ACLU questions fairness
of city’s permitting process
Confusion over whether anti-war protesters would have to pay for city services to hold a parade tomorrow illustrates the potential for abuse in the permitting process for special events, says the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaii.
The city ultimately waived any fees for the protest march that begins at 11 a.m. at Ala Moana Beach Park. However, a city official earlier had told march organizers that they would have to pay, according to Carolyn Hadfield, spokeswoman for the Not in Our Name anti-war group.
Vanessa Chong, ACLU Hawaii's executive director, said that current city decisions on permitting events appear to be made arbitrarily.
"It allows too much discretion," said Chong. "If the city is going to charge for services, it needs to apply them fairly and uniformly so the public sees no favoritism."
Hadfield said Not in Our Name has never been assessed any fees for demonstrations.
For tomorrow's march the group was initially told to write a letter stating the organization's financial condition, and no charges would be assessed, she said.
But at the last minute and after five meetings with the city, Hadfield said, a city Department of Transportation Services official said the group would have to pay for a private company to cone the streets and set up no-parking signs. Quotes ranged from $800 to $2,000.
"There are no policies, no nothing on this," Hadfield said. "They can effectively apply this in whatever way they want."
City spokeswoman Carol Costa said in an e-mail yesterday that because of budget cuts, the city can no longer provide traffic control services at city expense for parades.
However, she added, "in the case of this First Amendment demonstration, we will assist with traffic control for public safety purposes."
The ACLU has offered to work with the city on a "fair and constitutional policy that can be applied to all groups who wish to apply for a permit," as well as to allow groups "to exercise free speech rights," Chong said.
Unless a fair policy is worked out, taxpayers will perceive that certain groups receive preferential treatment, she said.
Hadfield said the group thought that after the ACLU's lawsuit following the Asian Development Bank's Honolulu meeting in 2001, such problems had been resolved. In October 2001 the city settled the ADB Watch lawsuit filed by the ACLU.
The suit alleged state and city had engaged in unconstitutional actions during the ADB meeting, and the city had agreed to several changes including cutting the advance time to file for parade permits to five days from 40 days.
The resulting consent decree, however, left certain issues regarding permitting open for litigation, Chong said.
Tomorrow's march will include 25 groups, including the Green Party of Hawaii and American Friends Service Committee. The march begins and ends at the Ala Moana Beach Park, where a rally will be held to protest U.S. occupation of Iraq.
