The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is making one last push to increase participation in its nation-building efforts.
The Office of Hawaiian Affairs is making one last push to increase participation in its nation-building efforts.
With the passing of Act 195 in 2011, OHA and the Native Hawaiian Roll Commission have sought to register Native Hawaiians to allow them to participate in the selection of delegates for a constitutional convention.
But participation has been below expectations and the deadline to register has been pushed back several times. Most recently, it was extended to May 1.
The roll commission’s website lists 121,252 registered names. Its original goal was to collect 200,000 by last July.
More than 71,000 names on the list were transferred from Kau Inoa and Operation Ohana, according to the commission.
To increase participation, OHA is holding outreach meetings across the state. The message: If you want to participate, you need to register.
But OHA officials have also heard from Hawaiians expressing their mistrust of the agency and frustration over past nation-building plans that never fully materialized.
OHA representatives began a meeting Friday in Waimea knowing what to expect.
“Tonight is a very touchy subject,” Shane Nelsen, OHA outreach coordinator, acknowledged while addressing the approximately 40 people in attendance.
During the presentation, Mehana Hind emphasized the process requires their participation to succeed.
“The possibilities of what we want, and what we can create is almost endless,” she said.
“It’s not going to work without our people.”
Several attendees questioned why OHA is reaching out to them now and wondered how much influence the agency will have over the process.
“I love my nation. I want to be pono with this,” one woman said. “Right now, I can’t.”
Hind said she understood the concerns.
“As far as not trusting OHA, I know. We know,” she said.
But Hind stressed to the crowd that OHA is a facilitator for the process, not the decision maker. How the nation would be formed, and its responsibilities, would be up to Hawaiians themselves through a referendum, she said.
One possibility is a government-to-government relationship similar to tribes on the mainland.
Among the potential options, Hind highlighted three: state recognition, federal recognition and international recognition.
Missing from the list appeared to be full independence, which seemed to have the most vocal support at the meeting.
About a dozen people raised their hands when a man in the audience asked if they prefer independence from the United States.
“If we want to do it, let’s do it,” he said. “Do it now.”
Ron Makaula Dela Cruz sought to provide historical perspective on the issue by highlighting the 1893 overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom and subsequent annexation to the United States.
“We have had that eagle sitting on our faucet,” he said.
“My cup is half empty. I want to refill it.”
Nelsen said the roll likely has enough names to proceed.
The roll doesn’t determine membership but does determine who can participate in the process from the beginning, including a convention and selection of delegates.
How many delegates will be selected, and how many people they would represent, will be determined by a neutral elections committee, Nelsen said.
For more information, visit kanaiolowalu.org.
Email Tom Callis at tcallis@hawaiitribune-herald.com.