Reconnecting with the Pacific...
One of the greatest tragedies of being under the rule of the United States has been the loss of connection to the larger ʻohana of Moana Nui, our Pacific family. Yes, we have connections through our language, culture, customs, genealogies, canoe traditions, and we have people to people relations. But, what about nation-to-nation relations? What about the issues we face as nations of this vast ocean? While the rest of the nations of Moana Nui interact and work with each other on crucial matters through organizations such as the Pacific Islands Forum, the Polynesian Leaders Group, the Melanesian Spearhead Group, the UN Pacific SIDS, and so forth, sadly, Hawaiʻi is glaringly absent from the picture. Yes, some of our people engage as experts and contribute to the discourse on Pacific Islands issues. But, because Hawaiʻi is regarded as a ʻstateʻ of the United States, and not an independent nation, Hawaiʻi has no significant voice, and certainly no decision-making role in the Pacific. Unfortunately, the one that presumes to speak for us in international matters (as well as domestic policy) is the United States — and we know how clueless they are about what’s in our best interest and the nature of our island ways. Over the years, as I have attended Pacific regional meetings and conversed with heads of states, diplomats and parliamentarians, they invariably mention they would be very happy if Hawaiʻi (as the Hawaiian nation, not the U.S.'state') was to become an active member of the Pacific family of nations to help with the critical issues facing our islands. It was the intent of several of our Kings, especially Kalākaua, to bring together our ʻohana of Moana Nui to work for the betterment of our peoples and nations. This great vision was rudely dashed by the assault and abduction of our nation by the United States. Fortunately, we are on the verge of overturning that wrongful taking and restoring the Hawaiian Islands as a sovereign, independent nation. The irony is that Hawai’i, which was recognized as a sovereign nation long before anyone else in the Pacific, will be the last to reclaim our place in this extraordinary family of nations and join the voyage, as our wayfinding ancestors did, to navigate the path for our future. Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono. The sovereignty (life) of the land is perpetuated in righteousness. ------ For the latest news and developments about our progress at the United Nations in both New York and Geneva, tune in to Free Hawaii News at 6 PM the first Friday of each month on ʻŌlelo Television, Channel 53. ------ SIGN THIS PETITION! Rename McKinley High School and remove the McKinley statue! McKinley was the president who turned Hawaii from a peaceful, neutral country into a principal cog in America’s war machine. Sign this online petition NOW! Tell everyone you know to sign it too! "And remember, for the latest updates and information about the Hawaiian Kingdom check out the twice a month Ke Aupuni Updates published online on Facebook and other social media." ------- PLEASE KŌKUA… Your kōkua, large or small, is vital to this effort... To contribute, go to: • GoFundMe – CAMPAIGN TO FREE HAWAII • PayPal – Go to PayPal and send $ to: info@HawaiianKingdom.net • Other – To contribute in other ways (airline miles, travel vouchers, volunteer services, etc...) email us at: info@HawaiianKingdom.net "FREE HAWAII" T-SHIRTS - etc. Check out the great FREE HAWAII products you can purchase at... http://www.robkajiwara.com/store/c28/Hawaii All proceeds are used to help advance the cause. MAHALO! Malama Pono, Leon Siu Hawaiian National
0 Comments
June 19, 2022
The 150th Kamehameha Day... The State of Hawaii legislature recently passed a resolution recognizing Lā Hoʻihoʻi Ea (Sovereignty Restoration Day) as a significant event and holiday of the Hawaiian Kingdom. News reports said it was the first Hawaiian Kingdom holiday acnowledged by the legislature. It is not. That holiday is Kamehameha Day. In fact, tomorrow, June 11, marks the 150th Anniversary of the celebration of Kamehameha Day, an official holiday of the Hawaiian Kingdom that continues to be earnestly celebrated by none other than the State of Hawaii. How cool is that? And how ironic! The State of Hawaiiʻs primary argument against Hawaiians who assert