Bringing you today’s stories on issues important to Native communities.  NewsClips is a complimentary service of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement.  Don’t miss the biggest event in Native Hawaiian community development!  Register now for the 4th Annual Native Hawaiian Conference from August 30 – September 2 2005 at the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel.  Special scholarships are available.  For conference registration, scholarship forms, and for information and updates on our training workshops and events, please visit our Web site at: www.hawaiiancouncil.org.

 

 

June 15, 2005

 

 

Posted on: Thursday, June 9, 2005

 

Pacific Islander ranks small, but growing fast

 

By Dennis Camire
Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON — The population of Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders is growing at almost double the national population rate, the U.S. Census Bureau reported yesterday.

The group, which includes people who reported being of more than one race, grew at a 1.7 percent clip in the year ending July 1, 2004, while the nation as a whole expanded by 1 percent, according to census estimates.

However, the nation's estimated 976,000 Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders — up from 960,000 on July 1, 2003 — remain a tiny percentage of the U.S. population of 294 million.

"We're still pretty small," said state economist Pearl Imada Iboshi.

A major factor for the continuing increase was a Census Bureau change in 2000 that gave people the opportunity to choose more than one race to describe themselves, Imada Iboshi said.

"I think that is the most important thing that the Census Bureau has done," she said. "For Hawai'i, that was huge because about 25 percent of the people said they were more than one race."

Another factor in the increase is the relatively high rate of immigration from Samoa, Tonga, Micronesia and other Pacific areas, Imada Iboshi said. In 2003, for example, about 4,300 Pacific Islanders legally immigrated to the United States.

The increase for Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders was the nation's third-highest. The Hispanic population grew by 3.6 percent to 41.3 million during the reported year, followed by Asians, who saw a 3.4 percent increase to 14 million.

Since the 2000 census, the number of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders has grown by 7.6 percent, compared with a national population increase of 4.3 percent.

In an age breakdown of race and ethnic groups, about 17 percent of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, about 170,000, were children of elementary-school age (5 to 13 years) — the highest proportion of any of the groups. Nationwide, 12 percent of the population, about 35.4 million, were in this age range.

The number of Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders age 18 or older grew to 611,000 in 2004, an increase of 16,000. The population age 65 and older increased by 2,000, to 55,000.

 

 

 

 

June 14, 2005

 

Indians lack access to legal services


By CHET BROKAW, Associated Press Writer

PIERRE, S.D. -- Jessica Hinsley didn't know where to turn for help after Standing Rock Sioux Tribe officials took her 1-year-old daughter. The girl had been hurt in a fall at a day care center, and a tribal judge kept asking why Hinsley's three children had to be in day care.

Hinsley, a 23-year-old who is going through a divorce and works full time while attending college, had trouble finding a private lawyer who could take her case. But then she found out Dakota Plains Legal Services had a new lawyer on the reservation, which straddles the North Dakota-South Dakota border.

The lawyer, Judith Roberts, went to work and quickly got the infant returned to Hinsley.

 

"They wouldn't listen to me or anything, and then, once I got an attorney, which is Judy, that's when they pretty much had to listen," Hinsley said. "I didn't even know we had a legal service or else I would have gone there a long time ago."

Many Indian reservations across the nation have a shortage of lawyers and other legal services, said Ron Hutchinson, executive director of Dakota Plains Legal Services, which has six offices in South Dakota and one just across the border in North Dakota.

Dakota Plains is part of a network of nonprofit organizations nationwide that provide legal services to low-income people with the help of federal funding. Some, like Dakota Plains, primarily serve American Indians.

Court-appointed attorneys and public defenders help poor people charged with crimes, so the greatest unmet need is for civil matters such as divorce, child custody, wills, land issues and commercial disputes, Hutchinson said.

And while Indians need legal help in state and federal courts, one of the greatest needs is in tribal court, where many people represent themselves without hiring a lawyer, Hutchinson said.

A 1994 American Bar Association study estimated that three-quarters of the nation's low- and moderate-income families facing civil legal issues handle those problems without getting formal help. Legal aid lawyers estimate only about 20 percent of Indians' legal needs are met, Hutchinson said.

"The bottom line here is we don't have the resources to help everyone who needs help. We don't even come close," he said.

Help is on the way, thanks to a grant from the American College of Trial Lawyers, a national organization of courtroom attorneys. The $50,000 grant is intended to let Dakota Plains set up an Internet site to provide a wide range of information related to Indian legal issues, including forms and instructions for those who represent themselves in tribal court.

Jimmy Morris, of Richmond, Va., president of the American College of Trial Lawyers, said poor people need adequate legal services so they are not at the mercy of people who can afford lawyers.

"There is an appalling need for legal services to the poor everywhere in the country," Morris said. "But it is particularly acute among Native Americans."

Steve Moore of the Native American Rights Fund in Boulder, Colo., said there is a lack of legal resources to help Indians in tribal, state and federal courts.

"The word 'crisis,' I think, doesn't overdramatize the situation," Moore said.

Indians not only have to deal with state and federal laws and regulations, but they also are subject to tribal laws on reservations and a host of tribal and federal programs for housing, health and other issues that apply only to Indians, Moore said.

That means Indians likely will need legal help to deal with the many regulations that apply to them, Moore said.

"We think that Native Americans are the most regulated segment of the American population," Moore said. "Being Native American just adds multiple layers and layers of regulations and bureaucracy into your life."

