Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 1, 1 January 2012 — MANAʻO HOʻOULU LĀHUI ALOHA [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

MANAʻO HOʻOULU LĀHUI ALOHA

ENVISIONING THE GROWTH OF OUR BELOVED NAHON

Eia Hawai'i, he moku, he kānaka 'O Hawai'i kū kahi E 'auamo kākou 'Imi i ka nā'au

Here is Hawai'i, ihe land, thepeople We are apeople, unique to these islands Let us bearthis ancestral legacy proudly on our shoulders Look deep within ourselves for ihe foundation

Here is the full text of Chairperson Machado's prepared remarksfor the 2011 State of OHA: Aloha mai kākou. We remember our kūpuna who passed through the leina within this past year - especially Aunty Frenchy DeSoto, the esteemed "mother" of the Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA) and Herb Kane, whose magnificent art work graces this year's program, invitation and annual report. Hali'a aloha to Professor Jon Van Dyke, who so brilliantly and tirelessly articulated the legal foundation of Native Hawaiian rights and land claims. Aloha to our puhlie elected officials who have joined us this morning, mahalo nui loa. I would like us to reflect upon this theme shared with us by master kumu hula and cultural and spiritual leader Dr. Pualani Kanaka'ole Kanahele. Here is Hawai'i, he moku, he kanaka. As Kānaka 'Ōiwi, we are Hawai'i and Hawai'i is us. Our islands, our way of life and our Kānaka 'Ōiwi are truly unique. We stand upon the shoulders of our kūpuna and we proudly shoulder their profound legacy. This is our kuleana. When Aunty Pualani shared this theme, she also gave us a challenge. She said that many Hawaiians don't know what our foundation is because most of our Hawaiian institutions - political, educational and heahh - including OHA, were built upon a Western system. She asked, "What are we to do?" 'Imi i ka nā'au, the last part of the theme asks us to look deep within ourselves for the true foundation of our Lāhui Hawai'i Aloha, our beloved Hawaiian nation. Our social and political structures will be strong if they are rooted in our ancestral wisdom. In the past few decades we have looked to such core cultural concepts and practices as aloha 'āina and

mālama 'āina, revived by George Helm and the Protect Kaho'olawe 'Ohana; traditional wayfinding revived by Master navigator Mau Piailug and the Polynesian Voyaging Society; educating, writing and publishing in our 'ōlelo makuahine, our mother language; the composition and performance of oli and hula kahiko perpetuated by our many hālau of hula; lā'au lapa'au traditional herbal and spiritual healing; organizing as hui, 'ohana, lāhui and 'aha and living as kua'āina to protect our lands and resources throughout our islands, especially our klpuka. As a Kānaka 'Ōiwi, we have a deeply rooted and resilient cultural, spiritual and value-based foundation. If we keep connected with our ancestral foundation, we will build a strong sovereign governing entity whieh will be embraced by all of our people. A CALL FOR UNITY Since the Rice v. Cayetano decision, the system of law out of whieh OHA was created has been invoked in numerous lawsuits aimed at preventing OHA, the Department of Hawaiian Home Lands and our Ali'i Trusts fromproviding services to Kānaka 'Ōiwi. OHA's primary strategy to protect all of these Native Hawaiian organizations and the services that we provide has been the passage of the Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act, or the Akaka bill. OHA spent 10 years pursuing the passage of the Akaka bill and dealt with multiple obstacles along every step of that path. We will not give up. We are committed to gaining federal protection of Kānaka 'Ōiwi rights. Within the last year, OH A has started to open up alternate legislative and executive routes in coordination with Sen. Daniel Akaka, Sen. Daniel Inouye and the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs. President Barack Obama is a strong partner in this effort. OHA will aggressively pursue these legislative and executive paths throughout

the next year. Here at home, the Hawai'i State Legislature took the initiative, with the support of Gov. Neil Abercrombie, to pass Act 195, whieh states, "The Native Hawaiian people are hereby recognized as the only indigenous, aboriginal, maoli people of Hawai'i." This provides a solid foundation for the State of Hawai'i to stand with OHA against any future challenges to Native Hawaiian entitlements. It also bolsters OHA's federal strategy by sending a clear message to the federal government to endorse the recognition of Kānaka 'Ōiwi as the indigenous people of Hawai'i. The appointment of the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission by Governor Abercrombie under Act 195 opened a pathway toward the re-establishment of a Native Hawaiian governing entity. OH A is an active partner in this process, providing ūnaneial and administrative support. We are fortunate that former Gov. John Waihe'e III is leading this effort and we are honored that he will present today's keynote address. I eall upon the leaders and members of our communities and organizations to unite around this process. For myself, I support this as the best last ehanee for my generation to deliver the sovereign governing entity for our "Lāhui Aloha." EFFORTS TO RESOLVE PAST-DUE REVENUES Our theme also speaks of "He Moku," whieh reminds us that our national lands, now managed as the ceded public lands trust, is the foundation of the assets and weahh, not only of OHA, but of our "Lāhui Aloha." Since 1987 - over 24 years - OHA Trustees, staff and attorneys have worked for the payment of a just share of all of the revenue derived from the ceded public lands trust, our Hawaiian national lands for the SEE MAGHAD0 ON PAGE 17

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MACHADO

Continued from page 15 periodofNov. 7, 1978,throughJuly 1, 2012. To avoid any confusion, I want to stress that this Puhlie Land Past-Due Settlement is only for the amount owed to OHA for the 34year period from the time that OHA was created in Nov. 7, 1978, and up through the end of the current fiscal year, July 1, 2012. It is NOT, AT ALL, a universal settlement of the claims of Kānaka 'Ōiwi for this period and beyond. I respect Gov. Neil Abercrombie for his courage to agree in principle to a $200 million approximate past-due settlement amount. I am grateful to all of my predecessors for their determination and persistence to pursue this settlement. As Kānaka 'Ōiwi, we value the 'āina and its abundance even more than money, but importantly, these lands have significant revenue generating potential, whieh will help

make OHA and the future governing entity for the Lāhui self-reliant. There is still a lot of work to finalize this Public Land Trust PastDue Revenue Settlement. We must research and conduct due diligence on the proposed properties. We are holding conununity meetings for the Kānaka 'Ōiwi and general public to provide their mana 'o. The Legislature will need to review and give full consideration to this proposal. This work is the priority for OHA for the upcoming year. A FOUNDATION FORA NEW GENERATION OF LEADERS Reflecting upon the breakthroughs I've described, we need to credit and acknowledge the work of my predecessors and the outgoing Chief Executive Officer, Clyde Nāmu'o. We are fortunate that their dedicated work for federal and state recognition and the settlement of past-due revenues has finally borne momona

fruit. We must continue to build upon these accomplishments. Internally, our office will begin a transition in leadership. Mr. Nāmu'o's administration has been widely praised for its successes and for providing OHA with continuity, consistency and stability. His accomplishments enable us to now move forward with a new generation of leaders. Mahalo nui loa, Clyde, and our best wishes to you and your family as you pursue future endeavors. In closing, I look forward to working together with all of you, our Hawaiian organizations and communities, with themembers of the Native Hawaiian caucus in the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Speaker of the House, the Senate President, Governor Abercrombie and Lieutenant Governor Schatz in the upcoming year. Holomua pū kākou - Let's move forward together\ I

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The crowd in St. Andrew's Cathedral was energized by heartfelt speeches and musical performances - Photo: UsaAsato