Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 26, Number 2, 1 February 2009 — Lingle betrays Howaiians [ARTICLE]

Lingle betrays Howaiians

Our governor is bhnded by ambition! Iust before this last eleehon she made three trips to the mainland to campaign for McCain-Palin. After the eleehon she flew off to Bali for 10 days, but she couldn't bother to fly to meet with our own "local-boy" and then President-elect Barack Ohama and other governors to voice needs and concerns of their constituents at this time of

America's deep eeonomie crisis. While Lingle went campaigning for McCain-Palin, Laura Thielen, (her DLNR chief) threatened to evict Hawaiian families living in Kahana Valley for generations, forcing them into the ranks of the homeless. Thielen insisted on eviction even after Sens. Clayton Hee, Colleen Hanabusa and Russell Kokuhun stated that changes could be made in the next legislative session that would allow these Kahana families to remain in their homes. Thielen finally agreed. The Lingle administration's callous treatment of these Kahana families is related to the sale of our Hawaiian ceded lands court case now before the U.S. Supreme Court. Remember, Lingle is appealing last January's unanimous state Supreme Court ruling that ceded lands could not be sold or transferred until Hawaiian claims were settled for the theft of our Hawaiian Nation. Lingle now states that though we Native Hawaiians have strong moral claims to our Hawaiian ceded lands, we don't have a legal right to these lands. Perhaps the governor ean understand that what Israel is to the Jews, Hawai'i is to the Hawaiians! Shame on Gov. Lingle. In past years she has pretended to support Hawaiians ! I remember she and Duke Aiona marching in red T-shirts with thousands of us a few years back through the streets of Honolulu. How many of us Native Hawaiians were fooled into supporting her these past two eleetions, and what does our Native Hawaiian Lt. Gov. Aiona think about this nefarious plot? Ua mau ke ea o ka 'āina i ka pono. Moanike'ala Akaka Hilo OHA Trustee 1984-1996