Bringing you today’s stories on issues important to Native communities.  NewsClips is a complimentary service of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement.  For information and updates on our training workshops and events, please visit our Web site at: www.hawaiiancouncil.org.

CNHA is a national association of Native Hawaiian organizations. Operating an active Public Policy Center, Grants Training Institute, Community Development Consulting Services, and the Hawaiian Way Fund, we unify our members around solutions that embrace the strength of Native culture and knowledge in meeting community challenges. CNHA coordinates the Annual Native Hawaiian Convention in Honolulu every year to bring practitioners, community and policy makers together around issues important to Hawaiians.

November 1, 2006

• Three finalists selected for Kamehameha Schools Board
• Home Loans for Lana'i families
• Kyl disputes claims he's anti-Native
• Join CNHA for Administration for Native Americans Grant Pre-Application Workshops!
• 86 families selected for Waiehu homes
• Micmac woman appointed to NAGPRA review panel
• Honolulu Star Bulletin General Election 2006:  Office of Hawaiian Affairs
• Asian American and Pacific Islanders Across the Nation Prepare to Vote
• Senator Akaka Receives 100% Grade in 2006 National Environmental Scorecard
• Despite dropoff, Akaka still has more cash than rival
• OHA board election will fill 5 seats
• Hula Pose Causes Major Controversy
• Alaska Federation of Natives' Subsistence Forum
• Molokai groups stage protest
• Get Out the Native Vote
• Tribes mobilize for election
• Hawaiian leaders: Give us more say
• Delegate pressure fells tradition
• Better Business Bureau appoints CEO
• Film urges Native women to embrace breast health
• Court halts all Stryker activities
• Indian Museum Director Stepping Down in 2007
• To Hokualaka'i voyaging to Hilo: 'Let sails be full'

• POLICY CENTER ALERTS
• Policy Center Alert:  Candidates for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees
• 2006 Elections Present 101 Seats for Voters to Decide

October 31, 2006

Three finalists selected for Kamehameha Schools Board

Rick Daysog — Advertiser Staff Writer

A court-appointed panel today selected three finalists for an opening on the Kamehameha Schools' board of trustees.

In a filing in state Probate Court, the seven-member trustee selection named local attorney Allen Hoe, First Hawaiian Bank Senior Vice President Corbett Kalama and former city Budget Director Ivan Lui-Kwan as its top candidates to replace Hawaiian Electric Industries Inc. Chief Executive Officer Constance Lau.

Lau, who has served on Kamehameha School's board since 1999, announced that she would step down as a trustee when she became HEI's CEO in May. She agreed to remain on the board until her successor was named.

Probate Judge Colleen Hirai will select Lau's replacement from the list after a public comment period. The deadline for the public to submit letters is Dec. 4.

Lau's replacement will serve the remainder of her five-year term, which expires on June 30, 2008. The appointee could qualify for reappointment for a maximum of two, five-year terms.

For the year ending June 30, 2005, the estate paid its trustees about $100,000 each while board chair Diane Plotts earned $110,500.

Prior to 1999 when the estate implemented wide-ranging governance reforms, board members earned as much as $1 million each.

Established by the 1884 will of Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, the Kamehameha Schools is the state's largest private landowner and one of the nation's largest charitable institutions.

Each year, the trust educates more than 5,400 children of Hawaiian ancestry at its Kapalama Heights and Neighbor Island campuses and its 30 preschools.

The selection committee includes former Honolulu Police Chief Francis Keala, Hawaiian Electric Co. executive Robbie Alm, the trust's former court-appointed master, Ben Matsubara, Kamehameha Schools alum Michael Rawlins, attorney Melody MacKenzie, Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center President Claire Asam, and George "Keoki" Freeland, executive director of the Lahaina Restoration Foundation.

Reach Rick Daysog at 525-8064 or rdaysog@honoluluadvertiser.com

October 26, 2006

Home Loans for Lana'i families

Hawaii Community Lending (HCL) closed the first 6 mortgage loans in the 45 unit Hawaiian Homestead development on Lana`i for a total of 1.4 million dollars. This is the first Hawaiian Homestead Development for the Island of Lana`i.

"HCL is the only non-profit mortgage broker in Hawaii that specializes in Hawaiian Home Land financing," said Denise Ka`a`a, an HCL Loan Officer.

Ka`a`a traveled to the Island of Lana`i last week to sit down with each family to review and execute the loan documents that will complete their home purchases from the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands.

"We started our lending program and originated our first mortgage loan in 2001 to compliment our nonprofit financial literacy programs," said Michelle Kauhane, Executive Director of Hawaiian Community Assets (HCA). "We found that there were very few experts in the lending field when it came to the trust of Hawaiian Home Lands, and it just made sense to provide services to this underserved market."

HCA has been offering homebuyer education and individualized services to the residents of Lana`i for the past three years in preparation for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands' residential development.

"It is an exciting time for all of us at HCA because our work with many of the families on Lana`i began a few years ago," said Pono Filimoe`atu, an HCA Community Services Specialist. Filimoe`atu commented about the families they work with, "their success is our success."

Hawai`i Community Lending is a program of the non-profit, Hawaiian Community Assets, dedicated to increasing homeownership opportunities for Hawaii's low-and moderate-income families in Hawai`i. Through its homebuyer education, credit counseling and mortgage lending programs, HCA assists Native Hawaiians achieve economic self-sufficiency through homeownership.

For more information, contact Hawai`i Community Lending at 587-7886 or the Home Ownership Assistance Program (HOAP) call center at 791-3404.

October 31, 2006

Kyl disputes claims he's anti-Native

Dems claim senator's staff member affiliated with One Nation United

By Kathy Helms

Diné Bureau

WINDOW ROCK — The Arizona Democratic Party says it has obtained documents linking a senior staffer for Sen. Jon Kyl with a group attempting to repeal federal tribal recognitions and protections.

Joseph Matal, counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee and an employee of Kyl's Senate office, has met with the group, One Nation United, and is a featured speaker at the group's November conference in Washington, D.C., the Democrats said.

Arizona Democratic Party Chairman David Waid said, "Arizona's Native American communities are among the poorest in the state. It is outrageous that Jon Kyl, who is supposed to be advocating for them, is working secretly back in Washington to cut the legs out from under them."

Kyl's office said the senator has long maintained a strong relationship with Native American Tribes in Arizona.

"Kyl has worked to promote economic growth and opportunity for Native Americans, to strengthen the government-to-government relationships that exist between the federal government and the tribes, and to protect the rich Indian culture that is such a treasure to Arizona and the nation," according to Andy Chasin, communications director.

"The Democrat Party recently put out a partisan attack that attempts to distract from Senator Kyl's record of accomplishment. The charge made by the Democrats is that a Kyl staffer has been 'tied to an Anti-Native American group.' The facts demonstrate that this charge is plainly false," Chasin said.

A staffer from Kyl's office did meet with One Nation United, a group which opposes the spread of tribal gaming and the extension of tribal jurisdiction over non-Indians. Staffers from Sen. John McCain's office and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's Office met with the group as well, according to Chasin.

"The Kyl staffer met with this group to discuss Senator Kyl's opposition to the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act of 2005 (S.147), legislation that relates to the establishment of new rights for Native Hawaiians," he said.

The bill would have authorized the creation of a race-based government of 200,000 people in the state of Hawaii. The legislation failed in the Senate.

"Senator Kyl believes that Native American tribes have a unique status in America and that we should not expand that status to other groups without careful consideration," Chasin said.

"The Native Hawaiian legislation would have been an abuse of the tribal sovereignty doctrine that would have had negative implications for Native American tribes in Arizona. Senator Kyl has always acted to support the long-term interests of Native Americans, and he will continue to do so," Chasin said.

The Arizona Democratic Party www.azdem.org said Kyl has repeatedly voted against providing health care to Native Americans "and even voted to end federal recognition of tribes."

Water settlements

An expert in water law, Kyl sponsored the historic Arizona Water Settlements Act, which resolved water rights claims of the Gila River Indian Community and the Tohono O'odham Nation. That measure created a fund of Central Arizona Project water and up to $250 million for other Indian tribes to settle water claims in the future.

A substantial part of the act is the Gila River Indian Community Settlement. On Oct. 10, the Navajo Nation filed objections with the Gila River Basin Adjudication Court to the proposed judgment and decree approving the GRIC settlement.

Ray Gilmore, chairman of the Navajo Nation Water Rights Commission, recently told the Navajo nation Council that the Nation filed objections because the settlement attempts to provide water to Gila River Indian Community from the Blue Ridge Reservoir.

"The Blue Ridge Reservoir is not located in the Gila River watershed. The reservoir is located in the Little Colorado River Basin and the water is supplied to the reservoir from the Little Colorado River watershed," he said.

The Navajo Nation has always seen the Blue Ridge Reservoir as an important component of any Navajo settlement to the Little Colorado River, according to Gilmore.

"In addition, the political effect of the Gila River settlement's provisions related to the Central Arizona Project is to substantially limit the amount of water and the amount of funding which the United States and state parties consider available for settlement of other Indian tribal water rights claims in Arizona, including the Navajo Nation," he said.

It is the Nation's view that the settlement violates fundamental principles of federal jurisprudence by submitting a wide variety of federal law matters affecting Indian tribes to state court jurisdiction, he said.

