Ho'oponopono?

A few more thoughts on the Kawaihae cave objects controversy...

First, we tend to oversimplify and speak of this (or any) dispute as having two opposing sides, and the media contributes to this (as have I probably), but one thing I have gathered from reading comments here, emails and corresponding with folks from various points of view is... well, exactly that, there are various points of view, not just two sides. It is more subtle gray than black and white. For example, there are those who favor removing the items from the caves, but don't support Suganama and Kawananakoa in their lawsuit. There are those who believe the items should be left, but who don't think Hui Malama handled it properly or as well as they could have to avoid this controversy. There are those who don't agree with Hui Malama's actions, but who don't think that Halealoha should be in jail over it. There are claimants who are "neutral", and there are ranges of perspectives within some organizations.

Second, the crux of the disagreement seems to be whether the items really are moepu or not. Were they originally buried with the iwi and intended for eternal rest, or were they placed there later as a way to protect them for a time but perhaps for future generations to find and retrieve? And if the latter, are they still moepu or not? What was the intention of the kupuna who placed them there? Of course, the problem is that we cannot know that for sure, and it comes down to a matter of cultural interpretation. I believe that those from various perspectives are probably all quite sincere in their beliefs.

Finally, while Hui Malama blames the claimants who have filed suit for bringing it into the court, and they blame Hui Malama for taking an action that they believe forced them to do so, and despite the fact that Hui Malama helped write the federal law that the courts uses to adjudicate the case, the larger context is that the U.S. federal courts are most certainly not the proper venue to resolve this issue. The descendants of the iwi or those who placed the items, to the extend that can be truly determined, are the ultimate source of spiritual and moral authority here, and it is quite unfortunate that it has been reduced to a legalistic issue with Hawaiians fighting Hawaiians over sacred matters in the occupier's court, with the court depriving one of his freedom. Though they are forced to deal with the venue that has been imposed, this issue epitomizes what the U.S. courts should NOT be deciding, and highlights the whole occupation. But of course the parties can't bring that up, even if they wanted to, for fear of running further afoul of the "judge." But the power he wields to decide the fate of important Hawaiian cultural items and imprison Hawaiians for their religious beliefs is a direct result of the long string of illegal force and fraud, and the very presence of the U.S. court system in Hawaii is more illegal than the actions of either side that it is trying to adjudicate.

I do hope some kind of process can occur with those closely involved, mainly the lineal descendants, to get the matter out of the occupier's court, get Halealoha out of jail, and resolve the fate of the items in a way that truly does ho'oponopono.

Update: Some folks will start going to pule with Halealoha in the morning and evening starting on Tuesday. They will meet at 6:30am and 6:30pm on Elliot St across from the Federal Detention Center.

The Star-Bulletin editorial credits Hui Malama as being "a pioneer in establishing the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, through which it began the admirable work of returning Hawaiian remains and artifacts to their proper sites," but blames Hui Malama for their unyielding tactics in this case, and says "While there is no expectation that all Hawaiians have the same perspectives and purposes, it certainly would be beneficial for the claimants of the artifacts to discover what views they do share and work from there."

In the Star-Bulletin letters Richard W. Rogers says that "most of [the items] were not found in direct context with the two burials, found elsewhere in the cave, suggests a separate (secondary) deposit, as opposed to funerary rites." While J. Keawe'aimoku Kaholokula says Ayau is being persecuted for his religious beliefs.

And in an Advertiser letter John Cotton Wright argues the case that the items weren't truly moepu, but were secreted away and were meant to be found later.

Posted: Sun - January 1, 2006 at 11:59 PM

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Ho'oponopono?

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