The Native American Rights Fund handles high-profile cases for tribal governments and other organizations, disputes that focus on Indian rights, tribal sovereignty, voting issues, land and other issues. But it also works with organizations like Dakota Plains Legal Services to help develop and improve tribal laws and court systems, including traditional systems of resolving disputes, Moore said.

 

 

 

 

Posted at 1:07 p.m., Tuesday, June 14, 2005

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Wai'anae non-profit places 2nd nationally

 

Advertiser Staff

 

The MA'O Youth Organic Farm in Wai'anae placed second in a national business plan competition, taking home a $25,000 prize for its effort.

The nonprofit organization was one 25 finalists in the competition that began with a field of 500 entrants from around the country. The competition is the signature event of the Partnership on Nonprofit Ventures, comprised of Yale School of Management, the Goldman Sachs Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts.

In addition to winning the cash prize, MA'O Youth Organic Farm will receive a year of technical assistance from Yale University.

"We're excited to win the prize and place so high amongst some amazing ventures," said 21-year-old team member Kanoe Burgess.

The venture, which farms 2.5 acres in Wai'anae, was the 2004 winner of Hawai'i's first business plan competition for non-profit organizations sponsored by the Hogan Program at Chaminade University and Bank of Hawai'i.

 

 

 

 

Pacific Business News (Honolulu)

 

Wednesday, June 8, 2005

 

Public will debate wind farm

 

Size and appearance are expected to be key issues when Hawaiian Electric Co. holds three community meetings next month to discuss a possible wind farm on Oahu's Leeward Coast on the ridge line near its Kahe power plant.

If approved, the farm would include 24 to 26 wind turbines, each about 300 to 350 feet tall, with some visible from the highway. Wind farms on other islands have been largely out of sight of motorists and passersby, but the wind farm on the Leeward Coast would be easily visible and force community members to decide whether visual or energy issues take precedence.

It would be the only wind farm for Oahu and the first since the closing of a similar plant in Kahuku in 1996.

The community meetings will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. on July 19 at the Ihilani Resort in the Ocean Ballroom I, July 20 in the Kapolei High School Cafeteria, and July 21 in the Old Nanaikapono Elementary School Cafeteria.

 

 

 

 

Posted on: Sunday, June 12, 2005

 

State may ban tours of coastal Wai'anae

 

By Will Hoover
Advertiser Leeward Oahu Writer

The state is recommending a ban on sightseeing tours — some of which put visitors up close with dolphins and other wildlife — in pristine areas of the western extreme of the Wai'anae coast.

Although a decision is pending, the proposal highlights the growing pains facing the state as cultural, recreational and commercial interests increasingly compete for Hawai'i's limited resources. While tour promoters say they provide jobs and protect the environment and marine wildlife, some residents and environmental advocates complain that some part of mostly urban O'ahu must be protected from development.

Meanwhile, the Department of Land and Natural Resources is asking to "temporarily cease the issuance of any further commercial recreational activity permits at Makua Beach" as it tries to sort out the competing interests.

The flashpoint for this latest conflict is a small kayaking operation on the Wai'anae Coast.

Last July, in a trial to test the commercial possibilities on Makua Beach, the state issued a one-year permit to tour company Makua Lani to take visitors on kayaks that would launch from the beach, as opposed to nearby harbors.

While tour operators say the point of the tours is not necessarily to come close to dolphins, they do acknowledge the animals are in the area. For example, according to the group's Web site: "The area is frequented by dolphins and sea turtles, so it is very likely you will be able to experience their love and joy."

The company's trial permit is set to expire at the end of this month.

Even from the beginning, reaction to the operation from the Wai'anae community, which includes the state's largest Hawaiian population, was mixed. Some welcomed the employment possibilities Makua Lani offered the economically depressed area.

According to Makua Lani executive director Richard Holland, the small kayaking business, which markets $148 ocean tours to Japanese visitors, employed dozens of local residents during the year and paid in excess of $200,000 in wages.

And Malama Pauhi, 28, musician and cultural advisor to Makua Lani, said the company employs mostly younger Hawaiian males in their 20s who not only earn an income — often for the first time — but expand their knowledge of their own culture while interacting with people from a different culture.

Kaipo Alfeche, 27, one of the men who earned from $8 to $13 an hour working for Makua Lani, said he received a letter from a Japanese woman who said the kayaking tour was the most meaningful experience of her life.

However, local opinion seemed to shift away from Makua Lani after long-time area fishers said the kayaking activity negatively affected the traditional fishing grounds their families had fished for generations. In particular, they claimed catches of akule dropped dramatically after the kayaks took to the water.

Others in the community insisted that it was a mistake to open up the pristine area, which is sacred to Hawaiians, to commercial interests.

"This experiment has been tried," said resident William Aila, who a year ago spoke in favor of issuing the trial permit. "Everyone has done their best. But it's not working."

Jo Jordan, who chairs the parks and recreation committee for the Wai'anae Coast Neighborhood Board, said Makua Lani represented the lock on the floodgate that could transform the coast's pristine wilderness into the Waikiki of the West.

"If we allow Mr. Holland to kayak, we have to allow Mr. Smith to rent sand chairs, and Mr. Jones to rent surfboards, and the other guy to bring in his lunchwagon," Jordan said.

"I do believe that there should be some places that just don't have any type of permitted concessions. We should leave some areas natural. Makua is one prime example."

Vocal views were expressed at a Board of Land and Natural Resources meeting last week that lasted five hours. The meeting was to consider the state's recommendation to cease further permits and to not renew Makua Lani's permit.

