Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 4, Number 4, 1 ʻApelila 1987 — Native American Rights Fund Executive Committee [ARTICLE]

Native American Rights Fund Executive Committee

NARF Legal Advocates Hold lntense HawaiiTalks

Hawaii was visited in March by the Executive Committee of the Native American Rights Fund (NARF). NARF is a non-profit law firm specializing in the protection of Indian rights. Its Executive Committee is comprised of members from throughout the country. NARF Deputy Director Jeanette Wolfley and other members of the organization met Monday, Mar. 9 in the Office of Hawaiian Affairs conference room with OHA Trustees and staff, Department of Hawaiian Home Lands Director Ilima Pi'ianai'a, and representatives of both Senator Daniel K. Inouye and Governor John David Waihee III. Members of several grass roots native Hawaiian communities were also present. The priorities of NARF are: • Preservation of tribal existence. • Protection of tribal natural resources. • Promotion of human rights. • Accountability of governments to Native Americans. • Development of Indian law. NARF became interested in Hawaiian legal issues as far back as 1974, when its former Executive Director David Getches and Deputy Director (now Executive Director) John Eehohawk advised the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation's Board in its initial organizational efforts. NARF is 15 years old, and during the last several years, its lawyers have won significant legal victories for tribes in struggles to protect inherent rights as sovereign nations. Some of NARF's accomplishments include helping the T raditional Kiekapoo in Texas establish a homeland and settling historical land claims for the Passamaquoddy and Penobscot Tribes of Maine.

Within the last year, NARF had three cases before the United States Supreme Court, winning two of the three. For the Wisconsin Oneida Tribe, NARF established title to 250,000 acres of aboriginal land in New York State, and negotiations to settle this elaim are underway. For the Blackfeet Tribe of Montana, NARF defeated Montana's attempt to tax the Tribe's valuable oil and gas royalties. In other significant developments during the year, NARF was successful in a decision whieh nullified the effort of the State of Florida to tax Seminole tribal businesses. In a water rights case for the Muckleshoot Tribe of Washington, NARF established that the Tribe's rightto maintain a salmon fishery had not been condemned and still existed. NARF was also successful in establishing the ownership of the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana to tribal burial goods unearthed and claimed by an amateur archaeologist. In the voting rights area, NARF overturned a New York state law whieh prohibited reservation residents from serving on public school boards. NARF's renewed interest in native Hawaiian legal issues resurfaced as a result of a visit paid by Dr. Emmett Aluli and Palikapu Dedman to NARF's CoIorado headquarters in order to get assistance with a First Amendment (religious freedom) elaim. This elaim involved those who wanted to protect Pele and her followers from the assaults of geothermal development. NARF attorneys visited Hawaii shortly thereafter,

and agreed to co-counsel the religious freedom case. (This case will be argued before the Hawaii Supreme Court at 9 a.m. April 22.) As a further result of this visit, a fact finding report was prepared with recommendations whieh were adopted by NARF's Executive Committee. The recommendations emphasized establishing strong support and coordinative efforts between NARF and the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation. This wou!d enable NHLC to more effectively serve the native Hawaiian community. The Executive Committee's recent visit to Hawaii was to strengthen and underscore NARF's eommitments and to leam, on as first-hand a basis as possible, about legal issues faced by Hawaiians today. Three days of intense, round-the-clock, kukakuka sessions in Kona optimized the limited time NARF was ab!e to spend in Hawaii. Participants are especially indebted to all who offered their support and kokua, including Alapa'i Hanapi, Skippy Ioane, Lehua Lopez, John Spencer, James Kalili, and many others. — Mahealani Ing. Photo on Pg. 13