“New Architecture” in the Asia-Pacific or just more hegemony?

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Terri Keko’olani, AFSC Hawai’i and DMZ-Hawai’i / Aloha ‘Aina. Photo:  Eri Oura

Below is another story from the KITV newscast about Sec. of State Clinton’s speech yesterday at the East West Center. Footage on the 10:00 pm news included the demonstration by AFSC Hawai’i, DMZ-Hawai’i / Aloha ‘Aina, Gaza Freedom March, World Can’t Wait and others.  The protest targeted the escalating U.S. wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and military realignment and expansion in Okinawa, Guam and Hawai’i, as well as the U.S. policies on Israel and Palestine.

Clinton’s speech was hyped as revealing the “new architecture of Asia”, but at its core, it just rehashed a centuries-old theme of America “power projecting” its “manifest destiny” across the Pacific to shape the security and economic environment in Asia.   In this imperial vision of the Asia-Pacific region, what really matters is Asia.  The Pacific is not seen as a real place, just a big protective moat to keep enemies at bay and a place to build strategic military bases within easy striking distance of potential Asian rivals.

Of course, quoting Obama, she made obligatory reference to the Pacific ocean binding us together rather than dividing us.  But this metaphor was ripped off from the peoples movements in the Pacific such as the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific (NFIP) which popularized the concept of the Pacific Ocean as Ka Moana Nui (The Great Ocean) that forms a liquid continent uniting the peoples of the Pacific.   If Obama felt truly bound to the peoples of the Pacific, then he would have supported the more aggressive climate change initiatives put forth in Copenhagen by drowning island states like Tuvalu.

No, at its  heart, the U.S. vision of the Pacific is still the “American Lake”.   The islands and peoples of the Pacific are just beautiful places to vacation or strategic locations to build military bases. How else do you explain the arrogance with which the U.S. violates the sovereignty of the small islands and imposes its military bases?  First Hawai’i, then Guam, American Samoa, the Marshall Islands, Palau, Okinawa, all the way to Puerto Rico and Diego Garcia.

I am reminded of Henry Kissinger’s notorious 1969 quote about U.S. nuclear tests in the Pacific: “There are only 90000 people out there. Who gives a damn?”

The U.S. peace movement should recognize the pivotal role small islands like Hawai’i, Guam and Okinawa play in the American Empire and its global network of military power.   To prevent wars from happening in the future, it is critical that Americans force their government to stop using small islands as military platforms to wage wars.

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Photo: Eri Oura

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http://www.kitv.com/news/22222221/detail.html

Clinton Discusses Asia-Pacific’s Importance

Secretary On 10-Day Trip Through Region

POSTED: 5:05 pm HST January 12, 2010

UPDATED: 9:23 pm HST January 12, 2010

HONOLULU — U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton made a major policy speech in Honolulu on Tuesday at the East-West Center in Manoa about America’s future relationship with Asia.

Clinton celebrated the 50th anniversary of the East-West Center. She talked about how Asia is changing, and how the U.S. should respond.

Local politicians, Hawaii military leaders and people who work at the center attended her address.

Clinton is on a 10-day trip through the Asia-Pacific Region. Clinton said the Asia-Pacific region is important to America. She talked about the major changes in Asia in recent decades.

“It is a region that has gone from soybeans to satellites, from rural outposts to gleaming mega-cities, from traditional calligraphy to instant messaging and most importantly, from old hatreds to new partnerships,” Clinton said.

The U.S. and Asia are now linked economically and America will continue to maintain a presence in the region, Clinton said.

“The United States has a strong interest in continuing its tradition of economic and strategic leadership, and Asia has a strong interest in Asia in the U.S. remaining a dynamic, economic partner and a stabilizing military influence,” the secretary said.

The East-West Center audience was receptive and happy to host the Cabinet member.

“It was a tremendous honor the East-West Center 50th anniversary. So, we were overjoyed to hear her speech, get her illumination of the Asia-Pacific region,” said Floren Elman-Singh, of the East-West Center.

A group of about three-dozen people rallied outside of the East-West Center about the war in Afghanistan and Iraq and the move of a Marine base to another part of Okinawa, Japan.

Clinton also visited Pearl Harbor, where she presented a wreath aboard the USS Arizona Memorial to commemorate the Americans who died in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.

Earlier in the day she met with Japan’s foreign minister. Read more about that here.

Copyright 2010 by KITV.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Protest greets Hillary Clinton at the East West Center

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Angela Hoppe Cruz, a Chamorro student at UH, demonstrates her solidarity against U.S. military bases in Okinawa as well as Guam, her homeland. Photo: Eri Oura

Today in Honolulu, a lively protest outside the East West Center greeted U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who delivered a speech on the U.S. vision for the Asia-Pacific region.  Protesters represented a wide range of groups and issues including anti-bases movements in Okinawa, Guam, The Philippines and Hawai’i, Palestinian support groups, peace and anti-war groups and Hawaiian sovereignty groups.

Col. Ann Wright (Retired) and the American Friends Service Committee – Hawai’i called the action with very short notice to send a message to the Obama administration that the peoples of the Asia-Pacific demand peace, not endless war and militarization.

A critical issue for Clinton on this visit was the disagreement between the U.S. and Japan over the fate of U.S. military bases in Okinawa.  Earlier in the day, she met with Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada to discuss Futenma air station, but was unable to reach a deal.