Kyl also sponsored and won passage of the Zuni Indian Water Rights Settlement. The Navajo Nation is a party to the Zuni River Basin adjudication. The Chapter of Ramah is almost entirely in the Zuni River Basin, as well as parts of Grazing District 16.

The United States' claim on behalf of the Zuni Tribe is to be filed at the end of this year. The United States' claim on behalf of the Navajo Nation is to be filed by the end of 2008.

Kyl also supported the San Carlos Apache Tribe Water Settlement Act and the Fort McDowell Indian Community Water Rights Settlement Act.

Anti-sovereignty

According to the Arizona Democratic Party, One Nation United advocates repeal of tribal sovereignty and other federal protections through legislative action and lawsuits.

The group asserts that tribes have a negative impact on American life, advance an unconstitutional agenda, and suggests that Native Americans falsify their heritage in order to take new lands.

The Dems said that in One Nation United's statement of principles, the group states: "We should allow no tribal, foreign, or international agenda to negatively impact America or its way of life."

Also, according to the Democrats, in its August 2006 newsletter, One Nation United claims the Native American strategy is to "Choose some good land then claim your great-great grandfather camped there. 'It's true because I say so, and if you don't believe me, you're a racist.' "

The Democrats say Kyl senior staffer Joseph Matal will address One Nation United again during the Nov. 13-14 conference in Washington, D.C.

The group's agenda for that meeting is to discuss "Political Action and how to increase the effectiveness of your individual and our joint lobbying efforts locally and nationally," according to the Arizona Democratic Party.

Join CNHA for Administration for Native Americans Grant Pre-Application Workshops!

The Administration for Native Americans (ANA) provides competitive financial assistance, training and technical assistance (T/TA) to eligible organizations that deliver community-based programs and projects that address community needs and goals. 

The Pacific Region which includes the state of Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, are eligible for three grant programs:

· Social and Economic Development Strategies

· Native Language Preservation and Maintenance

· Improving the Well-Being of Children/Native American Healthy Marriage Initiative

CNHA can assist prospective ANA applicants with free T/TA in conceptualizing projects and translating those strategies into a viable application for ANA funds. Attend one of the following workshops in your community to receive information about ANA’s grant programs and how to develop an ANA grant proposal: 

• November 28-30, 2006, Hyatt Regency Saipan
• December 4-6, 2006, Outrigger Guam Resort
• January 9-11, 2006, King Kamehameha Kona Beach Hotel
• January 16-18, 2006, Honolulu Airport Hotel

In order to be eligible to apply for funding from ANA, an organization in the Pacific Region must have a governing board where a majority of its members are Native and be one of the following types of entities:

• A nonprofit organization serving Native Hawaiians, or the Native peoples of Guam, CNMI or American Samoa
• A public agency serving Native Hawaiians, or the Native peoples of Guam, CNMI or American Samoa
• A college or university serving Native Hawaiians, or the Native peoples of Guam, CNMI or American Samoa

Space is limited!  Register today by downloading a registration form from our website, complete our online form or CNHA at 808.521.5011 or toll-free at 800.709.2642.  For more information, give us a call, drop us an e-mail or visit our website at www.anapacific.org.

CNHA is a national, member-based nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting community development in Native communities.  For more information, please contact our offices or visit our website at www.hawaiiancouncil.org.

Provided with support from: 

October 29, 2006

86 families selected for Waiehu homes

Maui News

KAHULUI – Eighty-six families out of more than 200 applicants were selected for affordable homes in the Waiehu Kou 4 Hawaiian Homes subdivision on Saturday morning.

“It’s always good when Hawaiians get a home,” said Blossom Feiteira, the former executive with Hawaiian Community Assets. The agency provided training in financial management for many of the Native Hawaiian families that were able to qualify for mortgages to purchase the homes in Waiehu Kou 4.

Built by the Dowling Co. for the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands, Waiehu Kou 4 is the latest increment in Waiehu providing Hawaiians Homes leases to eligible Native Hawaiians. The lot selection process was held Saturday morning at the Maui High School Gym.

Dowling Co., headed by President Everett Dowling, is also developing houses for Hawaiian Homes at the Villages at Leialii project in West Maui.

“At every groundbreaking, lot selection and dedication of a Hawaiian Home Lands project – and this is one of four our company has been involved in – we talk about the pride we take and the sense of honor we feel in being a small part of the mission of Hawaiian Home Lands,” Dowling said.

His project provided the homes in four different configurations from $155,000 to $279,000. Another 12 lots are leased to families who will build their own with assistance from Habitat for Humanity.

Feiteira said she knew many, if not most of the families who were qualified for loans through a partnership between Dowling Co. and HomeStreet Bank, which also works with Hawaiian Community Assets.

“It was awesome. Those families worked so hard. They extended themselves to do what needed to get done and now they are future homeowners,” she said.

DHHL Chairman Micah Kane noted that Dowling Co. will have constructed 426 homes for the state agency when the Villages of Leialii project is completed, making it the single largest developer of homes for Native Hawaiians in the state. He also credited the cooperation of Maui County Mayor Alan Arakawa.

The Hawaiian Home Lands program was set up by Congress in 1921 with the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act designating 188,000 acres of government lands to provide homesteading leases to Native Hawaiians. When Hawaii became a state in 1959, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands was created to manage the program.

Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Indianz.Com. In Print.
http://www.indianz.com/News/2006/016677.asp

Micmac woman appointed to NAGPRA review panel

Donna Augustine, a member of the Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians of Maine, has been appointed to the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Review Committee.

Augustine was nominated by the four tribes in Maine. She is recognized as a traditional religious leader by Indian tribes in the United States, as well as by Canadian First Nations, and has been actively involved in the repatriation issues since 1977, the National Park Service said.

"The review committee serves a critical role in ensuring the goals of NAGPRA are carried out," said Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne, who finalized the appointment. "I am pleased with the willingness and commitment of Ms. Augustine to take on this important challenge. I look forward to the recommendations and advice of the full committee."

The NAGPRA review committee serves an advisory role in the repatriation process. Its role was the subject of a recent court ruling that criticized the Bureau of Land Management for its handling of the remains of a 10,000-year-old ancestor claimed by Nevada tribes.

The other members of the committee are: Dr. Garrick Bailey, Mr. Colin Kippen, Mr. Willie Jones, Mr. Dan L. Monroe, Dr. Vincas P. Steponaitis, and Dr. Rosita Worl.

October 29, 2006

HONOLULU STAR BULLETIN GENERAL ELECTION 2006

Office of Hawaiian Affairs

AT-LARGE

Rowena Akana

Age: Not given

Job: OHA trustee

Past: UH, NYU. Political: OHA trustee, 1990-present; past chairwoman

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Elected ... in 1990, I am the most senior member of the board of trustees. In 1990, OHA's trust assets were $11 million. ... By 1996, through prudent investing, OHA's net worth had grown to almost $400 million. ...

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Hawaiians face a combination of issues that we must address simultaneously. For example: 1. How to strategically plan to deal with impending lawsuits against our trust; 2. Developing a 10-year plan ... to achieve goals set forth in the plan.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should work with the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to address this need as it has done in the past, by providing homesteaders access to a $20 million appropriation allowing them to apply for down payment loans ...

Whitney T. Anderson

Age: Not given

Job: Small business owner

Past: State Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs president, state legislator

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My more than 40 years of involvement within the Hawaiian community, including my service as president of the state Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs and president of the Kailua Hawaiian Civic Club. Also served 20 years in the Legislature.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Education. Many qualified Hawaiians today cannot afford to attend the University of Hawaii, and there is no excuse for this -- UH sits on ceded lands. The state should provide tuition waivers for needy Hawaiians.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should consider expanding low-interest home loans to Hawaiians when they're awarded Homestead parcels, as many of our people cannot qualify for loans through a bank. OHA's money belongs to Hawaiians, and they should rightfully have access to it.

Roy L. (Ilikea) Benham

Age: 83

Job: Teacher; (Retired) Civilian Personnel Officers, U.S. Army; OHA trustee, 1980-82; kupuna, DOE Hawaiian studies

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My experience as civilian personnel officer with the Army has prepared me for this position. I am familiar with the operations of an organization and the skills it takes to perform effectively. ... volunteer work with the Hawaiian Civic Clubs ...

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

The native Hawaiian people need to be officially recognized by Congress, in accordance with the requirements of their constitutions, as indigenous people, native Americans as they call it. This will enable us to protect those programs ... established for native Hawaiians ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should continue to assist Hawaiian Homes in obtaining funds to more fully implement the Hawaiian Homes program. Primarily by helping obtain state and federal funds for the further development of Hawaiian Home lands.

Manu Boyd

Age: 43

Job: Public info. director, Office of Hawaiian Affairs

Past: Cultural expert; leader, Ho'okena; kumu hula; community boards

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

More than 14 years of agency experience and direct work with the Hawaiian community give me deep insight into a wide range of issues impacting our community. I have many years of communications and administrative background ...

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

The recognition of native Hawaiians as indigenous to Hawaii is key to defending litigation alleging that Hawaiians are nothing more than another ethnic group. Housing, education and health are ongoing issues that OHA will continue to address. ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA has the resources to work with DHHL in creating or improving infrastructure on undeveloped homestead lands, and can effectively work with their board and the boards of other organizations such as Kamehameha Schools ... to better the conditions of Hawaiians.

