Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 7, 1 July 2005 — Community meetings offered an earful of insight [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Community meetings offered an earful of insight

Aloha kākou. In the last few months, I received many negative responses from beneficiaries who are complaining about what the Office of Hawaiian Affairs was doing. So on June 8, I had a puwalu (meeting) in Hilo, and on June 9 we also met in Kona. To my surprise, the people I invited to the puwalu did not show up, but many new faces were present. Somehow, the word got out, and I thank all the people that did eome because I sure got an earful of what I ean do to make things right. What it comes down to is the Big Island beneficiaries want education about the Native Hawaiian Coalition, the Akaka Bill, the Kau Inoa registration and the Hawaiian Registry, and of course Hawaiian history. However, there is an old saying that goes, "You

ean bring the water to the horse, but you cannot force the horse to drink." So for the past few years, OHA has been trying to provide information from different philosophies (including independence views) in many different ways but you cannot force people to make the effort to attend meetings-to learn. For those leaders in the eommunity who usually do not attend these gatherings, it is interesting to hear comments like, "Why is OHA trying to rush the project?" First, I don't think it is OHA. The Native Hawaiian Coalition is the primary movement comprised of interested Hawaiian community leaders from all the communities in this state and the continental U.S. who want to move forward since the Apology Bill. Some of these leaders have been

involved for over 30 years, so this is not rushing. Second, this coalition has been successful in gathering the many philosophies of the Hawaiian people and effective in determining what is valuable and needs to be protected. My eoneem is that these leaders should be sharing these events with the Big Island maka'āinana (grassroots) beneficiaries in the eommunities. I learned the coalition needs help to reach this goal. Perhaps some clarity is needed on the subject of creating a Hawaiian "goveming entity." This is a historical self-determination movement. OHA has been criticized for being part of an American government. The trustees walk a gray line because they are Hawaiians and interested in what

this governing entity will be. So, if you leave OHA out of the picture, what is left is self-determination? The leaders of the ahupua'a (eommunities) have been meeting on O'ahu for two years, and they represent the views of eaeh Hawaiian in that ahupua'a. But when I went into the community, the people said they didn't know anything about what is going on. So I encourage you to get involved and participate to be educated. So we are back to the horse with the water and whether or not it wants to drink. More importantly, what do you want to do about that? I am willing to hold meetings on the Big Island; let me know if you want to attend so I ean let you know when and where. Mahalo, a hui hou. U

Linda Dela Cruz Trustee, Hawai'i