Board member Kathryn Whang Inouye, who voted against the state's recommendation to ban permits, reminded those opposed to Makua Lani that Wai'anae has a huge unemployment problem that needs to be addressed.

"I just don't think we have enough data to even make a decision," she said.

But board member Timothy Johns said the permit should not have been issued in the first place, precisely because the board had too little information on which to base the decision.

"I don't think the resources (at Makua) should bear the risk of our uncertainty," he said.

The DLNR recommendation to ban new permits will be up for a vote again at the board's next public hearing in two weeks.

Until then, some lament the community rancor the issue has unleashed. After the meeting, Bobby Fernandez stood outside the board room and tried to make sense of it all.

Fernandez, 28, who has lived in Makaha most of his life and now works full-time for Makua Lani, said he has paddled canoes with some of his neighbors who now want the company he works for to go out of business.

"It's too bad everyone has to be grumbling about it," said Fernandez, as he held his 11-month-old son, Braydon, in his arms. "We've all lived together in this place for so long. I can't take sides."

Reach Will Hoover at 525-8038, or e-mail whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.

 

 

 

 

Posted on: Monday, June 13, 2005

 

Kapolei center plan advances

 

By Rod Ohira
Advertiser Staff Writer

The Salvation Army's bid to build a $35 million Kroc Center in Kapolei is a step closer to becoming a reality.

The Hawai'i proposal for a family support, education and recreation facility on 10 acres at the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands' East Kapolei I development was one of eight projects approved to proceed with site and program planning by the Salvation Army's Western Territory.

"We will be awarded funds to develop this phase of the proposal, which will include a program-needs assessment, space planning, design, detailed budgets, and financial sustainability of the center," said Maj. David Hudson, commander of the Salvation Army's Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division.

Since announcing its plans in December to apply for grants to build a center in Hawai'i, the Salvation Army here has put together a game plan that appears to be on schedule. If all goes well with the feasibility phase of the project, construction could begin in late 2007, with a planned 2009 opening.

Hawai'i is seeking $35 million to build its Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center at the new North/South Road and Kapolei Parkway extension. In addition to seeking $35 million to build the site, the Hawai'i application seeks an operating endowment of $35 million.

The money is to come from a $1.6 billion bequest from the late Joan Kroc, widow of McDonald's Corp. founder Ray Kroc, to the Salvation Army for construction of 50 or more community centers nationwide. The gift was divided equally among the Salvation Army's four territories in the United States.

In March, Hawaiian Home Lands chairman Micah Kane announced that his department had offered The Salvation Army in Hawai'i a 65-year lease at $10 per year for the 10-acre site in Kapolei. The Kroc Center's parcel will be adjacent to a $12 million Hawaiian Home Lands building, which is expected to be built on nine or 10 acres by 2007, Kane said.

The Kroc Center and the Hawaiian Home Lands building will be near the University of Hawai'i's West O'ahu campus.

The Hawai'i Business Roundtable, made up of CEOs from 50 of Hawai'i's largest companies, is a major supporter of the project.

The support is key since only 75 percent of the estimated $3 million annual operating cost of the facility can be generated from revenue from the $35 million endowment. The remainder would be paid for by annual fees and fundraising.

Components of the East Kapolei Kroc Center include:

• A social service center with food pantry, rent and utility assistance, life skills training, and referral/case management programs.

• A creative learning center with computer labs, tutoring, charter school facilities and virtual library.

• Outdoor and indoor recreation facilities with gymnasium, fitness center, multipurpose area and aquatic center.

• A family enhancement center and performing arts center for theater, dance and music.

Reach Rod Ohira at 535-8181 or rohira@honoluluadvertiser.com.

 

 

 

 

6/10/2005

 

Tribe: See you in court


Vow to fight move to use wastewater on sacred site

Tulsa Native American Times
Sam Lewin

Tribes in the Southwest are vowing not to give up the fight as a federal agency authorizes the use of “reclaimed” water on a sacred site.

Reclaimed water means wastewater.

The Arizona Snowbowl, a wealthy ski lodge with thousands of rooms, has received permission to pump the water in order to manufacture artificial snow.

The lodge is located in the San Francisco Peaks, an extinct volcano formed more than 3 million years ago. Tribes regard the peaks as sacred, and unsuccessfully lobbied the U.S. Forest Service to reject the plan.

“This project authorizes ski area improvements, including snowmaking using reclaimed water…the study and decision documents acknowledge significant tribal concerns for the spiritual values and religious beliefs and practices associated with the San Francisco Peaks. This decision does not preclude the continued use of the San Francisco Peaks for religious beliefs and practices, and does not violate First Amendment rights,” United State Department of Agriculture spokesman Jim Payne said in a statement.

Tribal leaders were quick to condemn the decision.

“To Native Americans, desecrating the San Francisco Peaks with wastewater is like flushing the Koran down the toilet,” Navajo Nation President Joe Shirley, Jr., said. “The federal government is ignoring the pleas and wishes of the Native people. We see other people go to war for their way of life, their essence. Here, though, the federal government is ignoring the pleas and wishes of the Native people.”

The leader of the Hopi Tribe called the move an “offensive snub,” and vowed to pursue the case in federal court.

“I am disappointed but not at all surprised at this latest decision of the Forest Service to uphold the desecration of Nuvatukyaovi (the San Francisco Peaks). It became evident early on in the process that federal authorities were ignoring the deeply felt concerns of the Hopi Tribe and all native nations. It is our duty and obligation to protect and preserve the spiritual integrity of Nuvatukyaovi and we will never give up in our efforts to do so,” Chairman Wayne Taylor said.

