Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 21, Number 7, 1 July 2004 — Governance coalition [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Governance coalition

The next meeting of the Native Hawaiian Coalition - an allianee of organizations and individuals from throughout the Hawaiian eommunity that has been working to help determine the

steps for forming a Native Hawaiian governing body - is scheduled for July 23-24. The group includes nearly all major Hawaiian organizations, including the ali'i trusts as well as those with political view-

points ranging from federal recognition to independence. The group was initiated in February of this year, when 60 participants gathered at OHA's request to form an "advisory eouneil" to help establish guidelines for the election of delegates to a constitutional convention for the re-emer-gent Hawaiian nation. However, at the council's initial meeting, the participants decided that the group would organize itself not as an "advisory eouneil" initiated by OHA, but rather as an independent coalition of Native Hawaiians. At the coalition's two subsequent meetings, in April and May, attendees have refined the vision and purpose of the group and agreed upon a mission statement of establishing "a process that will provide the Hawaiian people with a meehanism for achieving self-governance through self-determination." The Coalition's meetings are open to all Hawaiians. As of press time, the location of the July meeting was yet to be determined. For more information, eall OHA's Governance section at 594-0219.

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Participant Attwood Makanani makes a point at a recent meeting of the Native Hawaiian Coalition.