Today’s article (Six more TMT protesters acquitted) in WHT Feb. 2) reporting on a circuit court decision by judge Barbara Takase is very sad to supporters of TMT.
Today’s article (Six more TMT protesters acquitted) in WHT Feb. 2) reporting on a circuit court decision by judge Barbara Takase is very sad to supporters of TMT.
This decision is likely to make the TMT project decide on Chile and give up on Mauna Kea. Since the judge was unwilling to determine that blocking the Mauna Kea access road was illegal, the six protesters being tried were acquitted and all the others arrested blocking the road will presumably also be acquitted. The judge said the state had to disprove the protesters argument that they were “choosing the lesser of two evils” to be convicted. Apparently, no one knows how to disprove the protesters argument to the judge’s satisfaction.
Judge Takase has basically legalized the protesters to block access to Mauna Kea in the name of preventing “sacred desecration.” To most people this seems to legalize mob rule if the mob has the right motivation. Who are the protesters to determine if Mauna Kea is being desecrated? It is state land and the public rights that should prevail over the protesters.
Even with a new permit, under this ruling, there is no way for the TMT project to access their site when protesters are present and blocking the road. Unless this ruling is overturned quickly, the TMT will surely go to Chile, which welcomes astronomy and enforces the law. Unfortunately, the State Supreme Court is not likely to overturn this ruling since they are clearly sympathetic to the protesters based on their previous ruling. TMT does not want to go to Chile after following all the rules and waiting through years of delays to locate to Hawaii. Now they seem to have no option within the Hawaii legal system and the lack of government support.
Chile will be grateful to get this great project which, along with the other two great telescopes under construction, will make Chile the world’s center for astronomy, replacing Hawaii. A severe loss to Hawaii created by a small group of people stuck in the past and a judicial system that is incomprehensible. This is also a big loss to science because Hawaii is the only site in the Northern Hemisphere acceptable for one of the great new telescopes. A large part of the Northern Sky is not observable from Chile.
Gov. Ige must also share in the blame for losing TMT by his weak support and inaction to show that TMT would be a big win for Hawaii without damaging Hawaiian culture.
Driving away a major scientific project such as TMT sends a very poor signal to the world about how things are done in Hawaii. Who is in charge? It looks like no one knows how to get things done here. It looks like a small fraction of Native Hawaiians and people who don’t wish to be part of America are getting special privileges in Hawaii under the disguise of culture? Culture is important but it is not sacred nor should any religious manifestations of culture have special status in our state.
Jerry Smith is a resident of North Kohala
My Turn opinions are those of the writer and not West Hawaii Today