“Our place of worship is under attack. For the Hopi Tribe, and many other Native peoples who have a great affinity for the peaks, our overwhelming concern is not about access, but in preserving our place of worship, which for the Hopis is directly tied to our way of life. The peaks are not just mountains, they are a fundamental and integral part of our religious beliefs and activities,” said Leigh Kuwanwisiwma, director of the Hopi Cultural Preservation Office.

In addition to that argument, tribal officials protest that artificial snowmaking will have a significant adverse effect on the overall environment of the mountain and watershed, a move that could ultimately affect the condition of an historic property currently in the process of being nominated to the National Register of Historic Places.

Local environmental groups tried to prevent the pumping.

“We have been anticipating this decision due to the climate that exists under the Bush Administration, which has consistently brutalized Native peoples and the Environment. We oppose the expansion for environmental and human health reasons which are at the core of the degradation of respect the Forest Service and Snowbowl have for a site that is as sacred to Native Americans as Jerusalem is to the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim faiths,” said Jim McCarthy, chairman of the Sierra Club Plateau Group.

The Hopis and Navajos are not the only ones that consider the San Francisco Peaks to have religious significance. The Zuni, Tewa, Haulapai, Havasupai, Yavapai-Apache, Yavapai-Prescott, Tonto Apache, White Mountain Apache, San Carlos Apache, San Juan Southern Pauite, Fort Mcdowell Mohave Apache, and Acoma also maintain a spiritual connection to the site.

 

 

 

 

June 9, 2005

 

Dems pushing $300M for vet mental health

 

United Press International

Washington, DC, Jun. 9 (UPI) -- Senate Democrats want to provide up to $300 million more for war veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

The bill, sponsored by Hawaii Sen. Daniel Akaka, would add the money to the Veteran's Administration $30 billion health care budget. Between 18 and 30 percent of returning Iraq war veterans are likely to have post-traumatic stress disorder, which can interfere with sleep, relationships, lead to erratic behavior, drug and alcohol abuse, violence and suicide.

If it's treated early, troops with the disorder have an excellent chance at recovery. But the strained resources of the Veterans' Administration mental health care system -- as well as stigmas against getting psychiatric help -- are major obstacles to former troops getting the necessary treatment.

Akaka's bill would mandate in-patient detoxification programs at all Veterans' Administration primary heath care centers and psychiatric and counseling services at all community-based clinics in the Veterans' Administration system.

It would also require Veterans' Administration health care expenditures to at least keep pace with inflation, using current year dollars. The budget is currently figured in 1996 dollars and grows at about only 2 percent per year, according to Operation Truth, an Iraq and Afghan war veteran's advocacy organization.

 

 

 

 

June 10, 2005

 

Hilo VA hospital fund gets $2M more

 

The 95-bed nursing home is expected to be completed by January 2007

 

By Gregg K. Kakesako
gkakesako@starbulletin.com

The federal Department of Veterans Affairs has increased the funding of the long-awaited 95-bed Hilo State Veterans Nursing Home by $2 million, bringing its share to $20 million.

Miles Takaaze, spokesman for the Hawaii Health Systems Corp., said yesterday that two years ago the VA appropriated $18 million for the facility, which will be located on the 22-acre Hilo Medical Center campus.

That was matched by $10 million from the state. The state estimates that nearly 15,500 veterans live on the Big Island.

However, since then costs have escalated, and the project will cost $32 million, Takaaze said.

An additional $2 million will come from Hawaii Health Systems Corp., which operates 12 state hospitals and will run the Hilo veterans home and adult day health care facility.

The two-story, 59,000-square-foot veterans home will be located where the old Hilo Hospital was built.

Demolition, which cost $3.5 million, of the old building began in September.

Takaaze said the new veterans home will be built by Dick Pacific and should be completed by January 2007. Construction is expected to begin later this summer.

Initially, Big Island veterans wanted a 200-bed nursing home since the service area of the facility includes the Pacific basin. Hawaii is one of only three states that lacks a long-term veterans care home.

However, Gov. Linda Lingle would only approve funds for a 95-bed facility, which she said could be expanded.

Past VA studies indicated that the number of veterans on the Big Island could sustain a nursing home with 214 beds.

Sen. Daniel Akaka said the VA funds "lay the foundation for a much-needed facility that will provide Hawaii veterans with long-term care."

Sen. Daniel Inouye added: "This funding is a testament to our commitment to provide the excellent care our older veterans deserve. They willingly stepped forward to put themselves at risk when they were asked to do so, and now we can assist them in their time of need through this new facility."

The state advisory board of veterans' services chose a name for the new Hilo facility earlier this week but will not release it until it has been approved by the Hawaii Health Systems Corp., a state veterans affairs official said.

 

 

 

 

June 14, 2005

 

Hogan/Bank of Hawaii Nonprofit Business Plan Competition Offered Again this September

 

Last year, the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program of Chaminade University and the Bank of Hawaii sponsored the state’s first-ever business plan competition exclusively for the nonprofit sector.  More than 75 nonprofit organizations submitted business plans and eight finalists were selected.  From this short list, three cash winners were determined.  In fact, the first-place winner, the Waianae Organic Farmers Cooperative, is a finalist this year in Yale’s national business plan competition. 

 

Because of the positive reaction to our first effort, we are planning to hold the competition again. 