The U.S. has urged Japan to stick to an earlier agreement negotiated by the previous Japan and U.S. administrations that would relocate Futenma base to the pristine coral reefs of Henoko, Okinawa, and move thousands of marines and other facilities to Guam.   However, the new ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ), which recently ended a fifty-year reign by the conservative Liberal Democratic Party, has called for abandoning the agreement and seeking the complete removal of the Futenma base from Okinawa.  The Japanese government has delayed its decision on the fate of the Futenma air station.  If Futenma were to be moved off of Okinawa, it would most likely be relocated to the American colony of Guam, although the Japanese government has been scouting several of Japan’s smaller off-shore islands as possible relocation sites.

However many of Guam’s indigenous Chamorro people are deeply concerned about the devastating environmental, cultural and social impact of the proposed military expansion.  They feel that Chamorro culture would drown in the flood of militarization.  Ongoing public hearings on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed buildup have been packed, with the overwhelming majority opposing the military expansion.

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Photo: Eri Oura

Today’s demonstration in Honolulu highlighted solidarity between movements in Hawai’i, Okinawa and Guam and called for a different alternative: the reduction of the U.S. military footprint in the Pacific.  This would allow for bases to be removed from Okinawa, without moving the impacts and problems to Guam, Hawai’i or another location.

Kisha Borja-Kicho`cho` and Angela Hoppe Cruz, Chamorro students at the University of Hawai’i, sang a song in their native language.  Borja-Kicho’cho’ also recited an angry poem opposed to the military expansion. “We don’t want your military bases!” she said over the bullhorn as Clinton was greeted at the East West Center.

Ann Wright said “We want peace in the Pacific, not more militarization and wars. Get your bases out of the Pacific!”

Prior to Clinton’s arrival, security was thick.  Only invited guests were allowed within 100 feet of the Imin Conference Center.  However the line of banners and signs were visible to the attendees, and demonstrators chanting “Stop the wars!  Bases Out!” echoed between the buildings as Clinton was whisked from her car.  The chants continued to disrupt the event until security gave a final warning to the group to turn off the bullhorn.

The main banner read “Asia – Pacific Vision:  Peace”, “Bases Out – Guam – Okinawa – Hawai’i”, and “End the Wars.”  Another sign out in the shape of the endagered Okinawan Dugong, said “Peace for Okinawa”, “No Bases in Okinawa”, “Save the Dugong” and “Nuchi du Takara” (Life if most precious).  Another sign had the outline of Guam with “Asia – Pacific Vision, No Military Build-up”.  Groups also held signs opposing the militarization of Hawai’i, calling for an and to the wars and torture, and calling for the U.S. to stop supporting the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.  One demonstrator waved the upside-down Hawaiian flag, a sign of the nation in distress.

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Other coverage of Clinton’s visit and the demonstrations:

Hawaii News Now mentioned the demonstration:  “Protestors also showed up. About two dozen people held anti-war signs and chanted to attract attention. They weren’t allowed in to hear the speech.” The full story is here:   http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/Global/story.asp?S=11813005

The Honolulu Advertiser coverage of Clinton’s visit is here:   http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20100112/BREAKING/100112045/Clinton+reaffims+U.S.-Japan+relations

And here: http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/20100112/BREAKING01/100112050/Clinton+pledges+to+strengthen+Asia-Pacific+relationships

The Honolulu Star Bulletin coverage quotes Clinton as she restates the “indispensable nation” thesis:

“We are starting from a simple premise: America’s future is linked to the future of the Asia-Pacific region and the future of this region depends on America,” she said.

In an AP article published in the Honolulu Star Bulletin, the headline was failure:  “Clinton accepts Japan’s delay on US base decision”

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http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE60B5AE20100112

Military base deal eludes Clinton, Okada in Hawaii

HONOLULU

Tue Jan 12, 2010 3:52pm EST

HONOLULU (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada failed to reach a deal on Tuesday on a dispute over a U.S. military base, but pledged not to let it derail the broader relationship.

Clinton, after an 80-minute discussion with Okada in Hawaii, said she had again urged Tokyo to follow through on a deal to relocate the Marines’ Futenma base on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa, but allowed that this could take time to fully resolve.

“This is an issue that we view as very important,” Clinton told a news briefing. “But we are also working on so many other aspects of the global challenges that we face and we are going to continue to do that.”

Okada repeated that the government of Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama had pledged to make a final decision about Futenma by May, and remained committed to the broader U.S.-Japan security pact, which marks its 50th anniversary this year.

“We will come up with a conclusion by May so that there will be minimum impact on the Japan-U.S. alliance,” Okada said through a translator.

U.S. officials say relocating Futenma to a less crowded part of Okinawa — rather than off the island as many residents demand — is an important part of a broader realignment of U.S. forces amid China’s rising power and uncertainties over North Korea.

(Reporting by Andrew Quinn; Editing by Eric Walsh)

Mosquitoes of Makua

War of the small,

War of the flea,

Where the strongest bomb is human

Who is bursting to be free.

The moon will be my lantern,

And my heart will find the way

To sow the seeds of courage

That will blossom into day,

To blossom up a garden

So green before they came,

Our joy will be the sunshine,

And our tears will be the rain.

