Artifact claimants should settle dispute
THE ISSUE
A federal judge has called a Hawaiian group to court to explain why it has not provided the locations of artifacts.
|
HOPES of resolving a bitter dispute among claimants of 83 Hawaiian artifacts appear dismal as the group possessing the objects has refused to comply with a federal court's order to reveal where they are.
With the group, Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawaii Nei, on the brink of judicial sanctions, a compromise that respects Hawaiian tradition would be appropriate.
Failing that, the court will have no choice but to impose penalties because the claims of others deserve consideration equal to Hui Malama's.
U.S. District Judge David Ezra has directed Hui Malama's leaders to explain in court tomorrow why they have not provided the specific locations of the artifacts. Failure will result in fines and even imprisonment, the judge has warned.
Two of the 14 claimants filed suit to have the items retrieved from a cave or caves on the Big Island where Hui Malama put them after they were supposedly loaned to the group by the Bishop Museum. Na Lei Alii Kawananakoa and The Royal Academy of Traditional Arts want to review the artifacts so that an appropriate resting place can be determined.
Hui Malama says retrieval would be a desecration and runs counter to its members' religious beliefs, a concept its leaders contend is beyond the court's comprehension.
In arguing that the court, as a Western construct, cannot understand Hawaiian cultural values or traditions, Hui Malama disregards the fact that the laws it has used to its advantage and that compel return of the artifacts are also Western, and that those who are being refused access to the artifacts are fellow Hawaiians.
Indeed, it is the court that is attempting to facilitate and mediate among claimants and has bent over backward to deal with the issue with cultural sensitivity. Absent any other entity, either Hawaiian or Western, to reconcile conflicts, Hui Malama's challengers have no recourse but the courts.
The dispute serves to divide the Hawaiian community. Hui Malama and other claimants can surely find another way to settle their differences. If not, the acrimony will escalate further, something none can sustain.
Oahu Publications, Inc. publishes
the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, MidWeek
and military newspapers
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
David Black, Dan Case, Dennis Francis,
Larry Johnson, Duane Kurisu, Warren Luke,
Colbert Matsumoto, Jeffrey Watanabe, Michael Wo
HONOLULU STAR-BULLETIN
Mary Poole, Editorial Page Editor
(808) 529-4748;
mpoole@starbulletin.com
The Honolulu Star-Bulletin (USPS 249460) is published daily by Oahu Publications at 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, Hawaii 96813. Periodicals postage paid at Honolulu, Hawaii. Postmaster: Send address changes to Star-Bulletin, P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802.