 

Thirty-five thousand dollars of cash awards will be made to four winners, and more than 150 hours of consulting services will be provided to eight finalists. 

 

The winners will receive cash awards as follows: 

 

First Place                                $15,000

Second Place                           $10,000

Third Place                               $5,000

The “Most Compelling”            $5,000

 

By offering awards that combine cash and technical assistance, the Competition aims to encourage excellence in nonprofit planning and help make new and innovative social enterprises a reality.  The Competition is organized and administered by the Hogan Entrepreneurial Program of Chaminade University and 3Point. 

 

Please begin thinking about your entry now.  Winners will be announced on December 13, 2005.  For more information, please visit:  http://www.chaminade.edu/academics/hogan/

 

 

 

 

June 13, 2005

 

Honolulu Theatre for Youth (HTY) Visits American Samoa

 

Visiting Crossroads Theater for Youth (CTY) from Honolulu, Hawaii for three weeks of intensive training was HTY’s Director of Drama Education, Daniel A. Kelin, II, who has been contracted as CTY’s Director of Theatre Training.

 

The three-week workshop was focused on the training of actors in basic performance skills such as vocal  techniques, movement for the stage, character intention, audience interaction and devising original plays from ideas and social issues. CTY Director, Li’a Seui visited HTY in the summer of 2002 and has met with Daniel several times thereafter.  They collaborated regarding the use of theatre to impact the development of young people in the Territory.  Those meetings, together with the dreams of young people involved and the rise of suicide in 2003, led them to develop the idea and submit the application for funding to the U.S. Administration for Native Americans, which granted the 3-year funding of Crossroads Theatre for Youth. 

 

“Daniel challenged me to think outside the box and the art of improvisation has a new purpose and meaning to me now,” said Actor Jane Taifane.  “He helped me to understand the difference between ‘drama’ and ‘theatre,’ said Lasi Tanielu “and to think ‘purpose’ and ‘action’ each time I’m on stage.” Loso I’aulualo commented that Daniel introduced a new style of theatre that is ‘innovative’ and ‘engaging’, and made acting so much more than just performing.

 

Daniel toured with the theatre troupe as they performed in the community and when asked for his feedback, he said that the most powerful tool incorporated in the issue-based plays were the interactive discussions that followed.  “The play was thought-provoking, and instead of performing the solutions, you provoked the audience to explore all possible answers to the issues that are challenging your community,” said Daniel.

 

In the three weeks he spent with the group, Daniel and the cast devised two original plays; ‘Moira’s Choice’ that would address issues of suicide with high school students, and ‘O a’u ma lo’u uso’ (My sister and I) for elementary level addressing substance abuse. These plays are scheduled to tour in mid-July when HTY returns for their second visit.

 

 

 

 

June 9, 2005

Indian housing funds may go to war effort

By Pamela G. Dempsey
Diné Bureau

Gallup Independent

WINDOW ROCK — Next year's federal housing dollars are up for grabs but the efforts of Native American tribes to get a piece of the pie may go unnoticed by congressional leaders.

While Congress may make "polite statements" to those Native American leaders lobbying for more funding, Chester Carl, chief executive officer of Navajo Housing Authority, said that congressional appropriations will most likely boost war budgets.

"The truth is, we don't have the voting power," Carl said.

In a position paper to the Navajo Nation Government Services Committee, Navajo Housing Authority reported that the Navajo Nation could lose $14 million in Native American federal housing grants if President George Bush's 2006 budget is implemented.

"That is nearly $14 million in lost opportunity for some of the nation's poorest and most neglected citizens in a program that was already under-funded," the report stated.

While federal appropriations for the upcoming budget year have been sorted, Carl said the housing end of it is just getting underway.

Federal policies, such as the Housing and Urban Development's decision to use the 2000 Census Multi-Race American Indian and Alaska Native data to distribute Indian Housing Block Grants, draw money away from those tribes with the most need, the report stated.

Instead, Navajo Housing Authority is advocating the use of verified enrolled tribal membership.

"The Navajo Nation, which in the 2000 Census count has over 180,000 tribal enrolled members, has already lost over $10 million due to this policy decision that has been redirected to core urban areas like Chicago, IL., Portland, OR; and the state of Oklahoma," the report stated.

But money isn't the only contributing factor to tribal housing needs.

"Money is a big part of it," Carl said, "but there are other vehicles not conducive to housing."

Tribal dependency on federal government funds, prioritizing housing needs, and the multiple red-tape steps from start to finish in buying or building a home on tribal trust lands are all contributing factors, Carl said.

Navajo Housing Authority reports that each year 2,000 Navajos join the housing markets and estimate that the current housing need on the Navajo Nation is more than 20,000 units.

"We're taking every piece and working on it," Carl said.

 

 

 

 

June 13, 2005

 

Resident evicted over grandchild stirs debate

 

By Mary Vorsino
mvorsino@starbulletin.com

Jane Kamanu knew the rules before she broke them: No children allowed.

But what if, she argues, the rules are unfair?

The 72-year-old will be evicted July 15 from a Waimanalo low-income housing complex for native Hawaiian seniors where she pays $299 a month in rent, nearly half of her $682 monthly income, after she chose to take in her 11-year-old great-granddaughter, Kehealani.

She raised the girl from birth and has guardianship of her, Kamanu said.

But in 2002, when Kamanu moved into Kulanakauhale Maluhia o Na Kupuna, which sits on state Hawaiian Home Lands Department property and is managed by Prudential Locations, Kehealani went to live with her mother, who had decided to get back into the girl's life.