that they are Hawaiian Kingdom subjects (or nationals) — living in the jurisdiction of the Hawaiian Kingdom, not the jurisdiction of State of Hawaii — is that the Hawaiian Kingdom no longer exists. Yet every year (except for the covid years), the Stateʻs Kamehameha Day Celebration Commission mounts an all-out celebration of Kamehameha the Great, the founder of the Kingdom that the State claims ʻno longer existsʻ... but yet admits (through the U.S. 1993 Apology and in many of its own legislation) that in essence the Kingdomʻs sovereignty was never relinquished or extinguished. The celebration of Kamehameha Day is evidence that the Hawaiian Kingdom is alive! On the other hand, where is the “Statehood” celebration? The State has not held a celebration in over 12 years! Yes, there is an official “Admissions Day” holiday in August, but there is no commission or committee designated to plan events, no parades, no gatherings, no parties, no speeches... nothing. It appears the State is ashamed and would rather not make a big deal about its birthday. The tide has turned. Public doubt is growing regarding the legitimacy of the State of Hawaii... even within the ranks of state legislators and officials. More people turn out for Hawaiian actions and events than for anything else. Interest and support is growing and the nation is rising. Two generations grew up reconnecting to their language and culture and learning about the great nation founded by Kamehameha, a nation nurtured into an amazing, progressive Kingdom by his successors and our kūpuna. We now have two generations who grew up hearing the truth of what happened to our sovereign nation and learning the profound way of kapu aloha to make things pono for the future... a Free Hawaii... Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono. The sovereignty (life) of the land is perpetuated in righteousness. ------ For the latest news and developments about our progress at the United Nations in both New York and Geneva, tune in to Free Hawaii News at 6 PM the first Friday of each month on ʻŌlelo Television, Channel 53. ------ URGENT! SIGN THIS PETITION! Rename McKinley High School and remove the McKinley statue! McKinley was the president who turned Hawaii from a peaceful, neutral country into a principal cog in America’s war machine. Sign this online petition NOW! Tell everyone you know to sign it too! "And remember, for the latest updates and information about the Hawaiian Kingdom check out the twice a month Ke Aupuni Updates published online on Facebook and other social media." ------- PLEASE KŌKUA… Your kōkua, large or small, is vital to this effort... To contribute, go to: • GoFundMe – CAMPAIGN TO FREE HAWAII • PayPal – Go to PayPal and send $ to: info@HawaiianKingdom.net • Other – To contribute in other ways (airline miles, travel vouchers, volunteer services, etc...) email us at: info@HawaiianKingdom.net "FREE HAWAII" T-SHIRTS - etc. Check out the great "FREE HAWAII" products you can purchase at... http://www.robkajiwara.com/store/c28/Hawaii All proceeds are used to help advance the cause. MAHALO! Malama Pono, Leon Siu Hawaiian National IN 1959 the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 1469 based on the erroneous belief that the people of Alaska and Hawaii had exercised their right of self-determination and consented to be integrated into the United States of America as the 49th and 50th States, respectively. The General Assembly’s error aided and abetted the United States in its systematic subjugation and pillaging of the people and lands of Alaska and Hawaii; causing serious injury and trauma to three generations people, by depriving them of the right of self-governance, safety and security and the right to determine access to and use of their lands and resources.
This panel asserts the UN has an obligation to correct the error it made by adopting UNGA Resolution 1469, and to ensure just remedy for the sixty-plus years of abuses of the human, civil, political and developmental rights for both Alaska and Hawaii. Featuring Alfred de Zayas, Robert Kajiwara, Ronald Barnes, Patty Heyano, Leon Siu, and Leilani Teale 9:00 am Monday, March 21, 2022 Geneva, Switzerland. https://zoom.us/j/95562321477 Upcoming panel discussion in conjunction with the United Nations Human Rights Council 49th session in Geneva, Switzerland.
