estate in Kohala. This is how the missionary Cookes got most of their 'aina, through the children they were educating. This land exchanged hands four times from Castle & Cooke, who sold it to international financier Murdock, who in turn sold it to a T exas corporation, whieh a day later, sold it to Chalon Corp. at a $7 million profit. It is sacreligious how this 'aina of our ancestors with its many, many historic site complexes is just passed around as a commodity sold to the highest bidder.

1 he recent election shows the people of Hawai i island will not sit back as our home gets turned into a playground for the rich while we are intended to be the servant class at minimum wage. The carrot stick of jobs for our people is now shibai as the unemployment rate is low — and there is mueh talk of importing workers while we cannot adequately house those of us living here now. It is also ironic that the West Hawai'i Plan that Harold Matsumoto and the state planning department are completing for the Kona-Kohala coastline shows that the Pololu Lookout to Mahukona area is not designated for proposed resort development as the new owners desire.

As the song written by Leo Anderson Akana and sung by the Peter Moon Band goes: "Stand up all you people, stand up for your children, don't wait until it's gone before you STAND UP!" Malama pono, ua mau ke ea o ka 'aina i ka pono