Months later, the girl returned to her great-grandmother's care.

"She said, 'Please, can I stay with you? I don't feel right with Mommy,'" Kamanu said, recounting a conversation she had with Kehealani. "I told her that I couldn't have her because children are not allowed. But she said, 'Please, Tutu, can I stay with you?'

"I thought it could be done. I didn't see anything that was really bad that she could do. The only thing is that it's the rules and the regulations."

Kamanu got her first citation for taking in her great-grandchild about five months ago, nearly two years after Kehealani moved in. Her second citation came on May 25, and she received her eviction notice on June 2.

"I can understand the people that want to be left alone," Kamanu said, "but there are people like us who have families who need someplace to go."

Kamanu is fighting the eviction -- while she searches newspaper classifieds for a comparably priced rental. And she has found support from Na Tutu, an advocacy group for grandparents raising grandchildren.

"This is a disgrace in Hawaii," said Jackie Young, chairwoman of the organization. "Residences should be made for these grandparents (raising grandchildren). ... I'm hoping that something comes through, that someone will provide for a place that she (Kamanu) can stay with her grandchild."

Young said Kamanu's case sheds light on an important problem in the islands.

There should be a certain number of senior living homes -- especially at residences designed for low- to moderate-income residents -- set aside for grandparents raising grandchildren, she said, but there are none. Other states do have such complexes. For example, a recently opened 100-unit apartment complex in Nevada specifically serves low-income seniors who are raising their grandchildren or great-grandchildren.

"I can understand grandparents wanting to live without kids around. They've already done their share, their job," Young said. "But there are grandparents who are raising their grandchildren, and I believe ... provisions should be made for them. That's not just for this complex, but for all complexes that have senior residency."

Lloyd Yonenaka, spokesman for the state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, said his agency could do nothing for Kamanu. "We don't operate the facility," he said. "We're just supplying the land."

He did say the department had asked Prudential to help Kamanu find a rental. That assistance, Kamanu said, was little more than a Prudential real estate agent advising her to search through rental listings.

The Prudential property manager who is handling Kamanu's case failed to return three calls for comment.

But other residents at the housing complex had plenty to say about the situation. Most support the eviction, saying rules are rules, and Kamanu knew that before she moved in.

"That place is built for seniors to enjoy their retirement," said Edith Kanekoa, who lives a few doors down from Kamanu. "Throughout your life, there's rules that you need to follow, and following the rules to a T is important for me."

Kanekoa and others also said that Kehealani runs around the housing complex uninhibited, going into people's gardens and playing loudly.

Kamanu, though, paints another picture.

She said that she has taught Kehealani "to live among the kupuna. You respect the kupuna. You help them if they need help." After school, Kehealani plays off the housing complex grounds, Kamanu said.

"Some of the kupunas want their peace and quiet," Kamanu said. "I don't begrudge them that, but there are some of us who want our families, too."

Young said her organization will meet sometime soon to discuss what can be done for Kamanu.

She also said the case is tricky because if an exception to the rules is made, other grandparents will argue that they have a right to bring in their grandchildren, too. Meanwhile, residents who want "peace and quiet," Young said, will argue that their concerns are not being met.

 

 

 

 

June 9, 2005

 

Old Hawaii had clear view of the stars

 

By Ron Staton
Associated Press

Early Hawaiians had a good understanding of astronomy, and their descendants are renewing the native tradition of studying the stars.

The Western tradition of people connecting with the sky is being revived after being lost during the Renaissance, said Robert Joseph, professor and faculty chairman of the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy.

"People of old Hawaii knew astronomy -- the different objects and their movements," said Paul Coleman, a UH astronomer who also has studied Hawaiian astronomy and navigation. "They could distinguish between planets and stars."

From ancient times in the Western intellectual tradition, there was an understanding of the intimate connection between the structure and order in the heavens and life on Earth, said Joseph.

How Western and Hawaiian cultures lost and then regained their early connection with astronomy was the topic of a discussion yesterday on "recovering the sky" at the Ninth East-West Philosophers' Conference, a two-week East-West Center event that ends tomorrow.

"When I was young, I spent much time indoors and had no particular reason to study the stars," said Carlos Andrade, who teaches traditional navigation and astronomy at the university's Center for Hawaiian Studies. "Nothing provided a connection to the stars."

That changed in the 1980s when he got involved with the Polynesian voyaging canoe Hokule'a (Star of Gladness) and sailed on one of its voyages. "Even crew members had to learn the stars," Andrade said.

"It was not a story of voyaging, but a story of recovery of the sky," he said.

Chad Baybayan also cited the Hokule'a and its navigator, Nainoa Thompson, for the renewed interest in Hawaiian astronomy. Thompson had learned celestial navigation from a Micronesian master, Mau Piailug.

On a voyage with the canoe to Tahiti, Baybayan began to learn about the stars, and sailed back to Hawaii to understudy Thompson.

"We need to learn the language of the stars," he said.

In the early days of the Hokule'a, which launched its first major voyage in 1976, the leadership structure was along Western lines, Baybayan said.

"But it moved more toward an emphasis on navigation, with the navigator playing the role of a 'wayfinder,'" he said. "It was finding a way to move a community across the ocean."

Native Hawaiians often took their names from stars, which can provide information about them, said Andrade. "The connection to the stars is not just intellectual, but familial," he said.