Robin Puanani Danner

Age: 43

Job: CEO, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement

Past: Board/ commission service, advocate

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Twenty years executive management experience in business, banking, municipal government and native trusts and programs. I am a great believer in community and bringing people together to get things done ...

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Beyond recognition as indigenous peoples of Hawaii, marshaling the resources and talents of OHA to impact social and economic statistics through the best ideas of charter schools, healthcare providers, business owners, civic clubs, cultural practitioners, community associations - all stakeholders ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

A significant role! Housing, a place to live, is one of the single best stabilizers of any community that ripples to all other communities in many ways, including jobs, local business and freeing up housing ... OHA should fund homestead programs.

Newton D. Harbottle

Age: 63

Job: Retired from Honolulu Police Department

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My interaction with Hawaiians as an individual person and my experience working with people makes me qualified to see the problems that Hawaiians are facing today and what's to come in the future.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Most important are the health issues that plague the Native Hawaiians. Ending this dilemma will require identification, education and elimination to re-establish their rightful place of excellence as industrious young men and women.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

It is OHA's mandate to better the conditions of native Hawaiians. OHA needs to revisit the process of issuing homestead land and a new strategic plan needs to address placing every single Hawaiian onto homestead lands.

Leona Mapuana Kalima

Age: 54

Job: OHA cultural specialist, special projects

Past: Ordained minister

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Lifelong advocate and activist for Hawaiian justice. I have heart and knowledge for my people. Graduate of Sacred Hearts Academy, Brigham Young University-Paralegal Studies, Geophysical Phenomenon, and a Haku Hooponopono, with over 11 years on the job at OHA.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Lawsuits to dismantle the trust assets; formulation of the Hawaiian Nation -- reduce apathy, discontent, non-involvement and divisions; improve social, economics, education, health, homelessness; a future for keiki and youth -- find/develop win-win solutions ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Statehood Admissions Act ... for the betterment of conditions of native Hawaiians, as defined in the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920 ... OHA should recycle the 1990s Homestead Loan Program ... same interest rate. With DHHL, revisit settlement.

Melissa M. Guerreiro Lyman

Age: 42

Job: Project accountant/supervisor in retail

Past: 15-plus years of financial accounting

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Involved with the Hawaiian civic club movement for the past 20 years, has provided me with invaluable experiences, and has honed my ability to work with other organizations to advocate for the community on cultural, social and educational issues.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Health and welfare: As a trustee I would make it a priority to work with the community and other organizations to create programs and funding to address issues of education, health, and human services.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Create additional programs similar to their pathway to homeownership, OHA Fannie Mae and mortgage funding. Preparing beneficiaries for homeownership and having programs that would help secure financing benefits all beneficiaries including those eligible for Hawaiian Home Land.

Willy Meyers (Kealakahi)

Age: 56

Job: Mental health technician

Past: Behavioral specialist, drug abuse counsel-or/manager, cultural-site caretaker

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

I am part Hawaiian.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

There are MANY pressing (depressing) issues facing native Hawaiians and Hawaiians, i.e., education, health and welfare, housing, etc., etc., etc.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Whatever role or stand that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs should assume needs to be dictated by and for the benefit of native Hawaiians and Hawaiians.

Oswald "Oz" K. Stender

Age: 75

Job: Real estate consultant and broker

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

I am currently a trustee at OHA. I served as CEO at the Campbell Estate and as trustee at the Bishop Estate. I am a graduate of Kamehameha Schools and the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Bringing closure to the issues of nationhood and ceded land revenues are most pressing for Hawaiians. I want to continue to try to bring closure to these issues and work toward the betterment of Hawaiians through education ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should assist DHHL with financing of infrastructures, house construction, home financing, and maintenance education for those trying to get on homestead land.

John D. Waihe'e IV

Age: 36

Job: OHA trustee

Past: Kaho'olawe Island Reserve commissioner, member, Waimea Valley Steward-ship Board

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Serving as vice chairman of OHA's board, I have had the opportunity over the past six years to introduce over 40 action items addressing concerns ... : human services, education, land preservation, business development and trustee accountability.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

True self-determination over our entitlements, environment and cultural practices. To this end I continue to strongly support OHA's governance plan, "Ho'oulu Lahui Aloha," which will formally bring Hawaiians together and establish a political body to represent our collective interests.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should use its resources to act as an advocate for beneficiaries in expediting their issues with the state. Concurrently, OHA should also re-establish low-interest homesteader loan programs to help with the construction of houses.

Arvid Tadao Youngquist

Age: 58

Job: State Dept. of Transportation, Business Management Office staffer

Past: Neighbor-hood board

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

AARP State Legislative Committee; former member of Kalihi/Palama Neighborhood Board (editor, newsletter); previous experience as Board of Director member, Austin/Travis County MH/MR Center ($19 million annual budget ... appointment by City Council); appointed by Gov. George Ariyoshi ...

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Define the meaning of nationhood that is acceptable to the super-majority in the Congress and the White House. I will press for a sea change in the make-up of the Congress, and press for continued effective lobbying ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Seek to reduce the blood quantum requirement and shorten the waiting period. The Kanaka Maoli citizens who are waiting for a homestead are dying. ... Lobby ... to continue with aggressive placement funding of housing and infrastructure.

MAUI

Blossom Feiteira

Age: 47

Job: Customer service, Kmart

Past: Community activist, enriching lives through informing our people

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Over 20 years as a community advocate and activist; I helped to create a health center on Maui for our people. I've also taught Hawaiian families financial management, enabling hundreds of families to move into their own homes.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Housing, education, health care, illegal drugs and native rights are all critical issues. I would work with existing, effective agencies to streamline the grant and funding process. I would build strategic partnerships and garner community participation. ... Visit www.BlossomForOHA.com

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA can provide our people with increased access to education and information. I've found through organizing home ownership and financial workshops that our people are eager to learn and they are capable managers. ...

Boyd P. Mossman

Age: 63

Job: Retired Circuit Court judge, OHA trustee

Past: Legal experience, boards, commitment to Hawaii

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My education in the schools and in life has provided me, besides knowledge, maturity, reason and common sense. My experience has been in the courts, government, community and culture. My example has been one of integrity, trust, family and faith.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Legal survival of native Hawaiians. Lawsuits accuse OHA, DHHL, and Kamehameha Schools of being radically discriminatory. I will continue to defend against these suits, while working with Congress, the state government and the Hawaiian people for all Hawaii.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Assist DHHL and all Hawaiians by developing low-cost housing both on and off Homestead Lands.

OAHU

Jackie Kahookele Burke

Age: 54

Job: Publisher, artist, consultant

Past: Master's in public health and urban & regional planning

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My academic background, being a business owner and entrepreneur with experience in community economic development and non-profits will provide the foundation needed to manage the operational aspects of OHA, but lastly my aloha for our Hawaiian community and aina.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Nationhood status. Currently I am developing "Kaa Ea - Sovereignty Buses campaign," an educational and outreach strategy to engage, unify and register citizens for the Kingdom [Nation] of Hawaii via buses in Hawaii and a 12-city West Coast tour.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

I do not support homestead land distribution especially the blood quantum imposed on us, a dividing tool. ... OHA's efforts should rather address all Hawaiians through housing/loan programs, so that Hawaiians own homes, not homesteads.

Dante Keala Carpenter

Age: 71

Job: Elected trustee (2002-06); consultant Past: Elected 22 years as councilman, mayor, senator, OHA trustee

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

Forty years of community work and a sincere desire to help "level the playing field" in conjunction with OHA's mission of advocacy "for the betterment of conditions of native Hawaiians and Hawaiians."

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

The Hawaiian community needs to determine a collective course of action for the reconciliation of the overthrow to transition from the present to the future. ... OHA must support that collective will through its advocacy efforts for native Hawaiians and Hawaiians.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

Native Hawaiians are those who have a minimum 50% blood quantum as defined by the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act. OHA assists with mortgage loans via FHB and Fannie Mae, however, assignment and control of development rests solely with DHHL.

Walter Meheula Heen

Age: 78

Job: Attorney (retired appellate judge)

Past: Legislator, City Council chair, trial and appellate judge

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

My experience enables me to analyze issues and craft workable and effective solutions that will be fair and acceptable not only to the Hawaiian community, but also to the general community.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Many native Hawaiians lack the education to effectively compete for employment. OHA should join with the Alii Trusts and DOE to provide a solid educational foundation for native Hawaiian children and to encourage their kupuna to be more involved ...

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA cannot interfere in the DHHL's operations but can assist DHHL in obtaining operating and development funds from the Legislature, and can assist native Hawaiians in obtaining financing for their home construction.

Keahaulani Hew Len

Age: 43

Job: Marketing/ graphic specialist

Past: Community service, grant writing certified, solid project, time management skills

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

As a native Hawaiian living on Hawaiian homestead lands for generations, I've been involved in issues raging from native rights, education, social and economic development, housing, and political affairs. My life's obligations to better the conditions of Hawaii's people are required.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Issues affecting Hawaiians are the Akaka Bill and self-governance, homelessness, illiteracy, the high percentage of incarcerated native Hawaiians, and the lack of economic opportunities. My priority is to eliminate these blights.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

The best role can be to provide financial assistance, such as lower interest loans and financial planning education; community strategic planning; and home ownership development.

