Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 3, Number 7, 1 Iulai 1986 — Moral Question [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Moral Question

By Poka Laenui (Hayden Burgess) Trustee, Oahu

I am disappointed but not surprised at the failure of my critics to address the moral question behind the issue of the United States having stolen our nation now attempting to tax us. Rather they seem satisfied to joke about manufacturing Hawaiian flags or merely reciting American propaganda of being grateful

for federal highway monies, federal support of small business and even for U.S. military presence in Hawaii! Let me repeat the moral issue. In an earlier time, law and moral virtue were one, thus the violation of law was equivalent to the violation of a society's moral concepts. But what happens when law separates from morality. What is one to obey — the law whieh may be immoral but whose violation is punishable; or, moral principles whieh should be the core of proper conduct but for whieh obedience may be neither applauded or rewarded? If we all choose to obey an immoral law, then do we not ourselves become an aeeompliee to the support of that law as well as its inherent immora!ity? U.S. taxation upon us is an immoral law founded upon a set of criminal acts. The U.S. stole Hawaii's independence in violation of our treaties with the U.S. as well as prevailing concepts of international law. This theft was recognized by President Grover Cleveland in an address to Congress in 1893: "By an act of war, committed with the participation of a diplomatic representative of the United States and without authority of Congress, the Government of a feeble but friendly and confiding people has been overthrown. "The lawful Government of Hawaii was overthrown without the drawing of a sword or the firing of a shot by a process every step of whieh, it may be safely asserted, is directly traceable to the United States acting through its diplomatic and naval representatives. "But the lawless occupation of Honolulu under false pretexts by the United States forces, and but for Minister Stevens' recognition of the pr«visional government when the United States forces were its sole strength, the Queen and her Government would never have yielded to the provisional government, even for a time and for the sole purpose of submitting her case to the enlightened justice of the United States." As though a matter of right the U.S. has now extended its taxation over us. But it's "right" to tax Hawaiian citizens is just as infirm as its "right" to have invaded our nation and stolen our aina. That kind of "right" only derives from arrogance and power. It eontains no moral source. Let us not be side-tracked by personalities or politics. This basic issue has haunted our ancestors and eontinues to loom over Hawaii today. It will not simply go away by attempting to ridicule the person who is raising t'ne issue. In closing I wish to share with you the following, "To do evil that good may eome of it is for bunglers in politics as well as morals." Williama Peni, circa 1645. Aloha aina