– Chris Iijima and Nobuko Miyamoto, War of the Flea

In the following article from the Honolulu Weekly, Sparky Rodrigues of Malama Makua compares the group’s approach to a mosquito biting an elephant. The metaphor evokes the classic description of guerrilla warfare as a “war of the flea”, where small resistance forces utilize asymmetry to their advantage. But the guerrilla strategy relies on mobility, improvisation, the ability to “hit and run” and the support of the community. The Army’s efforts to generate pro-military sentiment in the Wai’anae and Native Hawaiian communities seeks to remove the environment from which the Makua movement draws its support and suggests that the military is applying counterinsurgency methods to its public relations strategy as well as training mission in Makua. It challenges the Makua movement to evaluate how well we are applying these lessons in our strategies and tactics in the social and political arena.

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http://honoluluweekly.com/feature/2010/01/the-mosquitos-coast/

The mosquito’s coast

Is the Army committed to changing its tune in Mākua, or is it just paying lip-service?

Catherine Black

Jan 6, 2010

Resources

A clash of cultures, and some dialogue as well.  Image: Davd Henkin

When Malama Makua, represented by Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund, filed suit against the U.S. Army in 1998, it was a David and Goliath-type facedown, though the group’s president Sparky Rodrigues says its preferred metaphor is “a mosquito biting a rogue elephant as it crashes through the forest. We’re tiny, but we’ve been able to make it stop to itch.”

The Waianae non-profit organization’s original demand was that the Army conduct an Environmental Impact Statement, after a series of fires set off by its live-fire training exercises burned thousands of acres of environmentally and culturally sensitive land. In a 2001 settlement, the Army agreed to do the EIS and has not conducted any live-fire exercises (simulations of combat scenarios using “live” munitions) since 2004.

In July of 2009, however, it seemed as though the valley’s recovery period would end: The Army completed its EIS and issued a Record of Decision advocating a return to live-fire training in the valley.

Yet the mosquito bit again: in August, Malama Makua filed a claim contending that two studies required by the 2001 settlement were poorly conducted and not released for public comment, as mandated. The Army requested that the court dismiss this claim, but in November, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Oki Mollway denied the Army’s request, upholding Malama Makua’s argument that the studies’ methodologies were insufficient to test possible contamination threats to subsurface archeological remains and marine life.

“We have serious concerns about the adequacy of the EIS itself,” says Earthjustice attorney David Henkin, “but before dealing with that larger question, we are asking the court to resolve a threshold issue regarding these studies, which are inadequate. It’s basically a continuation of Malama Makua’s struggle with the Army since 1998, trying to force the Army to do an honest appraisal of the effects of training in a valley full of endangered species and cultural sites, and to address the question of why they can’t do this somewhere else and still accomplish their mission?”

Service, or lip-service?

The Army’s policy is to not comment on ongoing litigation, but local Army Garrison spokesman Dennis Drake signals a number of proposed mitigations to lessen the impact of training at Makua.

These include identifying and protecting culturally sensitive sites; eliminating some of the areas previously used for training such as Kaena Point and one of the valley ridges; investing in native species restoration efforts (the Army spends 10 million dollars annually on environmental protection in Hawaii, and contracts 28 biologists at Makua alone); and a cultural sensitivity training program for soldiers in Makua so that archeological sites–totaling more than 120, including at least two known heiau–are not damaged. The Army also recently launched a new Military Munitions Response Program to engage the community in the process of cleaning up unexploded weapons along the coastline.

Yet according to Rodrigues, “their cultural sensitivity is less than zero. They say they’re doing cultural sensitivity training, but what we’re finding is that it’s not about Hawaiian culture or the community’s culture, but the Army’s culture. Their talk about sensitivity is more for the sound bite, the news report, the press release.”

A changing strategy

The main question at issue is whether the Army’s live fire training–which involves mortar, artillery, anti-tank weapons, grenades and mines–can be done elsewhere. According to Drake, the Army’s new focus for Makua Valley training is in preparing soldiers for the type of situations that might be found in the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“We’re not doing force on force fighting now, but counter-insurgency training. The big one is defense against IEDs, because that’s the weapon that’s killing the most soldiers right now. So convoy live fire training is a critical task, because if you’re in a convoy and one of your convoy hits an IED and your convoy stops, they could be sitting ducks for an ambush situation.”

The Army recently announced plans to transform Makua Valley into a counterinsurgency training site over the next decade, though it defends its argument, outlined in the July Record of Decision, for conducting up to 32 combined live-fire exercises (what Makua Valley has been traditionally used for) and 130 convoy live-fire exercises (the newer counter-insurgency exercises) per year.

Henkin says, however, that the proposal makes clear it is both reasonable and feasible for the Army to move all of its combined arms training out of the valley.

“The Army should simply do that, rather than try to think of new training it can conduct at Makua,” he says. “After all, the Army has never satisfactorily answered the core question: why it thinks any training whatsoever at Makua is appropriate or vital for national security. No rational planner in the 21st century would decide to conduct military training in the midst of Makua’s biological and cultural treasures.”

Ultimately, Malama Makua and Earthjustice argue that the price for the Army’s live-fire training, which involve potential fire hazards, physical damage to historic sites and toxic waste contamination in an ahupuaa of rich historical, cultural and environmental resources (the area is home to 48 endangered plant and animal species, including the ‘elepaio bird and the endangered Oahu tree snail) is too high, even with the proposed mitigations.