 

 

 

 

June 7, 2005

 

Seminoles swear in 2 new tribal leaders

 

By John Holland

Staff Writer

 

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

 

HOLLYWOOD * The Seminole Tribe swore in two new reservation leaders on Monday and listened to a fiery speech from a longtime one who barely hung on to his post.

 

Last month's elections did not alter drastically the tribe's makeup, because Tribal Chairman Mitchell Cypress and Vice Chairman Moses B. Osceola each have two more years left in their terms. Still, the 3,000-member tribe added a woman to its Board of Directors for business affairs and narrowly returned Max B. Osceola Jr. to an 11th term as the Hollywood representative.

 

Gloria Wilson of Hollywood said she would try to broaden the scope of the Corporation, the business arm that traditionally has focused on agriculture, as well as its lucrative gaming operations. Officials said Wilson is the first woman to join the board in at least two decades.

 

"I see a lot of potential for the tribe that really hasn't been tapped yet," said Wilson, who owns a development company in Davie and is a partner in a minor league baseball team in Puerto Rico. "I think my business experience will help us get past some of the tunnel vision that we had, although Moses [the corporation president] has already made some great changes."

 

Max Osceola will continue representing the Hollywood reservation on the Tribal Council after defeating Elton Carl Baxley by only three votes. Osceola, long a combative voice railing against the federal government, turned up the rhetoric during his acceptance speech.

 

"I think about the elders who were here B.C., before Columbus, when we were the ones welcoming the Europeans ... who took our land and tried to commit genocide on our people," Osceola said. "And I think about the 1950s, when the federal government said Indians no longer exist. That's how they responded to the `Indian problem,' but I think we had a European problem."

 

Osceola was referring to the attempts in the 1950s to assimilate all Indian tribes and make them give up tribe status and heritage. The plan was dropped in 1970 by President Richard Nixon.

 

After Monday's ceremony, Osceola took some kidding from tribe members about his tone, but said he was just trying to unite the Seminoles after a bitter election.

 

"I have to keep repeating our [history] because we don't want people forgetting it," Osceola said.

 

John Holland can be reached at jholland@sun-sentinel.com or 954-385-7907.

 

 

 

 

June 3, 2005

 

"Pacific Education: Raising Children, Raising Standards"

 

by Samoa News Wire Service

 

The 22nd annual Pacific Education Conference (PEC) will be held in Majuro, Marshall Islands on July 12-15, 2005, co-hosted by the Marshall Islands Ministry of Education and Pacific Resources for Education and Learning (PREL), the organizing committee announced in a statement from the Marshall Islands.

 

"We are proud to host this prestigious event and anticipate positive outcomes from the sessions, presentations, discussions and networking that will result from this assembly of dedicated educators of the Pacific region," said Marshall Islands Minister of Education, Wilfred I. Kendall in his letter of invitation.

 

"As parents and communities, we have entrusted these educators with our greatest resources and tangible investment in the future: our children."

 

"Pacific Education: Raising Children, Raising Standards" is this year's them and reflects the belief that quality teaching is key to nurturing healthy mind and spirit, organizers said.

 

Raising educational standards includes proving learning experiences designed to equip children with the knowledge, skills, and attitude that will enable them to perform at their highest level. This year's focus is on policy and practices that improve the quality of teaching and learning in the classroom and at home.

 

PEC is one of the largest educational conferences in the western Pacific and a major source of professional development opportunities for educators.

 

PEC is organized by Pacific educators for Pacific educators. Delegates from American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Guam, the Republic of Palau, as well as educational representatives from other Pacific countries and the United States are expected to attend.

 

 

 

 

June 12, 2005

 

Koa forest comeback relies on volunteers

 

Efforts on two islands focus on native birds and timber interests

 

By Jeanntte J. Lee
Associated Press

HAKALAU FOREST NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, Hawaii » Impenetrable koa forests once shaded the lower southern slopes of Mauna Kea and other sprawling tracts on the Big Island now covered by acres of yellowed grasses.

But Hawaii's largest endemic tree, with its sickle-shaped leaves, has reclaimed some of its former territory over the past two decades.

Conservationists and small timber harvesters have replanted koa on thousands of acres on the Big Island and Maui and have increasingly fenced out the cattle, pigs and goats that forage on koa bark and seedlings.

They hope replanting the slow-growing trees can help restore the feeding and nesting grounds of endangered native forest birds and quench demand for valuable koa timber, whose scarcity and lustrous grain ranks it among the world's most expensive woods. A tree can take 40 years to mature.

"Koa is a key species in the ecology of the Hawaiian forests," according to Craig Elevitch, co-author of the book "Growing Koa." "It's also one of the most important trees to human culture and economy in Hawaii."

Koa trees are slowly recovering on the slopes of Mauna Kea at Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge, which was set aside specifically for forest birds.

Since the refuge opened in 1985, volunteers and refuge officials have replanted more than 271,000 koa trees on about 5,000 acres, with survival rates averaging 70 percent, said Baron Horiuchi, a horticulturist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

More than half of Hawaii's 31 birds on the federal endangered species list are small forest varieties, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service, which oversees the refuge. Twenty-eight percent of Hawaii's 93 native bird species are already extinct, according to federal figures.

The birds need koa to shelter the smaller plants they feed on, such as the red splayed blossoms of the ohia lehua, giant Hawaiian raspberries and marble-sized red ohelo berries. A spreading koa canopy protects seedlings and smaller plants from cold upland temperatures, which can dip into the 20s during winter on Mauna Kea.

"Koa is a pioneering tree," Horiuchi said. "It leads the way for the rest of the forest."

