Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 17, Number 3, 1 March 2000 — Nortk Shore cemetery survives time anel erosion only to endure vandalism [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Nortk Shore cemetery survives time anel erosion only to endure vandalism

By Joyson Harper

OR SEVERAL years Thomas Shirai Jr. has been

going to Pu'uiki Cemetery in Waialua to clear

weeds and debris off the graves of family members. However, in recent months Pu'uiki cemetery and the graves sites of his family members have eome under attack. The attack has not eome from weather erosion or age, but from vandals. On Sat., Jan. 25, Shirai was tending the graves of his great unele when he heard the sound of male voices. Shirai followed one of the boys to the edge of the

cemetery and found several tombstones had been pushed over and cracked. One tombstone in the shape of a cross had been pulled out of the ground and struck several times with a blunt object. "That one really got to me," said

Shirai. "Maybe because that grave was right next to that of my great grand unele." Over the past eouple of months Shirai has noticed other vandalized

gravesites, and has taken pictures of teenage boys actually vandalizing the graves. Armed with this information, he contacted the poliee and filed a report. However no arrests have been made. Since the vandalism occurred, Shirai has started a crusade on the North

Shore in an effort to remind the eommunity that the cemetery is still there and needs their kōkua. Shirai has testified to the North Shore Neighborhood Board and has enlisted the help of sev-

eral community groups, schools, churches and State Representative Alexander Santiago who has introduced a bill increasing the seriousness of grave desecration to a class C felony punishable by a $10,000 fine or five years imprisonment. Currently, anyone

caught desecrating a burial site faces a misdemeanor charge and, if convicted, a minimum sentence of one year in jail and a $2000 fine. Pu'uiki cemetery was established on

a sugar eane plantation. ! Nanette Pumell, director of the Cemetery Research Project, said the cemetery has valuable information helpful in establishing , genealogies, and it reflects the historical eth- ! nie makeup of the eommunity. Plantation cemeteries ; such as Pu'uiki were never purchased or run i by an association like other cemeteries. The people who lived and worked on the plantations cared for them. "If people have rela-

tives here, they should eheek the graveyard out," said Shirai. "I just don't want anything worse to happen, and I hope people open their eyes." Those interested in taking part in a cemetery elean-up ean contact Shirai at 808-623-6929 ■

mnniiii! miiii

PHOTOS: THOMAS SHIRAI JR. Several gravesites at Pu'uiki Cemetery in Waialua have been vandalized in recent months.Tombstones have been pushed over and in some cases struck with hammers.