The Army argues that 4,190-acre Makua valley is the only place on Oahu where soldiers can get the type of training they need in order to be prepared for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan without spending large amounts of money on transportation off-island or cutting into soldiers’ already reduced time at home with their families between deployments.

Although the military’s 133,000-acre Pohakuloa Training Area (PTA) on the island of Hawaii has been suggested as an option, “that alternative is not at all preferable for us,” says Drake. “It’s impractical and costly for small units to deploy to PTA and return each time they desire to train. A battalion or brigade deployment to PTA should occur only when their company-sized units are proficient to the level where they can integrate into a larger exercise.”

As long as Makua is a viable option for smaller-scale exercises, the Army’s reasoning “just makes common sense” says Drake. Doing the training off-island would require more money to ensure that soldiers get the same degree of combat preparation. Drake insists that as long as the Army needs to prepare soldiers for potential combat, there will be a need for a local training area for soldiers stationed in Hawaii. While these reasons don’t eliminate other ranges as possibilities, they do make Makua the most attractive one as long as the costs don’t outweigh the benefits.

A slow shift

This is all part of a larger, ongoing debate over the military’s impact in Hawai’i. For many environmental and cultural stakeholders the costs are too high, and as Rodrigues explains, the Waianae Coast’s military presence is a health and quality of life concern for the region’s already underserved, largely Hawaiian population.

Malama Makua’s outreach has helped to broaden the debate regarding military use of Waianae and state resources, and one positive outcome of the 2001 settlement is that the group has brought thousands of people into a valley that was previously off-limits to the public. They have been leading cultural accesses twice a month since 2002, including overnight Makahiki ceremonies, Christmas vigils and Easter Sunrise services.

“We take everybody back there, students, neighbors, people from other parts of Oahu, even military personnel…in fact it’s good to take people who don’t agree with us,” says Fred Dodge, one of the group’s directors. This, along with participation in many of the coastline’s community organizations, is how Malama Makua is attempting to educate the broader public about the valley’s cultural and ecological importance.

Ultimately the question comes down to how worthwhile it will be for the Army to maintain its training at this particular site. In the coming months, Judge Mollway will likely hear arguments from both sides on whether the Army complied with the settlement agreement, or whether it can return to live-fire training. In the meantime, the soldiers, the community and the valley itself await an outcome that will determine which vision of Makua will prevail.

To view the Army’s EIS, visit [garrison.hawaii.army.mil]
Malama Makua will host a fundraiser yard sale Sat 1/9 & Sun 1/10 at 86-024 Glenmonger Street in Waianae.

Judge sustains Makua complaint

http://www.starbulletin.com/news/20091120_Judge_sustains_Makua_complaint.html

Judge sustains Makua complaint

The ruling reveals doubt about whether Army environmental surveys were sufficient

By Gregg K. Kakesako

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Nov 20, 2009

A federal judge has sided with Hawaiian activists who want the Army to stop training in Makua Military Reservation, putting the military on notice that it will have to show that maneuvers in the Leeward valley would not contaminate ocean resources or damage cultural sites.

U.S. District Chief Judge Susan Oki Mollway’s actions keep alive a request by the organization Malama Makua to have the court set aside the Army’s environmental impact statement until it completes more marine contamination studies and archaeological surveys.

The Army completed the EIS in June, and in August filed a motion seeking to dismiss Malama Makua’s complaint.

In denying the Army’s motion Wednesday, Mollway wrote that the Army does not have the sole right to determine what qualifies as a survey.

“Taken to its logical conclusion, the Army’s argument would allow the Army to satisfy its burden by poking a stick into the ground and calling that action a ‘survey,'” the judge wrote.

Earthjustice attorney David Henkin, who has represented Malama Makua since 2000, said that he hopes that Mollway will act early next year to permanently bar further training in Makua before the Army resumes any operations using live ammunition.

The Army, which conducted both a survey of cultural sites and several scientific studies on possible water and soil contamination, has said it had met all terms of their October 2001 settlement agreement with Malama Makua.

Under the terms of the agreement, the Army was required to conduct studies to determine the potential for training activities to contaminate fish, shellfish, limu and other marine resources off Makua beach. The Army was also required to prepare subsurface archaeological surveys to identify cultural sites that could be damaged or destroyed by training.

“At the hearing on this motion, the Army argued that it was entitled to summary judgment because the settlement agreement only required it to do a study, which it did,” Mollway wrote. “The Army contended that what kind of study it did was in its sole discretion. At the hearing, the Army went so far as to argue that it could have satisfied the ‘study’ requirement by simply having a luau, serving food from the area and seeing whether anyone got sick.”

Malama Makua President Sparky Rodrigues said: “For years we’ve been insisting that the Army tell the community the truth about the threats that training at Makua poses to irreplaceable subsistence and cultural resources. Now the court has told the Army that it can’t get away with junk science.”

Said Earthjustice attorney Henkin: “To make a rational decision about whether to allow training at Makua, it’s vital that decision-makers and the public have accurate information about the harm to public health and cultural sites that resuming training at Makua could cause. This ruling puts the Army on notice that the court will not allow the Army to pass off woefully inadequate studies as meaningful.”

Dennis Drake, an Army spokesman, yesterday said it is Army policy not to comment on ongoing litigation: “We will abide with the dictates of the court.”