OAHU

S. Kau'i Na'auao

Age: 32

Job: Licensed Realtor in the state of Hawaii

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

I come from a family deeply rooted in Hawaiian culture and arts. I graduated from Kamehameha Schools and received my B.A. in Hawaiian studies from the University of Hawaii. I've worked for Alu Like and am currently a licensed Realtor.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Education. Quality education is the foundation our people need to become self-sufficient. Our children are the future and there is a need for educational programs to assist parents financially in providing children ... with the best education possible.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should play a big role. Whether it is assisting lessees to qualify for home loans or developing affordable rental units, OHA and DHHL should collaborate to get the people back on the land where they belong.

Kapiolani Reynolds

Age: 44

Job: Clerk

What qualifies you to be an Office of Hawaiian Affairs board member?

I'm qualified because at my various jobs I enjoy helping people and giving back.

What is the most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians? What would you do about it?

Most pressing issue facing native Hawaiians is obtaining decent and affordable housing. I would build houses and apartments using OHA funds for this purpose.

What role should OHA play in getting native Hawaiians onto homestead land?

OHA should subsidize loans for qualified applicants and obtain land.

October 28, 2006

Asian American and Pacific Islanders Across the Nation Prepare to Vote

Washington, DC –  Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) voter registration has increased dramatically since the early 1990’s, and voting research shows that once registered, AAPIs are more likely than mainstream voters to go to the polls on Election Day.  This phenomenon calls for mechanisms to ensure that the AAPI vote is protected.

 APIA Vote Executive Director, Christine Chen reports, “With the increase in voter mobilization efforts, election protection efforts remain critical to ensuring that each and every vote is counted.  Regrettably, our partners have documented discriminatory behavior by individuals and institutions alike.  Prior volunteers have identified mistranslated ballots, interpreter shortages, and racist behavior from poll workers toward Asian Americans.  This year, we will continue to fight against the disenfranchisement of Asian American and Pacific Islander voters to ensure that we are active participants in the political process.”

In order to ensure that the Asian American and Pacific Islander vote is adequately protected, APIAVote and its partner the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance created “Ten Steps to Protect Your Vote.”  (Local contact name), (local contact title) states, “It has been proven that once AAPIs register to vote, we are highly likely to vote.  However, barriers still remain for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to engage in the voting process.  Efforts by local advocates, as well as APIAVote, help us overcome these obstacles.” 

Ten Steps to Protect Your Vote

1.       Call the local elections office to verify the location of your polling place and ask about any new voting procedures or requirements. Locations may have changed, and a vote cast at the wrong place might not get counted.  Ask about any new procedures or ID requirements.

2.       Check to make sure you are registered. If you just registered this year and did not receive a registration card in the mail, check to make sure that there were no problems with your registration.  It is important to check especially if you have moved recently, changed your name, or have not voted in recent elections.

3.       Find out whether you can vote early.  If it is allowed, then do it.

4.       Bring identification to the polls in case it is needed, preferably government-issued ID or a utility bill, phone bill or paycheck with your name and current street address.

5.       Ask for help from poll workers and check posted information signs if you have questions or need assistance.

6.       Make sure you cast a vote. If you arrive late in the day and are in line when the polls close, you should stay in line because you are entitled to vote.

7.       If you are offered a provisional ballot because of a question about your eligibility, ask if you can cast a regular ballot by providing additional ID or if you have moved recently, by going to your previous polling place. If no alternative is available or practical, cast a provisional ballot.

8.       Bring in a friend.  Voters can be assisted and accompanied into the ballot booth by a person of their choice to translate the ballot for them. 

9.       If you have a voting rights problem, ask to speak with the chief election official or a voting rights volunteer at the polls or call the toll-free nationwide Election Protection Hotline, 1-866-OUR-VOTE, a project of a coalition of groups promoting voting rights.

10.   Report voting irregularities or voting by provisional ballot to AALDEF.  Call 1-800-966-5946 or email votingcomplaints@aaldef.org.  The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) is working to ensure that all API provisional ballots are counted!

Historically AAPIs have been subjected to voter intimidation, a situation documented by advocates who continue to cite the unpleasant circumstances of racial discrimination that AAPIs encounter from poll workers and institutions. Concerns continue to be raised regarding fraudulent voter machines, purged voter files and countless instances of intimidation tactics inflicted on first-time voters and naturalized citizens. 

APIAVote’s other partners, the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) and the Asian American Justice Center (AAJC) will provide direct voter assistance and field programs in targeted states.  AALDEF’s Election Protection 2006 efforts will include more than 500 attorneys, law students and volunteers who will cover 150 poll sites in eight states where Asian language assistance is provided, where Asian American voter registration has increased, or where Asian American voters have historically experienced intimidation.  AAJC is working with Election Protection, the nation’s largest nonpartisan voter protection coalition, to organize a nonpartisan voter hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE, to be staffed by volunteer attorneys, law students and paralegals.  Anticipated problems include dissemination of misinformation by poll workers, problems associated with voting machines, and potential voter intimidation.

“AAPIs are working closely with civil rights advocates and with local partners across the country to ensure AAPIs will be able to participate in the election, free of voter intimidation, on November 7,” said Christine Chen, APIAVote Executive Director.  “AAPIs can also find their polling place, learn what type of machine they will us to cast their vote, and get instructions on how to use the voting machine by going online to www.mypollingplace.com.  APIAVote and its partners have been working hard to inform and empower APIA voters, and we look forward to our collective turnout November 7.”  

October 27, 2006

Senator Akaka Receives 100% Grade in 2006 National Environmental Scorecard

Washington, D.C. - The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) today released its 2006 National Environmental Scorecard which graded Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) at 100% for protecting the environment.

Senator Akaka said, “I am pleased that the LCV recognizes my commitment to environmental protection.  I believe that preserving our environment is vital for growth of our natural resources.  This is why I am a staunch supporter of alternative energy and environmental policies that affect my home state of Hawaii and the rest of our country.”

The LCV scorecard, which is accessible at www.lcv.org/scorecard, represents a consensus of experts from more than 20 respected environmental and conservation organizations.  According to the LCV, Members of Congress were graded on key votes on energy, environmental health and safety protections, resource conservation, and spending for environmental programs.

Senator Akaka is a senior member on the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources and Ranking Member on the Subcommittee on National Parks. 

Posted on: Friday, October 27, 2006

Despite dropoff, Akaka still has more cash than rival

By Derrick DePledge
Advertiser Government Writer

U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka scaled back his fundraising during the first three weeks of October but still had more cash available than his Republican opponent, Windward state Rep. Cynthia Thielen, for the Nov. 7 general election.

Federal campaign-finance reports released yesterday show the Democratic senator raised $60,482 in the first three weeks of October and had $203,060 in cash on hand. The campaign owes $145,534 in debts. The senator has raised more than $2.7 million for his re-election campaign.

Thielen, who was appointed by the GOP in September to face Akaka, raised $131,845 in the first three weeks of October and had $142,161 in cash available. Thielen had raised $216,577 overall at the end of the reporting period, but her campaign said yesterday she is now up to $270,983.

Money is critical for Thielen so she can run advertising and raise her name recognition among voters. Thielen asked Akaka again yesterday for a debate or a joint appearance, but the Akaka campaign rejected the request.

"I believe that if the voters of Hawai'i are permitted to see us side by side, they can compare our records and our plans for the future," Thielen said in a statement. "A debate is the democratic thing to do."

The Akaka campaign agreed to one debate before the senator's Democratic primary against U.S. Rep. Ed Case. The campaign dismissed the possibility of any debates between the senator and Thielen immediately after Thielen was appointed. Thielen was picked by Republicans to replace Jerry Coffee, a former Navy pilot and motivational speaker who won the Republican primary even though he had withdrawn because of poor health.

"Sen. Akaka is not going to debate Cynthia Thielen," said Elisa Yadao, the Akaka campaign's spokeswoman. "As we've said, she was not elected to run in this race."

The focus on the Senate race dropped off after the primary, since Akaka is favored to beat Thielen, and the pressure on the campaign to raise money has been reduced. But the campaign has been fundraising to cover ads, expenses and debts.

Reach Derrick DePledge at ddepledge@honoluluadvertiser.com.

October 29, 2006

OHA board election will fill 5 seats

The winners and the incumbents have serious tasks to face

By Gene Park
gpark@starbulletin.com

Making the push for Hawaiian self-governance to supercede future legal entanglements will be a major mission for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, which has five open spots among its board of trustees.

Three at-large seats and one seat each for Oahu and Maui are up for the general election this year, with 23 candidates overall.

Chief among the concerns for the new board is the ongoing threat of lawsuits challenging the agency's constitutionality, said Deputy Administrator Ron Mun.

The perceived vulnerability stems from a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2000 that threw out Hawaiian-only elections for the board. After that decision, non-native Hawaiians could vote and run for the board.

"I think the second thing, of course, is the fact that we have to begin the plan for nationhood, despite the fact that Congress didn't pass the federal recognition bill," said board member Rowena Akana, who seeks re-election this year. "I don't believe that this is a dead issue."

