Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 22, Number 10, 1 October 2005 — Sovereignty: the power to govern never extinguished [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Sovereignty: the power to govern never extinguished

Dante Keala Carpenter TrustEE, O'ahu

Jhe following remarks by an old friend, mentor and

true Hawaiian, Hank McKeague, were submitted to the editors of Hawai'i's largest daily newspapers but never printed. I believe they are timely and concur wholeheartedly with them.

Sovereignty is a term being bandied about by everybody. There are those who lay elaim

to it and those who wish to eradicate its existence perhaps because they know its true meaning and hope Kānaka Maoli never fully grasp for themselves its significance and the impact it has on them as the indigenous people of these islands. And make no mistake, Kānaka Maoli are unequivocally indigenous to these islands, being the first founders and settlers and thereby connecting with the 'āina (land) and their 'homeland as sovereigns.' They are 'sovereigns' of their homeland notwithstanding the overthrow. The term is defined as: Supreme

in power and authority; power to govern without external control; the supreme poliīieal power in a state or in this case in these islands. Sovereignty onee gained ean never be extinguished; not by the courts, by statute, or by government. It is passed on from generation to generation of the Kānaka Maoli both full blooded or part, and most important, it is politically based (as noted in the definition above) rather than race-based as the 'interlopers' Twigg-Smith, Burgess, Goemans, Conklin and those of that ilk would have you believe

regarding Kamehameha Schools, the Akaka Bill or any other issue where the Kānaka Maoli is involved. Consequently, it is the right of Kamehameha Schools to accept Hawaiian or part-Hawaiian students only and race has no bearing whatsoever in this policy. It is a political decision borne out of Pauahi's will, secured by the sovereign right of Pauahi herself and passed on and down to every generation of the sovereign aboriginal and/or part-aboriginal Kanaka Maoli. One last word for Bishop Estate/Kamehameha Schools:

they want you to argue your case in rebuttal based on the race issue. Don't do it! Hank McKeague As always, my staff and I invite your comments on the above or any other concerns within our pun'iew. My OHA access numbers are: phone, 594-1854; fax, 594-0120; and e-mail address, www.dantec@oha.org. A hui hou, mālama pono. E3

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