In August Col. Matthew Margotta, commander of U.S. Army Garrison Hawaii, said the Army hoped to resume live-fire training before the end of summer since it believed that the environmental statement completed in June fulfilled its legal obligations. However, no training with live-fire ammunition has taken place.

The Army has said that it needs to rebuild several dirt roads and firing ranges in the training area damaged by heavy rain last year. The Army stopped live-fire training in the 4,190-acre valley in 2004, pending completion of the EIS.

VIDEO: Ohana Hoopakele wants puuhonua at Kulani

Watch video of the ‘Ohana Ho’opakele press conference on Hawai’i island against the closing and militarization of Kulani prison and for a pu’uhonua (place of refuge and healing).

http://www.bigislandvideonews.com/2009/11november/20091120kulani.htm

VIDEO: Ohana Hoopakele wants puuhonua at Kulani

Ohana Hoopakele holds press conference

November 20, 2009 – Hilo, Hawaii

VIDEO by David Corrigan

As the sun sets on the operation of the Kulani Correctional Facility, a group opposed to the closure held a press conference in Hilo on Thursday to present an alternative.

Ohana Ho’opakele made a statement to the media in front of the Hale Kaulike splintered paddle sculpture, calling for 3 points of action: keep the Kulani minimum security prison open and functioning, allow Ohana Ho’opakele to work with the Department of Public Safety to build a functioning Pu’uhonua at Kulani, and “No military training at Kulani by the State Department of Defense or the U.S. Military.”

The group pointed to a Board of Land and Natural Resources meeting held on Oahu on Thursday, where the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was seeking the issuance of a Right-of -Entry Permit for Kulani Correctional Facility. Ohana Hoopakele said they fear the area will eventually be turned into a military training area.

The Hawaii National Guard has already said they plan to establish a Youth Challenge Academy at Kulani.

The group hopes the pu`uohonua plan, if it ever comes to pass, would serve as the model for rehabilitation across the state. The area would become a place of refuge, under the Hawaiian process of ho’oponopono (to make right). It would also teach sustainability, stewardship, and other rehabilitative programs like the ones already employed at Kulani.

Ohana Ho`opakele says they are getting a related bill together for the upcoming legislative session.

Dead Last: Hawaii Gets an “F” in Education

http://www.truthout.org/1106098

Dead Last: Hawaii Gets an “F” in Education

Friday 06 November 2009

by: Jon Letman, t r u t h o u t | News Analysis

Hawaii’s public schools are in crisis.

Simply put, there isn’t enough money to keep them open full-time. With the State of Hawaii facing a $1 billion budget deficit through the middle of 2011 and a $468 million budget cut to Hawaii’s Department of Education, in September the Hawaii State Teachers Association (HSTA) voted to accept a two-year contract that includes 17 furlough days for both the 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 academic years.

Commonly referred to in the islands as “furlough Fridays,” the cuts have been scheduled for regular school days, reducing Hawaii’s public instruction from 180 days to 163, the fewest in the nation and ten days less than the state second from the bottom, North Dakota.

The classroom cuts were made despite President Obama and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s call for the nation’s schools to increase the amount of classroom time so that the US can better compete in the global marketplace.

With what was, for most parents, an unexpected and unwelcome surprise, the furloughs have sparked a firestorm of debate in which state politics, budget priorities and questions about the impact school cuts will have on students, their families and the state have all come to a head.

There is no shortage of frustration to go around, particularly among parents of public school children. One such parent is Jack Yatsko, a PTSA member and the father of fifth and eighth grade daughters on the island of Kauai. At an anti-furlough rally he helped organize one week prior to the first furlough day, Yatsko said in a speech before Kauai’s state building, “our kids are not poker chips in a high stakes game of budget and contract negotiations.”

Yatsko pointed out that in 2005 and 2006, the Department of Education consistently informed parents that if their child missed 10 or more days of school without a medical excuse, they could be prosecuted for educational neglect.

Of the 34 furlough days planned this year and next, Yatsko said, “this is educational neglect.”

Another parent on Kauai, Nadine Nakamura, has a son in fourth grade and daughter in eighth grade. Nakamura is also a PTSA member and is chair of her School Community Council.

Like Yatsko, she sees a web of blame-game being played. “Everyone is pointing to the other group, saying, ‘it wasn’t us.’ The governor says she wasn’t involved in negotiations. The legislature says the governor wouldn’t raise taxes, then you have the Board of Education and Department of Education saying the legislature and governor shouldn’t have cut their budget in the first place. Some are saying parents should have rallied a long time ago. One state legislator says, “I can’t believe the teachers approved [a contract with furloughs].”

Senate Majority Leader Gary Hooser, among the most vocal state legislators calling for a special legislative session to examine possible alternatives to the furlough days, calls the classroom cuts “unacceptable.”

In an op-ed piece in the Honolulu Advertiser, Hooser suggested a using a portion of a $180 million Hurricane Relief Fund as one way to keep schools open. Hooser has also called for reforming Hawaii’s general excise tax which, unlike most states, generates the bulk of Hawaii’s education funding. So-called “new sin taxes” on soda, processed and fast food, and petroleum oils are potential revenue generators, Hooser wrote.

According to Wil Okabe, president of the Hawaii State Teachers Association, Hawaii’s public schools, which operate as a single school district, cost $5 million a day to run. The latest two-year contract, approved by 81 percent of voting teachers, reduces their pay by nearly 8 percent as it slashes instructional days for students.