Akana is referring to what is known as the Akaka Bill in Congress, after U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka, which seeks federal recognition and the right for self-governance.

Akana said legal action against OHA is costly, and passage of some kind of federal recognition document would stave off future court cases against the agency.

"It's a long process, definitely not something that's going to happen overnight," Akana said.

Walter Heen, a retired appellate judge and former Democratic Party chairman, said because the bill was defeated at the federal level, it's important that the board focus on trying to organize sovereignty at the state level.

After the bill failed in Congress, OHA drafted a governance plan called the Hoolu Lahui Aloha, or "to raise a beloved nation." This would involve negotiating with the state government in transferring existing Hawaiian assets to a new governing body. The state would then take negotiations on the federal level.

Heen also said it's important for the board to reach out to the general community.

"It's a question of how OHA can best partner with programs to raise the levels of opportunity for native Hawaiians, and at the same time for the general community," Heen said.

Voters will choose between a wide variety of faces for the OHA board, including incumbents Akana, former Big Island Mayor Dante Carpenter, retired Judge Boyd Mossman, former Bishop Estate trustee Oswald Stender and John Waihee IV.

Also among the candidates is longtime sovereignty activist Dennis "Bumpy" Kanahele, leader of the Nation of Hawaii, and Roy Benham, a former teacher from Kamehameha Schools.

Mun said because of the wide variety of candidates, he advises voters to make sure to vote for all five available seats.

"The point is, you have to reside in the area to run for those island seats, but the voter is voting for all of them," Mun said.

Akana, a trustee since 1990, said voters also should be mindful of the candidates' community experience, and how it can translate to benefiting and growing the agency's $400 million trust.

"I believe people should know that voting for an OHA trustee is not like voting for a legislator or city council, where your specific duties are spelled out," Akana said. "The candidates have to have worked with the Hawaiian community for any length of time to understand who the Hawaiians are."

Posted: October 30, 2006

Hula Pose Causes Major Controversy

Stacy Loe - sloe@kgmb9.com

Can a hula image be copied? That question is at the center of a lawsuit that's pitted a well-known Hawaii artist against many in the Hawaiian community.

Photographer Kim Taylor Reece is suing a Kailua art gallery owner over a picture hanging in a window. It's an image of a hula dancer Reece says he owns.

But Native Hawaiians say he's wrong.

It all started four months ago, when Reece walked into Island Treasures art gallery. He saw a stained glass art, which Reece says is a replica of one of his photographs, an image of a hula dancer he says he created, called "Makanani."

"As much as I hate doing this, I have to protect my work," said Reece.

Reece has made a living selling black and white pictures depicting the hula. He says he decided to sue when the gallery refused to take the stained glass down for good.

"I am not saying I own this hula pose, just the way I created it and what I put together - this with the tapa materials, the lei, with the angle of the photograph," said Reece.

On the other side, the lawsuit has angered some Native Hawaiians such as Kumu Hula Vicky Holt Takamine. She says the artist who created the stained glass is Hawaiian and she did not copy Reece's photo.

"She said she had an image of this and the inspiration was from a hula that she had in mind, a hula position," said Takamine.

Takamine says Reece's claim is ridiculous and an insult to the hula community.

"He doesn't own the copyright on any movement, any position in hula, he owns the photograph period that he took," said Takamine.

"I'm not saying I own hula poses at all. It's my interpretation of that part of the dance," said Reece.

It's now up to a judge to decide whether the art is original or a copy and whether it should be destroyed. Until then, it will hang in the window of the Kailua store where it sat for two years. But it is no longer for sale.

The Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation is representing the gallery owner in the lawsuit. A coalition representing several thousand Native Hawaiians has also joined the fight.

October 27, 2006

Alaska Federation of Natives' Subsistence Forum

By Andrea Gusty, CBS 11 News Reporter

KTVAArticle

AKDTSubsistence has been a big issue in Alaska for over twenty years, especially among the Alaska Native population. Now it's a hot topic for the thousands of Natives gathered in Anchorage for the annual AFN Convention.

Subsistence is a vital part of rural Alaska, people in the Bush can't just go out and buy their own dinner. They have to go out and hunt and gather it. This is why subsistence is always such a big issue at the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention. And this year is no exception.

The Alaska Federation of Natives' Subsistence Forum was packed to capacity: wall-to-wall people, all with concerns about their hunting and fishing regulations.

"There is a lot of knowledgeable people in there, from young to the oldest. And the elders, they have laid the foundation. Even before laws came in, they worked together and they know how to do it," said Lester Hadley an Inupiaq from Buckland.

They know, and are ready to talk about what they think is not working. Hot topics include new rules for subsistence advisory boards that would involve sport and commercial representatives, more restrictive hunting and fishing regulations, and a decline in animal populations.

"I think it really helps, I really do. Not only does it give them a chance to get their voice heard, but it gives people that are in policy-making decisions a chance to just listen to the people," said Mike Fleagle of the Federal Subsistence Board.

These rural Alaska Natives don't just want to tell policy makers about the problems. They want them to see the effects of subsistence laws firsthand.

"We follow their laws that are set, but if they come to our village, we can help them. And they will relate to some of the laws they make, and they will do better for our communities," said Hadley.

Each rural community is different, with distinct traditions for local wildlife. This can make it hard to fix specific problems.

"I don't think that it can be resolved, unless we step to the plate as Alaskans, work together and solve it," said Ken Johns of AHTNA Inc.

No matter what region of state they're from, these Natives agree something has to be done to change the current way subsistence is regulated in Alaska.

"It's not about politics, it's about food on the table," said Johns.

The main part of the Alaska Federation of Natives Convention officially kicks off Thursday with a grand opening ceremony and addresses by Mayor Mark Begich and Governor Frank Murkowski.

The arts and crafts fair, and the Quyana Dance Festival also start Thursday. Everything is open to the public.

To contact Andrea, call 907-273-3186.

October 26, 2006

Molokai groups stage protest

Water is a key issue for many who oppose development plans

By Gary T. Kubota
gkubota@starbulletin.com

WAILUKU » More than 100 Molokai residents picketed two state agencies yesterday whose members have supported a proposed 200-lot development at Laau Point on the island's west side.

Hui Ho'o Pakele Aina and several Hawaiian homestead groups demonstrated on Molokai to protest the state Office of Hawaiian Affairs and Department of Hawaiian Home Lands over the agencies' support for Molokai Properties Ltd.'s proposed development.

Hui Ho'o Pakele and homesteaders fear the development will take away water needed for farming and also the fishing grounds at Laau.

Hui Ho'o Pakele spokesman Walter Ritte said OHA trustee Colette Machado and Hawaiian Homes Commissioner Milton Pa have appeared in videos supporting the development, despite opposition from Molokai residents.

Machado said the project has the support of many residents, and Molokai Ranch has assured them that no additional water will be taken for the development. She said Molokai Properties' plan also protects native Hawaiian cultural sites and access to fishing grounds, and saves the lands from further development.

"I believe this is a reasonable and balanced plan that reflects the values of the majority of the Molokai community," Machado said.

Molokai Properties, owned by the Singaporean-based BIL International Ltd., said it plans to use revenues from Laau to help finance a $35 million renovation of the Kaluakoi resort, including its 144-room hotel that closed in 2000. Its master plan includes placing about 26,200 acres in trust for Molokai residents.

Cammy Purdy, representing five Hawaiian homestead associations, said Molokai Properties plans to use about 1 million gallons of brackish water for its golf course, and the water is coming from the same underground source as potable water.

"For me it's about saving our water," she said.

Purdy said she wants the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands to intervene and represent the water interests of homesteaders.

Molokai Properties declined to comment, and Pa was unavailable for comment.

October 27, 2006

Get Out the Native Vote

By Andrea Gusty, CBS 11 News Reporter

KTVAArticle

Low voter turnout rates among Alaska Natives has inspired Get Out the Native Vote, a group devoted entirely to getting Alaska's rural population to the polls on Election Day to choose the candidate that will best represent the Native community.

Historically, only a fraction of the 69,000 registered Alaska Native voters actually go to the polls on Election Day. That could be because many Alaska Natives don t think their single vote matters.

"The biggest reason of all is, 'My vote won't make a difference,'" said Vicki Otte.

This is not true. Remember the primary election? In the Bristol Bay region, only 1,500 of the 7,000 registered voters cast their ballot. The election came down to a coin toss.

"I think people are getting motivated and they have a reason to go to the polls this year," said Otte.

It's a high stakes election for Alaska Natives, with big issues like subsistence, power cost equalization, education and the lack of jobs on everyone's minds. That's why the Alaska Federation of Natives invited the top three gubernatorial candidates to this year's convention to answer some tough questions.

"Whether we make the right choice or the wrong choice, at least we got our say," said Ron Berntsen.

AFN delegates are bringing that message home with them, saying they'll urge their friends and families to go to the polls too.

"I'll just tell them to get out and vote, that it is very important, because the race is going to be so close," said Clare Charlie.

So close in fact, we could be in a situation where one vote truly does make the difference.

"If they would go out to vote, they could make their voice heard and make the choice of who they want to represent them and lead them into the future," said Otte.

To contact Andrea, call 907-273-3186.

October 26, 2006

Tribes mobilize for election

Snohomish County tribal leaders are finding creative ways to get out the vote.

