Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 1, Number 6, 1 ʻAukake 1984 — Autonomy: Self Determination [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Autonomy: Self Determination

B\ Rodney Kealiimahiai Burgess Trustee-at-Large

Mueh confusion and misunderstanding exists on this word — AUTONOMY — whieh has received a lot of publicity when Walter Ritte chose to protect

the constitutional powers ofOHA and to prevent the hands of the Governor's office from intervening into the affairs of Hawaiian people. It has heen 9 1 years since the overthrow of Queen Liliuokalani that Hawaiian people have been relegated to the status of being "wards" of territorial and state governments. In that time, succeeding governments including the present administration, have been succesful in suppressing our Hawaiian people because the Governor has not understood the processes that led to the ethnocide of Hawaiian culture and has therefore not been able to incorporate the aspirations of Hawaiian people in his political and eeonomie goaīs. There are still many Hawaiians, including myself, who feel that enough is enough. Give OHAthechancetofulfillits intended purposes. Webster's dictionary defines autonomy

as "self-directing freedom and especially moral independence." Just to make a point, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld Hawaii state law whieh effectively allows the taking of our private trust lands set aside specifically for the benefit of educating Hawaiian children. We Hawaiians have lost the legal battle in the highest

court of the land. However, was it mōrally right??? Has Hawaiian autonomy been undercut onee again? Excerpts taken from the 1978 Constitutional Convention whieh created OHA provides mueh clarity to the issue of autonomy. It states: "The committee intends that OH A will be independent from the executive branch and all other branches of government although it will assume the status of a state agency. The status of OHAisto be uniqueand speciai. The establishment by the Constitution of the Olliee of Hawaiian Affairs with the power to govern itself through a board of trustees results in the creation of a separate entity independent of the executive branch of government." "Your committee is unanimously and strongly of the opinion that people to whom assets belong should have control over them." Autonomy is no threat! lt is an answer to our prayers for righteousness.