And while Hawaii received over $157 million in stimulus funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, money intended to keep the state from cutting education services, Okabe indicated that it was Governor Lingle who imposed 14 percent budget cuts on the Department of Education while using stimulus money for balancing the state budget. Okabe called it a “shell game.”

He added that Hawaii’s schools do have the opportunity, if they choose, to individually vote to exchange non-instructional work time such as “professional development” or “wavier days” for cancelled class days as an alternative to furlough Fridays.

One woman who knows Hawaii’s education system intimately is Maggie Cox. Currently serving her second four-year term as Kauai’s representative to the Board of Education, Cox has worked as a teacher, vice principal and principal for 40 years in Hawaii. She also served on the negotiating committee for the contracts that include the 17 furlough days.

Cox says that if the governor or state legislature wanted to “bail out” the schools, they could have done so last spring. If they provide the funds, she says, the schools can return to offering full instruction.

While stressing that the Board of Education reduced classroom cuts by over 50 percent (from Lingle’s originally requested 36 days to 17), Cox said, “we did the best we could to have as little impact on the schools as possible.” She concedes that reduced classroom time means some subjects won’t be covered or covered as well (in the classroom). Cox also noted that prior to the furlough days, Hawaii’s academic year was 180 days, in keeping with the majority of public schools across the country but, as she acknowledged, well below that of countries in Europe and Asia.

“When you look at other nations, teachers’ salaries and schools are top priority. The budgets are there for them,” Cox said.

According to Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study 2003 research, the average number of instructional days in Korea, Japan and China was over 221, with Australia, Russia, England and Canada all between 188 and 196 days. With the latest cuts, students in Hawaii could have up to 12 weeks less class time a year than those in East Asia.

Meanwhile, nearly one-third of Hawaii’s public schools are in restructuring as they attempt to meet federal No Child Left Behind requirements and Hawaii’s fourth and eighth graders’ test scores lag behind in National Assessment of Educational Progress rankings.

Here a cut, there a cut

Hawaii’s state employee furloughs haven’t been limited to educators and school employees. One furloughed state employee is Raymond Catania, a social services assistant with the Department of Human Services, Child Services, and an 18-year veteran with the state.

Catania, who has two teenage daughters, one a sophomore at Kauai High School, pulls no punches.

“By forcing teachers to take furloughs, it hits our children. Rich families can send their kids to Punahou (where Obama studied) or other private schools, but the working class can’t afford that so our kids get cheated.”

“The governor got what she wanted – furloughs and layoffs,” Catania said, blaming the Lingle administration for not raising the general excise tax in a bid to please what he called “the business community she represents.”

All options, including the hurricane fund, tax increases and the introduction of a lottery to generate revenue, should be examined, Catania said, adding that the governor shares blame for the school cuts with the teachers’ union leadership.

“They (HSTA) were in the best position to resist the furloughs. There was far more sympathy for teachers and kids than for state workers like me. If the union refused to accept furloughs, there would have been a lot of public support, but they gave in and settled quickly.”

And while many argue that temporary furloughs are better than layoffs, Catania disagrees. “Some elements in the community say, ‘at least we’ve got our jobs.’ The slaves had jobs. So what? My wife and I have three jobs and we can’t even pay our bills and we’re not alone.”

In a state with some of the highest living costs in the nation, where salaries are consistently lower than national averages, Catania’s frustrations are not uncommon. The furloughs and classroom cuts have only rubbed salt in open wounds.

Catania said that with Hawaii’s huge military presence, it is painful to see military expenditures increase, while the host state suffers what he considers disproportionate cuts to education and human services.

Some State of Hawaii education officials expressed similar criticisms of burgeoning military budgets while education programs are slashed, but refused to be quoted by name.

On Oahu, Kyle Kajihiro, program director for the American Friends Service Committee, an international Quaker-founded nonprofit that works for development, peace programs and social justice, sees the current economic crisis as a pretext to cut programs for political or ideological reasons. He said the cuts are indicative of the state’s priorities.

“I have to question why the defense budget keeps going up and up and schools keep getting cut. It’s unconscionable.” Citing the National Priorities Project, Kajihiro points out that since 2001 Hawaii residents have paid a $3 billion share of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. “For that same money, Hawaii could have funded 54,718 elementary school teachers for a year,” he said. Hawaii has around 13,000 public school teachers.

Long-term effects of school cuts include lowering Hawaii’s competitiveness and ability to diversify its economy, keeping Hawaii dependent on federal handouts and tied to an economy based on the military and tourism, Kajihiro said.

Instead, Kajihiro said that because Hawaii is an isolated state with finite land and natural resources and heavily reliant on imported food and energy, it could also be a case study of best practices that could apply to the rest of the planet.

“There is experience here based on ancient Hawaiian models that we could be capitalizing on to create a new paradigm of economic development and sustainability, but we need to foster young people with the necessary imagination and schooling to become global leaders.”

“Politicians and community leaders always say children are our future. This is the time they need to prove that they mean it by funding our schools and investing in education.”

——–

Jon Letman is a freelance writer in Hawaii. He writes about politics, society, culture and conservation on the island of Kauai. He can be contacted at jonletman@hawaiian.net.