By Kaitlin Manry

Herald Writer

TULALIP - David Fryberg Sr. hadn't voted in years.

Then a decade or so ago, his grandchildren started asking questions. They wanted the Tulalip elder to tell them about the candidates and the issues.

He didn't know.

So, he said, he found a voter's guide and started reading. He began to care.

He said he cast his ballot - and hasn't stopped since.

Tribal leaders in Snohomish County and across the country are hoping more American Indians experience Fryberg's kind of political awakening. But they aren't leaving it to chance.

American Indians have lagged behind the general population since they first gained the right to vote in 1924 - four years after women and 54 years after black men.

Now Indian leaders are organizing political rallies and urging tribal members to vote.

They're also trying more creative techniques.

The Tulalips have rented limousines to escort members to the polls in several past elections. Other tribes have raffled off vacations or invited voters to lavish buffets.

Earlier this month, a Native Vote rally at the Tulalip Amphitheatre drew around 300 Indians from all over the state.

"Our parents and our grandparents did not have a voice," said Tulalip legislative policy analyst Deborah "Tsi-cy-altsa" Parker. "Today we can have a voice."

There are no reliable statistics on Indian voting, according to experts. However, people involved in the Native Vote movement say voting is on the rise among Indians nationwide.

Chris Stearns of the Inter-Tribal Economic Alliance in Seattle said tribal members are starting to see how politics affect their lives - from funding health clinics to adding wireless technology on remote reservations.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are 103,352 Indians of voting age in Washington, including 9,276 in Snohomish County. Though they make up a relatively small portion of the population - just 2 percent in the state - when they organize and vote together, they can change election results.

In Marysville, for example, voters passed a school levy and their first school bond in 16 years earlier this year, following an intense campaign on the Tulalip Reservation. The levy will fund maintenance and operations costs, while the bond will pay for a new high school.

Tribal members taped a seven-minute program on the ballot issue and aired it on their public television station. Voter registration drives added dozens of tribal members to the electorate, according to Dean Ledford, a Tulalip elder who was active in the campaign.

During the election, managers on the reservation let workers off their jobs early to vote, and limousines hired by the tribes drove voters without transportation to the polls.

The bond passed by just eight votes; the levy, by 23.

"Without (Tulalip) votes, I don't believe the bond would have passed," Ledford said.

Data hard to track

The Census Bureau tracks voting and registration statistics for whites, blacks, Hispanics and Asians, but not American Indians. Likewise, Washington's 2004 exit polls included information on white, African-American, Latino and Asian voters, but not American Indians.

That's because American Indians are smaller in number and harder to track than other racial groups, according to Matt Barreto, an assistant professor of political science at the University of Washington.

Techniques used to study other minority voters aren't effective with American Indians, he said.

Researchers analyze exit polls and ballot results in ethnic neighborhoods to learn about voting trends in most minority groups. Indians, however, are spread over rural and urban areas and rarely comprise more than 15 percent of a precinct, Barreto said.

Likewise, selecting ethnic surnames from voter registration lists can be effective with Asian or Hispanic voters, but it doesn't work well with American Indians because many have surnames indistinguishable from other ethnic groups.

"If you want to know about other groups, we have tons and tons and tons of data," said Barreto, who studies racial and ethnic politics and minority voting. "But unfortunately, there isn't a lot of good, reliable data on Native Americans."

However, there is a general consensus in both scholarly and Indian circles that American Indians don't vote as much as the general population.

In a study of voter turnout among people of voting age in 172 countries, the United States ranks 139th, according to the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance. Apathy is commonly cited as the prime reason for the United States' relatively low showing.

With American Indians, the reasons are more complicated.

Until the Indian Citizenship Act of 1924 passed, Indians were barred from voting in federal elections.

For a plethora of reasons, many Indians simply chose not to vote.

Some viewed participation in U.S. politics as a danger to tribal sovereignty. Others lacked the required government identification and feared registering with the government would create trouble for tribes. And many focused on tribal politics - voting religiously in tribal elections while ignoring national issues.

"In terms of being part of the process, we really weren't embraced," said Stearns, of the Inter-Tribal Economic Alliance. "So we're really still getting out of the starting blocks to some extent."

Indian rights protests, such as the 1969 takeover of Alcatraz Island in California and fish-ins in Washington, helped American Indians realize that they could influence government policy.

"All of those things changed the possibilities for us," said Stearns, a Navajo who is active in the Native Vote campaign.

Leaders make effort

In the past decade, tribal leaders have made a concerted effort to increase their political clout. In 2004, the National Congress of American Indians sponsored a national analysis of its first Native Vote efforts. The study found that progress is coming - albeit slowly.

"Years ago, none of the tribal members were really interested in voting," said Tulalip Tribes Chairman Stan Jones. "We never thought our vote really counted until we got other tribes together and started coordinating our efforts. We know it makes a difference now, so we try."

Tribes also started offering incentives to entice members to the ballot box to vote. Though the Tulalips have discontinued their limo service because the county has changed elections to vote-by-mail, the tribe is holding an Election Day pizza party this year. Door prizes, including DVD players, camcorders and a flat-screen TV, will be raffled off. Admission is free, but a ballot stub is required for admittance, said Frieda Williams, the tribes' community relations coordinator.

The tribes also are hanging posters around the reservation with photos of elders and quotes from them about the importance of voting.

To boost voter turnout, the Quinault tribe on the Washington coast has entered voters in raffles for trips to Reno, Nev., and other destinations. The trips raised ethical issues with some election watchers and the tribe has since stopped offering them, said Grays Harbor Auditor Vern Spatz.

"It was a great incentive and it resulted in very high participation levels, but they were in danger of crossing the line as far as paying people to vote or paying for a vote," he said.

David Fryberg Sr.'s incentive was more personal.

After he cast his first ballot, he and his grandkids began tracking politicians together. They'd record candidates' campaign promises and watch to see who followed through.

He spoke with his grown children about the importance of voting and persuaded them to register.

"We try to come into the 21st century with a positive outlook on everything," he said. "We want to be somewhat in control of our own destiny."

For Fryberg and American Indians everywhere, voting is part of that destiny.

Herald writer Krista Kapralos contributed to this report.

Reporter Kaitlin Manry: 425-339-3292 or kmanry@ heraldnet.com.

Posted on: Sunday, October 29, 2006

Hawaiian leaders: Give us more say

By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawaiian civic leaders want a bigger formal role in dealing with important cultural issues in the state, including education, health, environment and Native Hawaiian rights, officials said yesterday.

To back up their case, delegates to the 47th annual convention of the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs approved more than a dozen motions yesterday calling on state officials to work more closely with club members, who for years have supported initiatives that benefit the Hawaiian community.

"We're asking the state to empower us to take charge of many of the important cultural issues rather than let them do it without any Hawaiian input," said Toni Lee, outgoing president of the association. "As more attention is paid to Native Hawaiian issues and the needs of our community, the Hawaiian civic clubs are at center stage, actively advocating and making a difference."

For instance, Lee said, Hawaiian civic groups are more capable of dealing with the problem of illegal gill-net fishing than the state Department of Land and Natural Resources, which is considering banning the nets in the nearshore waters off Maui, the west side of the Big Island and parts of O'ahu.

"If they do that, they'll be taking our food supply away from us and make instantaneous criminals out of many of our people," Lee said. "It would be better to work with us to educate people about the right way to fish and get rid of the few people who are making it bad for everyone."

Delegates later approved one resolution opposing DLNR's proposed rules, and another saying they will work with the state to protect traditional fishing practices on O'ahu.

After more than an hour's debate on the final day of the weeklong gathering in Waikiki, the delegates also approved a resolution supporting the Office of Hawaiian Affairs' "ongoing efforts toward nation-building to include all options of nationhood which must be driven by community input and participation."

Other resolutions approved yesterday included calling for a task force to select a site in Hawai'i for a new prison, urging officials to create and enforce legal remedies to stop the spread of the coqui frogs and seeking the establishment of a memorial on Kalaupapa to honor the memory of people who were forcibly relocated there from 1866 to 1969.

The gathering attracted almost 600 delegates from 51 Hawaiian civic clubs across the state and the Mainland. This year's convention theme was "Ohaha Ka Hua Kupuna," which means "because of the fruits of the knowledge of our kupuna, we flourish."

In addition to conducting the yearly association business, delegates this year participated in many cultural activities throughout O'ahu, Lee said. They included tours and a tree planting at Mauna'ala, the royal mausoleum; a historical nighttime walking tour; a first-ever makahiki festival in Waikiki; and a summit gathering of kupuna in Waimea Valley.

Next year's convention will be in Anchorage, Alaska.

Reach Mike Leidemann at mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com.

October 28, 2006

Delegate pressure fells tradition

Benson wins right to speak; Young gets in a plug anyway

By ALEX deMARBAN

Anchorage Daily News

Diane Benson, a Southeast Alaska Native and the Democratic nominee for the state's lone U.S. House seat, won speaking time at the Alaska Federation of Natives on Friday.

Benson got her time before the convention after AFN officials, in the face of a surge of delegate pressure to allow her to talk, reversed an earlier decision to deny her an appearance.

A shuffled schedule had Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, speaking early Friday, a day earlier than expected, angering Benson supporters who wanted Benson to have equal time. Benson and Young will face one another on the Nov. 7 ballot for Alaska's House seat.

