Hawaiian sovereignty movement

The Hawaiian sovereignty movement is comprised of a loose coalition of groups that seek self-determination and self-governance for Native Hawaiians, and redress from the United States for its role in the 1893 overthrow of Queen Liliuokalani. While these groups share this common concern, their views on how these ends should be achieved vary greatly.

OHA

http://oha.org/

Of the groups in the current Hawaiian sovereignty movement, the oldest and best funded is the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA). OHA was created in 1978 by the State of Hawaii Constitutional Convention. OHA's stated purpose was to represent the interests of Native Hawaiians in the administration of the Hawaiian Homelands and the Ceded Lands -- land formerly belonging to the Hawaiian government and crown that were ceded to the United States as public lands when the islands were annexed in 1898. When the Territory of Hawaii became a state in 1959, these lands were passed to the new state. The act transferring them ordered that they be administered for five public purposes:

1. The support of public education
2. The betterment of the conditions of native Hawaiians as defined in the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act of 1920
3. The development of farm and home ownership
4. The making of public improvements
5. The provision of lands for public use

It was felt that the second purpose had been largely ignored; OHA's mission was to correct this. Originally, OHA trustees were to be elected only by Native Hawaiians. However, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Rice v. Cayetano that this restriction was unconstitutionally race-based. As a result, OHA trustees are now elected by all registered voters in the state.

Few Native Hawaiians now believe that OHA has represented them successfully. Many think that the OHA trustees have been too pliant, too willing to please the state government. Trustees have also been prone to factional strife. Disappointed, many Native Hawaiians turned to other organizations.

Ka Lahui

http://www.unpo.org/member.php?arg=28

Ka Lahui Hawai‘i was formed in 1987 as a grassroots initiative for Hawaiian sovereignty. The Trask sisters, Mililani Trask and Haunani-Kay Trask, were prominent in the effort. Native Hawaiians were to sign up as citizens of Ka Lahui. Once they were united, they would be able to bargain with the United States government for recognition, land, and restitution. They took as their model the Indian reservations of the U.S. mainland, which have increasingly become self-governing. Many thousands of Native Hawaiians signed up as members. However, few of them actually participated in the affairs of Ka Lahui after signing their name.

Ka Lahui seems to have succeeded to the extent that the Hawaii congressional delegation is supporting a bill by Senator Daniel Akaka that recognizes Native Hawaiians as a first nation on a par with Native Americans and Alaskan tribes. Ka Lahui, however, regards the bill as illegitimate and opposes it.

Nation of Hawaiʻi

http://www.hawaii-nation.org/

Dennis Pu'uhonua "Bumpy" Kanahele made the news in 1993 when he and followers occupied Kaupo Beach, near Makapu'u, O'ahu (they had occupied the area surrounding the Makapu'u lighthouse in 1989). A descendant of the Kamehamehas, Bumpy took the title "Head of State" of the Nation of Hawai'i in an attempt to gain international recognition for Hawaiian sovereignty. The group abandoned their occupation in exchange for the use of ceded lands in the adjacent community of Waimanalo. The group nearly lost its land several times, due to issues surrounding rent and liability insurance, but as of 2005, it is still there, home to 70 people.

Kanahele made headlines again in 1995 when his group gave sanctuary to Nathan Brown, a Native Hawaiian activist who had refused to pay federal taxes in protest of the U.S.'s continued "occupation" of Hawai'i. Kanahele was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to eight months in federal prison.

Following his release from prison, Kanahele took a much more moderate stance and became involved in specific aspects of nationhood, such as the development of independent banking systems, and the cultivation of relationships with other nations. He holds the seat on the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) formerly held by sovereignty pioneer Kawaipuna Prejean, and has worked closely with Hawai'i's current governor, Linda Lingle.

Ka Pakaukau: Kekuni Blaisdell

http://www.anthrosource.net/doi/abs/10.1525/pol.1996.19.1.67?journalCode=pol

Dr. Richard Kekuni Blaisdell is a medical doctor and professor of medicine who strongly advocates for the total independence for Hawai'i. The position of Dr. Blaisdell's group, Ka Pakaukau, is that Hawai'i does not need to secede from the U.S., for the U.S. has the moral obligation to "return what it has stolen" and to remove its "occupying forces" (i.e. the U.S. military) from Hawaiian lands. Blaisdell advocates putting continual non-violent pressure on the U.S. military to vacate Hawai'i. He also feels that the military has an unmet obligation to clean up the pollution it has left in areas such as Pearl Harbor and Kaho'olawe. Blaisdell has travelled numerous times to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland to advocate for international recognition of Hawai'i as a rightful independent nation under illegal colonial occupation, and to lobby for international assistance with the process of decolonization.

In 1993, Blaisdell convened Ka Ho'okolokolonui Kanaka Maoli, the "People's International Tribunal", which brought indigenous leaders from around the world to Hawai'i to put the U.S. Government on trial for the theft of Hawai'i's sovereignty, and other related violations of international law. The tribunal found the U.S. guilty, and published its findings in a lengthy document filed with the U.N. Committees on Human Rights and Indigenous Affairs.