Hilo groups will protest Strykers on parade

According to the Honolulu Advertiser article Strykers will be included in the Hilo Veterans parade:

Organizers hoped to keep word of the vehicles a secret from peace activists like Jim Albertini of the Malu Aina Center for Non-Violent Education and Action, in an attempt to ward off conflict.

Albertini found out anyway, and on Sunday wrote an open letter to Lt. Col. Warline Richardson of Pohakuloa Training Area, asking that the vehicles be kept out of the parade.

Albertini says he’s concerned that the presence of the vehicles “glorifies war” under the guise of honoring veterans. He’s also raised concerns that the Strykers, which are involved in training exercises at Pohakuloa, could be contaminated with depleted uranium and may pose a health risk to citizens.

Richardson called Albertini on Monday to confirm that two Strykers would be in the parade, but they would be unarmed command vehicles. There would be numerous other, non-controversial vehicles in the parade, including an ambulance and transport vehicles.

Strykers (and DU) on Parade in Hilo?

Mahalo to Joan Conrow and the Hawaii Independent for this article about Hilo residents’ opposition to Strykers and possible Depleted Uranium contamination being in the Veteran’s Day Parade. 

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http://thehawaiiindependent.com/page-one/read/veterans-parade-hit-with-du-concerns/

Hilo Veterans’ Day parade hit with depleted uranium concerns

Nov 05, 2009 – 12:35 PM | By Joan Conrow | The Hawaii Independent

HILO—Plans to include vehicles from Hawaii Island’s Pohakuloa Training Area (PTA) in Saturday’s Veteran’s Day parade in Hilo have met opposition from those concerned about glorifying war and possible contamination by depleted uranium (DU).

Jim Albertini, director of the Malu Aina Center for Non-violent Education & Action, said that after event organizers told him Stryker vehicles would be participating in the parade, he wrote to Lt. Col. Warline S. Richardson, the PTA’s commanding officer, to express his concerns.

“Including Stryker vehicles in the parade is a provocative action that glorifies war disguised as honoring veterans,” Albertini wrote in his October 30 letter. “I urge that Strykers and other combat weapons be kept out of the parade. To parade these killing machines through our peaceful streets desensitizes young and old to the horrors of war.

“As you know, basing Strykers in Hawaii has been a major controversy,” the letter continued. “Their use of Depleted Uranium (DU) weapons in Iraq contaminating that country forever is equally controversial, and likely related to the Gulf War Syndrome that has effected [sic] the health of hundreds of thousands of disabled U.S. veterans and millions of Iraqi citizens. The fact that these Strykers are currently doing live-fire training at Pohakuloa, known to be contaminated with DU, risks spreading that contamination, endangering the health and safety of troops and the citizens of this island. Bringing these Strykers, that may be contaminated with DU, down the streets of Hilo adds insult to injury.”

Albertini said that Richardson contacted him early the next morning and said she was willing to keep mobile weapons out of the parade in order to avoid a protest, and instead would send “command Strykers” that were outfitted with communications equipment rather than weaponry.

But he said Richardson was not receptive when he raised the concern that any vehicles from PTA could be contaminated with DU oxide: “I don’t think she takes that issue very seriously.”

Albertini said that fear about possible DU contamination from the training area was widespread on the Big Island, and had prompted the Hawaii County Council to pass a 2008 resolution “ordering a complete halt to B-2 bombing missions and all live firing exercises and other actions at PTA that create dust until there’s an assessment and clean up of the depleted uranium already present.”

When contacted by The Hawaii Independent, Richardson said: “Those vehicles aren’t contaminated. What would they be contaminated with?” Richardson also denied that she had agreed to let command Strykers participate in the parade. “I don’t control those vehicles,” she said.

“She’s telling two different stories,” Albertini countered.

Loran Doane, media relations chief for the U.S. Army Garrison, said that event organizers had asked the Army to participate in the parade, but “no final determination has been made as to exact form that participation will take.” He said a decision likely would be made by noon Friday.

He also said that the Army has a “process and standards for cleaning military vehicles before entry into the U.S.”

The fact sheet for cleaning vehicles states: “Those identified as contaminated with DU are wrapped in plastic and tarps (encased) to prevent the spread of any removable contamination or residues. They are then shipped through the Port of Charleston, South Carolina, to the U.S. Army’s Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), Maryland. Here, the vehicles are assessed for decontamination and repair, or for recovery of parts.”

Richardson also said she could not understand the objection to Styrkers. “It’s just a wheeled type of a piece of equipment. I just don’t understand a little bit of the concern,” she said, likening them to Toyota releasing a new version of the Maxima. ”Part of it is education. That’s why you want to let them participate in parades.”

Meanwhile, Major Doug Rokke (Ret.), the former director of the U.S. Army Depleted Uranium project, issued a statement in response to the parade plans that read:

“Any and all combat vehicles and equipment (everything) returned from Iraq should be prohibited from any civilian area. A standard wash rack is useless for decontamination. Keep all contaminated equipment isolated to the army post. Army regulation 700-48, section 2-4 requires isolation from all human contact.

“Even after extensive depot level cleaning, I found DU and other radiological, chemical, and biological contamination in vehicles years later.

“The gross contamination of equipment, vehicles, terrain, air, water, soil, and food is reflected in, and verified by, the hundreds of thousands of U.S. casualties with serious medical problems that are unrelated to bullets or bombs, but are directly related to all of these toxic exposures.

