Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 11, 1 Nowemapa 1999 — U.S. and Hawaiians to talk reconciliation in December [ARTICLE]

U.S. and Hawaiians to talk reconciliation in December

By Paula Durbln HAWAIIANS WILL have the opportunity to contribute to the United States government's efforts at reconciliation as called for in the 1993 Apology Resolution. They will be able to speak with federal representatives from Washington, D.C., Dec. 4-13 when M. John Berry, assistant secretary for policy, management and budget for the United States Department of the Interior, and Mark Van Norman, director of the Office of Tribal Justice at the U.S. Department of Justice, will be in Hawai'i for public consultations. Following the opening ceremony on Dec. 4, Berry and Van Norman will travel to neighbor islands to meet with Native Hawaiian communities at brown bag lunches open to the public at times and locations yet to be announced. They will also visit programs that benefit Native Hawaiians. Discussions regarding the reconciliation process will be held Dec. 10 and 1 1 at the East-West Center ffom 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. On Dec. 10 the focus will be on the areas of health and education, housing, culture and eeonomie development, and land and natural resources. Eaeh subject, or pair of subjects, will be introduced with a 45minute discussion among panelists, Berry and Van Norman, and then the public will be invited to comment or address points not raised during the dialogue. Eaeh person or organization will be limited to three minutes so that as many people as possible may provide input. The focus of the second day's discussion will be reconciliation: the definiūon of the process, the federal government's relationship with Native Hawaiians, and how to address longstanding political issues such as selfdetermination and ceded lands within the framework of the law. According to a press release issued jointly by the Departments of Justice and the Interior, the discussions will include as many Native Hawaiian community leaders and spokespersons as ean reasonably be accommodated at a roundtable. A period of pubhc comment will be structured to ensure the participahon of as many individuals as possible. As on the preceding day, to allow for maximum participation, a threeminute time limit will be in effect. To promote productive discussion on the issues, those wishing to participate in the public forum are encouraged to submit testimony in writing no later than Nov. 22. Panel and roundtable participants will be notified by Nov. 29. Whether by written testimony or pubhc comment, participation is encouraged. Those interested should fill out the form printed above, to the right of this eolumn, and submit written testimony to Assistant Secretary M. John Berry, e/o Document Management Unit, Department of the Interior, 1849 C Street, N.W., Mailstop 7229, Washington, D.C. 20240 (Fax: 202-208-3230). ■

I 1 I I I I DATE: ,1999 I I I TO: , | Assistant Secretary M. Jonn Berry, | | e/o Document Management Unil | | Department of the lnterior | I 1 849 C Street, N.W., Mailstop 7229 I I Washington, D.C. 20240 (Fax: 202-208-3230) I I I I RE: RECONCILIATION WITH NATIVE HAWAIIANS I I I I PARTICIPANT DATA: 1 . Name I I Address Daytime telephone Fax number E-mail address 2. Will you be representing a Native Hawaiian organization . yes no a. Please provide the name and mission of your organiza ■ tion: I I I I I b. How large is your organization's membership? | | e. Please provide your organization's address: , I I , 3. Whieh topic(s) would you like to address? , I I I December 10, 1999 December 1 1 , 1 999 I I I Native Hawaiian Housing Reconciliation Process Native Hawaiian Health Political Relationship and Education Native Hawaiian Culture and Eeonomie Development Hawaiian Land and Natural Resources I I I I