Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 5, 1 May 2005 — Akaka Bill will protect programs, turn political tide to Hawaiian self-governance [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Akaka Bill will protect programs, turn political tide to Hawaiian self-governance

Eō e nā 'ōiwi 'ōlino, nā pulapula a Hāloa, mai Hawai'i a Ni'ihau a puni ke ao mālamalama. The summer of 2005 will mark a milestone in the movement toward Native Hawaiian governance. The Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2005 (S. 147) will be enacted. At the present time, efforts to instill fear among our residents here in Hawai'i and against Native Hawaiian governance and self-determination continue to rear their ugly heads. It is time to subordinate the fear of the unknown that immobilizes, and to elevate the courage to create a future for Native Hawaiians, to turn around the political change that Queen Lili'uokalani said she could not. Absent an expressed federal policy on the legal and political relationship to Native Hawaiians, protected by the U.S. Constitution, federally funded programs and services in education, health, eeonomie development, housing, social services to youth and elders, and employment training for youth

and adults (to name a few of the 150 federal laws addressing the conditions of Native Hawaiians) are at risk. A recent case in point is the complaint filed against the University of Hawai'i for making tuition waivers available to Native Hawaiians, in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Office of Civil Rights (OCR) has closed the complaint, citing the pending case of Arakaki v. Lingle, currently on appeal to the Ninth Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals, addressing the key issue of whether Native Hawaiians' status is a nonracial political classification subject to the requirements of the Fourteenth AmendmentoftheU.S. Constitution. The office notes that the outcome of th eAmkaki v. Lingle case may define the OCR's Title VI jurisdiction over Native Hawaiian benefit programs provided by recipients of federal financial assistance, but it further notes that the complainant may refile the complaint with the OCR within 60 days of the termination of the Arakaki litigation.

S. 147, in its section on U.S. policy and purpose, affirms the legal and political status of Native Hawaiians, and enactment of the bill will clarify that classification and work favorably for the defendants in Arakaki v. Lingle. Some speculate that the Appeals Court of the Ninth Circuit, as did the Federal District Court, will see the "political question," S. 147, as necessary to be settled first. But the courts will not wait indefinitely. Puhlie and private lands and natural resources with Hawaiian roots slip from Hawaiian ownership or control with eaeh passing day. Further erosion before these political questions are resolved to the satisfaction of the courts and some detractors will short-change current and future generations. Delays will be destructive. Implementation of S. 147, the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2005, will afford the Native Hawaiian governing entity, speaking and advocating on behalf of Native Hawaiians, its equal plaee at the table along side

the state and federal governments. It will not be a simple nor easy journey. Ethical, experienced, principled Native Hawaiian leaders, prepared to serve and not self-serve, guided by our cultural and spiritual values, will be in great demand as we turn the tide of political change. For the detractors to S. 147, perhaps mana'o from Pōkā Laenui, of Wai'anae, found in the April 2005 issue of Ka Wai Ola, speaks volumes. He says, "I support Hawaiian independence, but that doesn't mean I must oppose the Akaka bill. Yet, I find too often those two positions in opposition to one another. It's part of that 'or' syndrome: either Akaka or independence. Instead of the Akaka Bill standing as an 'or' proposition to Hawaiian sovereignty, I see it as an 'and' solution." As the demographic and political landscape changes in Hawai'i, in Washington, D.C., and across this nation, time is not on our side. Ui 6/48

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Haunai Apoliona, MSW Trustee, At-large