Hayden Burgess/Poka Laenui

http://www.sovereignstories.org/articles/article-100years.htm

Hayden Burgess also uses the Hawaiian name Poka Laenui. He is a lawyer who argues that since the revolution that overthrew the Hawaiian monarchy was illegal, the current government of the state is illegal, and that residents owe it no fealty or taxes. Poka Laenui advocates for a totally independent government which includes all non-Hawaiians living in Hawai'i. This is a marked difference from most other Hawaiian sovereignty leaders, since non-Hawaiians greatly outnumber Native Hawaiians in Hawai'i, and wield far greater economic power.

Hawaiian Kingdom:Keanu Sai

Keanu Sai Another leader who advocates for resistance against the State government is Keanu Sai. Trained as a U.S. military officer,Sai has claimed the title of "Regent" of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Sai has done extensive historical research, especially on the treaties between Hawai'i and other nations, and currently holds an associate professorship at the University of Hawai'i.

Sai co-founded a Hawaiian title company, Perfect Title, which stated that all land transactions since the overthrow of the monarchy were invalid if superseded by legitimate pre-existing claims; some clients refused to make mortgage payments and lost their property. The title company's offices were raided in the 1990's (although no warrant was issued), resulting in the eventual closure of the company.

Sai fought an interesting case --involving parking tickets-- before the World Court's Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague, in the Netherlands [1] (http://www.hawaiiankingdom.org/honoluluweekly_010815.shtml). The World Court acknowledged the continued existence of the Hawaiian Kingdom, although the Court has thus far taken no other steps toward reinstatement of a Hawaiian government.

What form of sovereignty?

Native Hawaiians generally support efforts to achieve some form of sovereignty, but defining and achieving it remain elusive. Proposed solutions run the gamut from state-sponsored commission to "nation-within-a-nation" (similar to the status of Native American tribes) to militant independence. OHA already exists as a state-sponsored commission but is regarded as ineffective; the "nation-within-a-nation" does not seem like an immediate possibility, but may be achieved in the future. A growing independence movement is taking a much more long-term approach; following other Pacific nations, they seek to restore independence through international legal means and long-term educational strategies. Some believe that the U.S. occupation of Hawai'i will end naturally when the resources needed to maintain its presence in the islands become scarce.

Non-Hawaiian responses to the sovereignty movement

Apologies

Thanks to efforts by the Hawaiian sovereignty movement to raise awareness, few current Hawaiian residents would argue that the overthrow of the monarchy was just. The old justifications for colonialism (the incapacity of "natives", the white man's burden) no longer convince. When Native Hawaiians demand apologies, they get them.

Hawaiian governors apologize:

• "The recovery of Hawaiian self-determination is not only an issue for Hawai‘i, but for America. Let all of us, Hawaiian and non-Hawaiian, work toward a common goal. Let us resolve to advance a plan for Hawaiian sovereignty." —Governor Benjamin J. Cayetano, 1998

• "This is a historical issue, based on a relationship between an independent government and the United States of America, and what has happened since and the steps that we need to take to make things right." —Governor Linda Lingle, 2003

The U.S. government apologizes:

President Bill Clinton signed United States Public Law 103-150, apologizing on behalf of the American people for its role in the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy.

On November 15, 1993 President of the United States Bill Clinton signed an Apology Resolution, admitting that the U.S. was at fault in supplying military assistance to the revolutionaries who overthrew the government of Queen Liliuokalani.

Backlash

There has also been something of a backlash against Hawaiian assertiveness. One Big Island rancher sued to win the right to vote in OHA elections, claiming that any Hawaiian citizen should be able to vote for a state office, and that limiting the vote to Native Hawaiians was racism. In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in his favor and OHA elections are now open to all registered voters. Native Hawaiians now fear that other racial preferences may be in danger.

A history of resistance to U.S. rule

The current Hawaiian sovereignty movement is not the first upwelling of Hawaiian resistance to U.S. rule or American domination. See also Wilcox rebellions and Home Rule Party of Hawaii.

Contemporary Hawaiian Activists

• S. Haunani Apoliona
• Kawaipuna Prejean
• Haunani-Kay Trask
• Mililani Trask
• Poka Laenui
• Dennis "Bumpy" Kanahele

Resources

• Na Maka O Ka 'Aina:award-winning documentary film/video resources and sovereignty-related A/V tools (http://www.namaka.com/)
• [2] (http://www.ksbe.edu/pase/pdf/KSResearchConference/2004presentations/Perkins.pdf)
• Documents and essays; opposing sovereignty (http://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/)
• Office of Hawaiian Affairs (http://www.oha.org/)
• Hawaiian Federal Recognition Bill (http://www.nativehawaiians.com/)
• Comprehensive blog of articles and documents on Hawaiian sovereignty (http://www.hawaiiankingdom.info)
• Islands in Captivity: The International Tribunal on the Rights of Indigenous Hawaiians Eds. Ward Churchill and Sharon H. Venne; Hawaiian Language Editor Lilikala Kame'eleihiwa. Boston: South End Press, 2004. ISBN 0-89608-738-7
• On Native Hawaiian student activism at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (http://starbulletin.com/1999/10/13/news/story4.html)
• [3] (http://www.sovereignstories.org/articles/article-100years.htm)
• [4] (http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/ngo2.html)
• An essay by Dr. Kekuni Blaisdell on the connection between Hawaiian health and sovereignty (http://www.hawaiiheart.com/health2.html/)