In denying Benson's request, officials with AFN, the state's largest Native organization, had said only the 17-term congressman would be allowed to speak.

That's tradition, they said. There's never been an AFN debate between candidates running for the House.

Young was asked not to campaign on stage, AFN officials had said. But he ended his speech by asking about 4,000 people to remember his name when they vote next month.

AFN, founded in 1966 to address aboriginal land rights, is finishing its annual convention at the Egan Center in Anchorage today.

Throughout the campaign, Young has refused requests from Benson to appear with her in town hall meetings, and he canceled an appearance in Fairbanks after learning that Benson would share the stage.

AFN president Julie Kitka said Young's scheduled speech today was merely a place holder, because the agenda was printed before Young had confirmed the time.

Young, asked after his speech to explain why he had appeared with Benson in only one forum, the KAKM televised duel this week, refused to answer questions, saying he was not speaking with Daily News reporters.

He had left the convention by the time Benson spoke.

Schedule changes are common at AFN, but delegate Mike Williams of Akiak, angry that Benson had been snubbed, stepped before the microphone in the afternoon to request a suspension of the rules so Benson could have five minutes.

The crowd erupted, whooping and whistling. It was then that AFN officials agreed to let her go before the delegates. The 37-member AFN board had agreed earlier in the week to loosen its policy.

Flanked by three combat veterans from Southeast Alaska, Benson knocked Young, a riverboat captain from Fort Yukon, for failing to do enough for Native veterans. With a breaking voice, she criticized the Iraq war and mentioned her son, Latseen Benson, a soldier who lost his legs to a roadside bomb there almost a year ago.

Young has also failed Alaska on getting relief for costly rural energy and, in refusing to recognize that global warming is a threat, has failed to purse alternative energy, Benson said.

"I, as a representative, will do everything I can, because I am a dog with a bone when it comes to issues for our veterans and when it comes to energy independence, when it comes to representation for the people by the people," she said. "I believe after 34 years, Alaska is too old now to keep Young."

That drew sustained clapping, whistling and hooting.

As for Young's speech earlier in the day, he talked about his Athabascan wife, Lu, who stood by his side, and his numerous Native grandchildren.

He also mentioned the 8(a) program, which has awarded huge no-bid contracts to Alaska Native corporations but has been under congressional scrutiny as being wasteful and unfair.

The program won't end under his watch, he said.

"As long as I sit where I am as your congressman, you'll continue to do it," he said.

He also knocked the Daily News, which he called the "Anchorage Daily Worker," for attacking him in editorials and cartoons, including one where he has his foot in his mouth.

"So? I am not one who says I'll never put my foot in my mouth," he said.

He added:

"I always try to do what's right, and even though I may not do it correctly, it will get done, and that's what representation is all about."

October 27, 2006

Better Business Bureau appoints CEO

Pacific Business News (Honolulu)

Dwight Kealoha is the new CEO of the Better Business Bureau of Hawaii.

His appointment as head of the 3,000-member organization was announced Friday. Before joining the Hawaii BBB, Kealoha was vice president of Kuluku LLC and Kuhana Associates LLC, where he was instrumental in helping to develop two new, small businesses under the Native Hawaiian Organization program.

Kealoha was appointed CEO and president of Unity House, the non-profit labor union organization, when it was placed under federal court receivership. He also served in positions at Kamehameha Schools.

Kealoha retired in 1996 after a 29-year career in the U.S. Air Force at the rank of brigadier general. His final assignment was as commander of the 15th Air Base Wing at Hickam Air Force Base. He was a highly decorated pilot who flew more than 300 combat missions.

A graduate of Iolani School, Kealoha earned his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Hawaii at Manoa and his master's degree in human resources from the University of Utah.

Kealoha serves on the board of directors of Child and Family Services, Special Olympics Hawaii, and the Aviation Museum of the Pacific at Pearl Harbor. He is also on the board of regents at Chaminade University, as well as the Air Force Civilian Advisory Committee and the Multiple Sclerosis Hawaii Advisory Board.

October 29, 2006

Film urges Native women to embrace breast health

SELF EXAMS: Native woman models method openly in video, booklet.

By CINTHIA RITCHIE

Anchorage Daily News

"Weaving Breast Health Into Our Lives" opens like a typical film about Native culture. A mother and daughter weave baskets together. Drum beats and chanting fill the background.

But soon the women begin talking about breast self-exams. And mammograms. They are candid and honest. They aren't actors. They're real women talking about real-life situations.

The result is a poignant film that brings breast health out of the closet. It demonstrates self-exams and mammograms with a hands-on approach.

"Circle as natural as the seasons," the narrator says in a soothing, trustful voice as Brenda King shows how to use the pads of your fingers to check for breast lumps and abnormalities.

"Think of making rows up and down like on a bingo card," the narrator continues.

The film incorporates tradition with information and portrays women as strong and proud. Life, the film basically says, is a gift, and it's every women's responsibility to guard and treasure that gift with the best health care possible.

According to Melany Cueva, Alaska Native Medical Center project coordinator for cancer education, the 2002 film grew out of the need of village health aides' and practitioners' desire to promote breast health.

"They wanted a way to talk about breast exams and mammograms, yes, but they also wanted to celebrate women," she said.

An accompanying booklet came out this year. It's filled with soothing earth-tone colors and glossy-haired Native Alaska women. Like the film, the booklet veers away from typical breast health protocol by demonstrating with a real woman, not drawings or plastic mannequins.

King, who unabashedly modeled the breast self-exams for the film and the booklet, agreed to participate in the project after hearing about it from her aunt.

"This is in the only thing I've seen on breast health geared toward Alaska Native women," she said. It was also King's first mammogram, and she did it in front of a camera.

"One of my friends died of breast cancer," King said. "She was only 28. So this felt really important to me. Like finding my own voice."

Breast health, said Cueva, is part of loving your body. Which is why they worked hard to make the booklet as warm and welcoming as possible.

"We made sure the themes and colors represented Native culture," she said. "We wanted something that would open people up: sisters talking to sisters, mothers talking to daughters."

We all need to know what our bodies feel like, King said, and the best way to do that is directly, without fear.

"Why not," she said, "have breast health become part of our stories."

Posted on: Saturday, October 28, 2006

Court halts all Stryker activities

By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Staff Writer

The Army says it will comply with a federal appeals court order issued yesterday to stop all "activities associated" with establishing a $1.5 billion Stryker brigade in the Islands.

A temporary injunction barring further Stryker work came nearly a month after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the Army violated environmental laws when it failed to consider other sites to base the 19-ton armored vehicles.

In the 2-1 decision on Oct. 5, the San Francisco-based court said the Army must complete a supplementary environmental analysis to consider alternatives to setting up a brigade here.

Earlier this month, the Army had argued the ruling did not mean all Stryker operations and training would have to stop.

"We're pleased the court recognized the Army's plans to plow ahead with Stryker conversion in Hawai'i before it even looked at other places ... violated both the law and common sense," David Henkin, an attorney for Earthjustice, said yesterday.

Henkin is representing three Hawaiian groups in the suit: Ili'ulaokalani Coalition, Na 'Imi Pono and Kipuka. They asked for the temporary injunction last week.

In its decision to issue the order, the 9th Circuit said yesterday: "We should not permit defendants to render meaningless our holding that they should have considered alternatives to transformation in Hawai'i by allowing them to continue with their implementation plan."

The Army issued a brief news release last night, saying, "We are in receipt of the court order and we are complying."

At one point, Lt. Gen. John M. Brown III, the commanding general of U.S. Army Pacific at Fort Shafter, said halting Stryker training would disadvantage more than 3,900 soldiers in the brigade, who are preparing for a one-year deployment to Iraq.

"Not providing full training for these soldiers before sending them into combat would be irresponsible and criminal," Brown said in a Hawai'i Army Weekly opinion piece.

It is unclear when the Army will be able to resume Stryker operations.

Jennifer Sabas, chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Daniel K. Inouye, a key Congressional supporter of the Stryker brigade in Hawai'i, said the first step is making sure the Army is in compliance with the order. "The Army needs to comply as thoroughly as it can," she said.

"We would be hopeful that the Army's compliance would mean it would be able to resume training operations. We're a nation at war. We have troops that need to be trained."

Henkin contends the order will remain in effect until a federal court judge in Hawai'i reviews the case and places restrictions on Stryker activities.

Over the past five years, the Army has spent thousands of hours and millions of dollars to set up the Stryker brigade in Hawai'i, one of the biggest projects since World War II and often billed as heralding a wholesale transformation in the way soldiers train and fight.

Plans to set up a Stryker brigade at Schofield Barracks include a host of infrastructure and construction projects, totaling about $700 million in current and future work on O'ahu and the Big Island for trails, firing ranges and support facilities.

The three Hawaiian groups filed suit against the Army in 2004, saying the Stryker brigade would prove detrimental to Hawaiian cultural sites and habitats for endangered species.

In April 2005, Hawai'i Chief U.S. District Judge David Ezra ruled against the three groups in the case. Ezra said the organizations had raised their objections too late.

He also said the Army had adequately studied the effects of the project.