Title: "Demilitarizing the Pacific is Urgent" Description: The conflict in Ukraine demonstrates the volatility of world conditions. For generations, the Original Peoples of the Pacific have protested the imposed militarization of our islands by the United States as it puts the people living on our islands in abject danger, and possible annihilation, by America's enemies. The major U.S. military build-up in the Pacific, along with recent mishaps, show that the U.S. has no regard for the people’s safety and welfare, and much less in the event of an attack, especially involving nuclear weapons. In this panel discussion representatives of Hawaii, the Marianas (Guam), and Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa) implore the Human Rights Council to protect our people from being targets in foreign conflicts by demanding the U.S. denuclearize and demilitarize our islands. https://zoom.us/j/92676419867 In January 2020 the leaders of several different Hawaiian organizations presented a resolution to the Hawaii State Legislature calling for the end of discrimination against Hawaiian nationals. Senate Resolution 159, was designed to provide equal rights to Hawaiians, but on June 29 was shot down by a senate committee.
Hawaii was an internationally recognized independent country in the form of a constitutional monarchy known as the Hawaiian Kingdom until 1893, when a small group of white businessmen, the descendants of American missionaries, conspired with U.S. Ambassador John Stevens to usurp the lawful Hawaiian Kingdom government. The U.S. attempted to annex Hawaii to the United States but failed when over 90% of Hawaiians signed petitions opposing the annexation. In 1898 the U.S. government decided to usurp Hawaii anyway, which is in violation of U.S. law, international, and Hawaiian Kingdom law. In 1993 the U.S. Congress passed a resolution apologizing for America's illegal actions towards Hawaii, but they did not offer any remedy. In 2001, a case involving a Hawaiian national and the Hawaiian Kingdom government was heard at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the World Court at the Hague, Netherlands. The mere hearing of the case indicated the continuity of the Hawaiian Kingdom as the legal governing body of the Hawaiian Islands. In 2018, Dr. Alfred de Zayas, the original United Nations Independent Expert on the Promotion of a Democratic and Equitable International Order, stated in 2018 in a memo address to U.S. government officials that Hawaii is legally an independent country and should be treated as such. In another memo sent later that year addressed to the United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres and the U.N. member states, de Zayas wrote that “numerous complaints submitted to the UN indicate the judges and justices of the U.S. State of Hawaii completely disregard and even display contempt for international laws,” and stated that the countries who have signed the UN Charter and the Hague and Geneva Conventions have an interest and obligation to hold the U.S. accountable. Although the University of Hawaii system accepts Hawaiian national identification, the rest of the State of Hawaii does not. This makes it difficult for Hawaiians to conduct everyday activities such as using a bank account, attaining employment and education, or buying a house. To this day Hawaiians remain one of the most disadvantaged and oppressed people groups in Hawaii, and Hawaiian nationals are treated even worse. U.S. Federal law, as well as State of Hawaii law, prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin, yet Hawaiian nationals continue to be discriminated against Nationals of other nations, such as Japan or the European Union, can travel, work, and live in Hawaii protected by law from discrimination, yet Hawaiians are denied those same legal protections. In 1979 the State of Hawaii created the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) specifically to serve the interests of “Native Hawaiians” - a group defined by ethnicity. Hawaiian nationals reject OHA as their representative because OHA speaks for the ethnic group, not the nation. Hawaiian nationality is not based on ethnicity but on national allegiance. The two terms are not the same. Those who had their country usurped by the United States were all subjects of the Hawaiian Kingdom, not only those from an ethnic group within the Kingdom. Nationality under Hawaiian law is not based on race or ethnicity, but on national origin. The refusal of the U.S. government to provide equal rights to Hawaiians is a civil rights violation according to U.S. law, as well as human rights violation in international law. The rejection of SR 159 indicates that Hawaiians will continue to be discriminated against until serious changes are made. Robert Kajiwara, Ph.D. A.B.D. Manchester Metropolitan University, is president of the Peace For Okinawa Coalition. Leon Siu is co-director of the Koani Foundation and in 2016 became the first Hawaiian nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Professor Alfred de Zayas, a high-ranking UN official, has requested that we share his new article about self-determination in the Americas.
Published by New Special international magazine in Geneva, Switzerland at: https://newspecial.org/ The article includes a photo of H.E. Leon Siu and Ambassador Ronald Barnes (Alaska). |
Archives
August 2023
Categories |