In many parts of the refuge, koa trees are the only native plants growing among the tall, introduced species of weeds and grass. The branches on many of the larger trees at Hakalau grow in a serpentine network, an illustration of the name for this area, which means "many perches" in Hawaiian.

"The point is not to grow them straight for timber or canoe logs," Horiuchi said. "They are to grow as a canopy and a bird habitat."

Private koa farmers prefer the tall, straight-growing trees. They hope to harvest the semi-hard wood, which ranges in color from blond to red to dark brown, for furniture, bowls, musical instruments and canoes.

Umikoa Ranch on the Big Island, in partnership with state land officials, reforested 800 acres with koa trees between 1980 and 2004.

David Matsuura, managing steward at the 2,000 acre ranch, said some of the trees planted about 15 years ago have already reached large diameters, although he isn't sure about the quality of the wood.

"That's the problem with koa. It's a very long-term crop," Matsuura said. "I'm gonna be pretty old and gray before most of our koa is actually harvested."

Ranch managers said the trees have already helped re-establish native plants and animals, including eight endangered Hawaiian ducks. The return of koa has also increased water sources at Umikoa, where the sickle-shaped koa stems draw fog and moisture into the watershed.

"Our main goal is the integration of conservation and agriculture," Matsuura said. "It's not the same as clear-cutting."

But profit is also a goal for koa farmers, who are gambling over the long term on a product that commands premium prices. At Hawaiian Koa Furniture in Honolulu, a 54-inch round koa table sells for $8,000. A king-sized koa sleigh bed frame sells for $11,560 at Martin & McArthur in Honolulu, and the cost jumps to $16,184 for the model carved from the rare "curly" koa grain.

Riccardo Dellera, a woodworker in Honolulu, used to pay $3 a board foot for koa in the early 1980s; a board foot is one inch thick and one foot square. Today the price is about $30 a board foot.

"I remember someone asking for $12 a board foot and that seemed unbelievable," said Dellera, who owns Dellera's Woodworks in Honolulu. "The cost of koa has just gone up dramatically."

The bulk of the koa market is driven by Hawaii residents, who are the world's biggest consumers of richly varnished koa products.

"Koa is king in Hawaii," Matsuura said. "Only here in Hawaii will people literally pay 10 times the value of anything because it's koa."

 

 

 

 

Posted on: Monday, June 13, 2005

 

Independence seekers urged to go to U.N.

 

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Advertiser Staff Writer

A U.N. expert on indigenous peoples is encouraging those seeking an independent Hawaiian nation to press their case for self-determination at the United Nations, saying the body could provide an international forum to air their grievances.

Julian Burger, coordinator of the Indigenous Peoples Unit of the U.N.'s Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, is speaking to college classes and Native Hawaiian groups as well as visiting key sites during a two-week trip sponsored by the Hawai'i Institute for Human Rights and other organizations.

"Please come and make as much noise as possible," Burger told a gathering of Hawaiian independence movement leaders at the home of activist Kekuni Blaisdell last week. "Use the space that exists to talk about the problems, speak from your hearts, give the evidence ... make sure the story is known as widely as possible."

Those gathered were among those Native Hawaiians who are opposed to the Akaka Bill, which would have the U.S. government recognize Native Hawaiians in the same manner American Indians and Native Alaskans are recognized, and instead seek a more separate relationship with the United States.

Asked what it would take to get the United Nations to accept Hawai'i as an independent member nation, Burger said he believes it would require the support of the U.S. government. "They could veto; they could hold it back," Burger said. "I think they could hold things up for you."

Blaisdell, convenor of the Kanaka Maoli Tribunal Komike and a separate group known as Ka Pakaukau, said he was inspired by Burger's visit.

The United States won't relinquish its grip on Hawai'i unless compelled to do so, not something that will happen anytime soon, Blaisdell said.

"That's why we have to appeal to the rest of the world, as well as to those with a conscience in the United States, to recognize who we are and to support re-establishment of our government under our control," he said. "We're calling on the United Nations to use its own law, international law, to support our cause."

Speaking separately with Advertiser editors and reporters this week, Burger said the United Nations may not be the last step for those seeking a separate government.

"In the United Nations and international law, there's no right to independence," he said. "What you have is a right to self-determination."

And while it can take many forms, "self-determination, at least in practice, is a very pragmatic concept," Burger said. "It allows an opportunity for one group to discuss with another group how it should relate to that group."

Many Hawaiian groups, including the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, disagree with the independence movement and believe the Akaka Bill is the best first step toward self-determination.

Anthony Sang, chairman of the state Council of Hawaiian Homestead Associations, believes it may be futile for Native Hawaiian groups to go international with their fight. He cited the effort of a Big Island man who, claiming his rights as a citizen of the Hawaiian kingdom were being violated, took his case to the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. The case was rejected when the United States declined to be a party to the proceeding.

"We don't believe that's the channel that our organization wants to follow," Sang said.

Instead, he said, his group wholeheartedly supports the Akaka bill. "We want to stay within the framework of the United States Constitution. That's what we feel is the most logical way to eventually get what we deserve by law."

But Blaisdell said he and others don't buy into the Akaka bill. "Federal recognition is a sell-out," he said. "It's an attempt by the United States to deny us full independence by setting up a puppet government under the Department of the Interior such as the American Indians and Alaskan natives. They want to control it and call it self-determination, which it is not."

Reach Gordon Y.K. Pang at gpang@honoluluadvertiser.com or at 525-8026.

 

 

 

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