The Stryker brigade is part of the Army's 30-year plan to set up more responsive and deployable units. Eventually, the Army wants to station about 328 Strykers on O'ahu.

In July, about 60 Strykers arrived in Hawai'i, with up to 50 more arriving each month since, officials said.

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.

October 27, 2006

Indian Museum Director Stepping Down in 2007

W. Richard West Jr.'s Vision Defined An Institution That Confounded Some

By Jacqueline Trescott

Washington Post Staff Writer

W. Richard West Jr. the founding director of the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian, and its public face throughout its planning and its first two years of operation, announced yesterday that he would leave next year.

West says he is very comfortable with his decision.

"I wished to walk through that door, rather than be ushered through the door or carried through the door," says West, 63. Next November, when he plans to leave, West will have spent 17 years helping the world's largest cultural organization plan the first museum on the Mall dedicated to minority culture.

West, a Harvard-trained historian, Stanford-educated lawyer and member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes, left a lucrative legal career to help make the museum a reality.

From the beginning, he promised that the museum would be different. It wouldn't be a showcase for the work of scholars and anthropologists so much as a window on Native American culture defined, in large part, by Native Americans themselves.

Sitting in his office this week after a grueling trip to Shanghai for the Ford Foundation, West talked about the timing of his decision.

The three buildings that make up the Indian Museum -- the George Gustav Heye Center in New York, the Cultural Resources Center in Suitland and the Mall museum near the Capitol -- are up and running. In 2005, its first full year after opening in September 2004, the Mall museum attracted 2.2 million visitors, and has had 1.2 million the first nine months of this year. West says he thought about leaving after the opening but delayed the action because he thought it would "potentially destabilize" the new effort.

But with a three-year strategic plan and staff reorganization completed, the time seems right for a transition, he says. On a personal note, he says, one of his models for bowing out at the right time was J. Carter Brown, the longtime director of the National Gallery of Art, who resigned after that museum's 50th anniversary.

"It is incumbent upon directors to know when change is appropriate," West says.

Smithsonian Secretary Lawrence M. Small said: "The National Museum of the American Indian has risen to international prominence, thanks to Rick West's steadfast dedication, tireless drive and inspired leadership as founding director. He started with an idea and turned it into a reality."

The museum was authorized by Congress in 1989 and was centered on the vast collection of George Gustav Heye, a businessman who collected Native American materials that were given to the Smithsonian. For decades, recalls George Horse Capture, a former curator and special counsel at the museum, Native Americans had wanted some validation, and there were hundreds of ideas on how to achieve that recognition in a museum. "Our constituents were over 500 tribes. At times they had their own agenda, speaking in their own languages. It really was a can of worms," Horse Capture says. "But Rick was cool. It must come from his lawyerness. He would smile and his plans were always thought out."

The day the museum, a grand curvy building wrapped in limestone, opened its doors with a procession on the Mall of 25,000 Native Americans, the exhibitions were so varied that no one knew whether it would be embraced or rejected.

What West calls Day 2, the 25 months since the opening, has had some rocky moments. Some reactions were fierce, some reviews were pointedly unfavorable, and some people thought it was not really a museum -- though they weren't sure just what it was. "The fact that this wasn't a palace of collections has jolted some people," West says, and many of them were the well-educated and museum-savvy. He was surprised that, after years of explaining what it was going to be, people were surprised that he delivered just what he said he would.

He stands by the scholarship and the in-depth consultations with the Native American community members. "This museum is most accurately described, and functions as, an international institution of living cultures," West says.

In Washington, when a high-profile person leaves, the question arises about the willingness of the departure. Smithsonian Undersecretary Sheila Burke said it was "absolutely" West's decision. She added, "I wouldn't have him leave for all the tea in China. He is absolutely going of his own accord, and without any enthusiasm from me."

Ben Nighthorse Campbell, a former senator from Colorado, supported West's vision. "It is our living monument. Right from the beginning, we didn't want it to be a depository for pots and baskets. We wanted it to be alive."

But West acknowledged after the opening that he had to do some fine-tuning. He also worked to explain his view that the 21st-century museum is a civic space, not just a cultural stop. "I don't pretend our model is the destination for every museum. I am saying as a model, we present potential for a different way of putting a museum together," West says.

"Listening to Our Ancestors," a recent exhibition about Northwest Coast peoples, was designed to respond to some of the feedback from audiences who were confused about the themes and emphasis. The introductory film, outside the show's entrance, was more direct about the exhibition's purpose, and 400 objects were on display. In a survey of 368 visitors this summer, 54 percent rated it excellent and 17 percent gave it the highest rank, superior.

Lonnie Bunch III, the director of the Smithsonian's future African American museum, says: "One of Rick's strengths is he really knew what he wanted to accomplish and didn't waver. His vision will last."

In his remaining year, West plans to follow through on the museum's vision to put more emphasis on native cultures in Canada and Latin America.

He says he likes the Southwest, and his next stop may be Santa Fe, N.M.

He is also buying land on the Indonesian island of Bali. "I love being in context, where it is culturally rich. Mary Beth [his wife] is by no means committed to building anything in Bali, but she has approved the purchase of the land," he says.

He wants to leave the daily grind, but says he is attracted to philanthropy. "The only thing I do turn over in my mind is if a foundation position fell out of the sky, I might not resist it."

Posted on: Friday, October 27, 2006

To Hokualaka'i voyaging to Hilo: 'Let sails be full'

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Science Writer

The Big Island voyaging canoe Hokualaka'i, whose crew converses in the Hawaiian language, will sail Sunday from drydock at the Marine Education Training Center at Sand Island on a two-leg journey via Maui to its Hilo home port.

The 58-foot canoe is operated by 'Aha Punana Leo, an educational organization dedicated to perpetuating Hawaiian language and culture. Its skipper, educator Chad Baybayan, has served as captain on the older voyaging canoes Hokule'a and Hawai'iloa.

Hokualaka'i during its sea trials visited all the main Hawaiian islands except Ni'ihau, plus Nihoa and Mokumanamana in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Next year, the canoe will engage in crew training sails that will include Ni'ihau.

The training program is titled E Poho Na Pe'a, for "let the sails be full."

"We want to visit all the islands and cross all the channels in Hawai'i to honor our islands first, before we travel to other islands," said Kaimana Barcarse, media coordinator for 'Aha Punana Leo.

Crew members from the Hokualaka'i also will participate next year in a voyaging canoe mission into the western Pacific, which will include two canoes: the original Hawaiian voyaging canoe, Hokule'a, and Maisu, a voyaging canoe built by the Hawaiian canoe community for Mau Piailug, the Micronesian navigator who taught traditional noninstrument navigation to Hawaiian navigators.

Hokule'a and Maisu are scheduled to sail from Hawai'i in January on a multileg voyage to Piailug's home island of Satawal, to deliver the canoe to the navigator and his family. Thereafter, Hokule'a is scheduled to sail on to Japan.

Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser.com.

Policy Center Alert:  Candidates for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Board of Trustees

Five trustee seats are up for the 2006 election for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, three Trustee-At-Large seats, one representing the Island of Maui and one representing the Island of Oahu.  Every voting-age resident of the State of Hawaii is allowed to vote in the Office of Hawaiian Affairs trustee election.

Following are the candidates running for OHA Trustee:

Trustee-At-Large (No Island Residency Required) (3)

• Rowena Akana
• Whitney Anderson
• Ululani Beirne
• Roy Benham
• Manu Boyd
• Robin Danner
• Newton Harbottle
• Kehaulani Hew Len
• Leona Kalima
• Dennis “Bumpy” Kanahele
• Melissa Lyman
• Willy Meyers
• Oswald Stender
• John Waihee IV
• Arvid Youngquist

Island of Maui (1)

• Blossom Feiteira
• Boyd Mossman

Island of Oahu (1)

• Jackie Burke
• Dante Carpenter
• Walter Heen
• Frankie Kawelo
• Kau‘i Na‘auao
• Kapiolani Reynolds

REMINDER:  The election of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs Trustees is non-partisan.  Get out and vote in the General Election on November 7!!

2006 Elections Present 101 Seats for Voters to Decide

REMINDER, THE GENERAL ELECTION IS NOVEMBER 7, 2006!!

WHAT:  Weighing in on 101 seats at the federal, state and county levels is on the minds of many in Hawaii today.  The seats that will come before the electorate in the fall of 2006 include the following:

• 3 Federal Offices
• 1 Senate seat currently held by Senator Daniel K Akaka
• 2 House seats currently held by Congressman Ed Case and Neil Abercrombie

• 71 State Offices
• 2 Executive Branch currently held by Governor Linda Lingle and Lt Governor James Aiona
• 13 State Senate seats currently held by 3 Republicans and 10 Democrats
• 51 State House seats currently held by 10 Republicans and 41 Democrats
• 5 Office of Hawaiian Affairs seats currently held by Rowena Akana, Oswald Stender, John Waihee IV, Boyd Mossman and Dante Carpenter

• 31 County Offices
• 2 Mayor’s for Kauai and Maui County
• 9 Hawaii County Council seats|
• 9 Maui County Council seats
• 7 Kauai County Council seats
• 4 Honolulu City & County Council seats

For more information and a complete list of 2006 Contests and Incumbents, visit the Hawaii State Office of Elections Website at:  http://www.hawaii.gov/elections/

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