Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 23, Number 8, 1 August 2006 — To Raise a Beloved Nation [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

To Raise a Beloved Nation

OHA ramps up its Hawaiian governance efforts

E!y KWŪ staff In the wake of the unsuccessful effort to bring the Akaka Bill to the U.S. Senate floor through a procedural vote, the Office of Hawaiian Affairs has renewed its efforts toward providing a process for Hawaiians to eome together on their own and re-establish a Native Hawaiian poliīieal body to represent their collective interests. On lune 22, OHA's Board of Trustees approved a preliminary draft of a plan that would result in a convention of elected delegates to draft the founding documents of a Native Hawaiian governing body. Onee the documents are drafted, they would be

presented to Hawaiian voters for ratification, after whieh the first leaders of the Hawaiian governing body would be elected. Supporters of the governance plan, called "Ho'oulu Lāhui Aloha," or "to raise a beloved nation," say it would provide Hawaiians with a unified authority to help protect and perpetuate their cultural heritage in the face of ongoing legal and political attacks against Hawaiian trusts and programs. "Our board unanimously approved the direction laid out in this nation-building process because we are about defending Native Hawaiians, and their benefits and programs," OHA

Chairperson Haunani Apoliona told members of the agency's staff. "That's our responsibility as trustees of this office. You ean count on there being more litigation trying to tear down Hawaiian programs, and these people have to know that OHA will not roll over." OHA Administrator Clyde Nāmu'o said this nation-build-ing process, whieh he estimates could cost as mueh as $10 million, is one of the largest initiatives that the trustees have ever committed to undertaking. "When the trustees discussed this process, they wanted everyone to know that there would be no dancing around, there'd

be no we're-not-quite-in-it attitude," he said. "In committing themselves to this initiative, they wanted the community to know that OHA is in fact taking the lead and will back up the pro-

cess with financial resources." Details of the Ho'oulu Lāhui Aloha plan remain preliminary, as OHA officials reach out to a variety of Hawaiian organizations for input. But essentially

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the process would continue the current Kau Inoa registration of potential Hawaiian voters, and then proceed with the establishment of voter districts for the election of delegates to a constitutional convention. If the resulting documents are approved by the registered Hawaiian electorate, the body's first representatives would then be elected and could begin to negotiate with the state and federal governments over the transfer of existing Hawaiian assets to the new body - a process that would likely require the approval of the state government, and possibly even an amendment to the state constitution, whieh governs OHA's mandate of bettering the lives of indigenous Hawaiians. While it has been made more urgent by current events, the Ho'oulu Lāhui Aloha effort, whieh was first launched in May of 2003, builds upon the longterm Hawaiian self-governance

work of many organizations, including Ka Lāhui Hawai'i's constitution and elections in the late 1980s, and votes organized by the Hawaiian Sovereignty Elections Council (later Ha Hawai'i) in the late 1990s. In February 2004, OHA eonvened an advisory group to determine the steps required to form a governing body. The group then decided to operate independently of OHA (although with funding and logistical support from the agency) and adopted the name the Native Hawaiian Coalition. Although the coalition eventually became bogged down in procedural disputes, it did identify components that were essentially similar to the process originally proposed by OHA to the advisory group, and whieh form the underpinning of the governance process that OHA now intends to pursue. (See sidebar.) OHA's intention is to assem-

ble advisory committees to oversee eaeh step of the process. Most important currently is the "Kau Inoa" effort to register as many Hawaiians as possible who wish to participate in the governance effort, since similar initiatives in the past have met with laek of success primarily due to low participation. Nāmu'o said the agency's goal is to register upwards of 100,000 potential participants in order to help assure the legitimacy of the governing body resulting from the process. Kau Inoa currently has about 50,000 registrants. "Registration is the first step in this very important process for Native Hawaiians," OHA Chairperson Apoliona said. "We are looking to create a future, because just protecting the status quo is not enough. It may be enough for you, but I don't think it's enough for your children or grandchildren." E3

Proposed steps toward the establishment of a Native Hawaiian governing entity Registration of potentiūl Hawaiian voters through the ongoing "Kau Inoa" (plaee your name) drive. Apportionment of voting districts and determining the number of delegates. Election of delegates to a constitutional convention. Constitutional convention to create governing documents. Ratification of the constitutional documents by registered Hawaiian voters. Convening of representative governing entity - lmplementation of the provisions of the constitution, including the election of representatives and appointment of officers. Negotiations over the transfer of Hawaiian assets to the Native Hawaiian governing entity. If appropriate, move for federal recognition - lf they so choose, the State of Hawai'i and the Native Hawaiian governing entity may petition Congress for federal recognition of the Hawaiian governing body.

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