“Hawaii’s isolated and pristine environment should not be exposed to, and consequently placed in danger through, any exposure to any of the contaminants brought back by the U.S. military from war zones.”

Dr. Lorrin Pang, a consultant to the Big Island County Council on the issue of DU, also advised caution, noting that Dr. Rosalie Bertell has said the weaponry causes nano-particles to be released, as well as DU oxide.

“There is a newly recognized associated threat called nanotoxicity, especially from small metallic particles,” Pang said in a written statement. “Yet another unknown. With so many unknowns I suggest we adhere to the precautionary principle and honor our veterans by not further exposing them (and the public) to further unknown agents. Remember both Rokke and I are former Army and we are still watching out for the soldiers.”

 

‘Ike: Historical Transformations: Reading Hawai’i’s Past to Probe Its Future

‘Ike: Historical Transformations: Reading Hawai’i’s Past to Probe Its Future

Download the event flyer

DATE:  Saturday, October 24th, 2009, 10am-5pm

FEATURED PRESENTERS:

  • Kamana Beamer
  • Lorenz Gonschor
  • Kūhiō Vogeler
  • moderated by Lynette Cruz
  • Kekuni Blaisdell
  • Ikaika Hussey
  • Terri Kekoolani
  • Jon Osorio
  • J. Kehaulani Kauanui
  • Maivân Clech Lâm
  • Keanu Sai
  • moderated by Jon Osorio

and others yet to be confirmed:

Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies (Map/Directions)

2645 Dole St. Honolulu, HI 96822

Info: Attendance is free.

1. Recovering our Political Past: Who Votes? For What Political Status? As Hawaii continues to experience a series of political transformations first launched by its contact with the West and continuing now through the introduction of the Akaka Bill in the U.S. Congress, we focus on two key issues that substantially shaped those transformations: WHO made the decisions that produced the transformations, and what CHOICES did they consider and not consider? Key historical moments will be presented through speeches as might have been delivered in 1882, 1888, 1893, 1898, 1959, 2000, 2009. Presenters include Kuhio Vogeler, Kamana Beamer, Lorenz Gonshor, and others TBD. Moderated by Lynette Cruz.

Co-sponsored by Ka Lei Maile Ali’i Hawaiian Civic Clubs. 10:00 am.

2. History of Hawaiian Political Activism: 1887 to the Present. Kekuni Blaisdell, Ikaika Hussey, Terri Kekoolani, and Jon Osorio examine the various individuals and/or historical developments that were key to the several political transformations of Hawaii since Kamehameha I first established it as a united kingdom. Exploring among others, some of the various political groups in the 19th century Hawaiian Kingdom, the Ku’e petitions, the 1960 land struggles, the 1993 Sovereignty Tribunal, as well as contemporary examples as to how current political activism might redefine the map of Hawai’i’s political future.

Co-sponsored by M.A.N.A. and Kanaka Maoli Tribunal Working Group.12:30 pm.

3. International Routes: De-occupation, Decolonization and the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Keanu Sai, J. Kehaulani Kauanui, and Maivan Lam discuss the modern trajectory of the Hawaiian Islands within the context of, among other topics, Hague Regulations on the law of occupation, the U.N. Decolonization Protocols, and the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. This panel seeks to assess the relative merits that are rooted in international relations and international law, and which offer far fuller redress for the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy than is contemplated in, for example, the U.S. Congress’ Akaka Bill.

Co-sponsored by Ka Pakaukau. 3:00 pm.

‘Ike: Historical Transformations is presented by Kamakakuokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies and ‘Imi Pono Projects.

All times subject to change, please check back for confimation.

For more information contact arnie@imipono.org

stills/photos by Jon Brekke, unknown and David Ma

Women Activists Explore Post-military economy

Activists explore post-military economy

Friday, 18 September 2009 03:18 MVG Reporter

PEOPLE will have to work together if they want to sustain an economy after the military. This was emphasized during the fourth day of the 7th Meeting of the International Network of Women Against Militarism at the University of Guam in Mangilao.

The morning a panel focused on the topic “Beyond the Military Economy: Exploring Alternatives for Sustainability.”

Participating were Alma Bulawan of the Buklod Center Philippines, Dr. Hannah Middleton of the Australian Anti-Base Campaign, Dr. Miyume Tanji of Curtin University of Technology in Australia, and Isabella Sumang of Palau.

Each panelist gave a perspective of the impact the military has had on their respective regions.

Bulawan had indicated that when there were bases in the Philippines, businesses were set up to cater to the military as well as prostitution. It appears now that with those bases closed, businesses and the prostitution still remain.

She referred to the Subic Bay and Clark Freeport Zones, which formerly hosted the U.S. Naval Base and the Air Force Base and have each seen the creation and development of businesses.

Despite the conversion of the old bases, Bulawan said the Philippines continues to face economic challenges.

As for Australia, Middleton explained how millions of Australian dollars are spent on military defense and other armed forces programs. A recent poll showed that 70 percent of Australians do not want any more money spent on the military.

She added that the Australians believe the money should go on helping the environment, improving hospitals and even to create jobs.

“We expect one million Australians will be unemployed in 2010, money should be spent to help them find jobs,” she said.

During the open forum, several concerns were brought up including a question on whether they felt that the threat of an invasion and war is real here in Micronesia.

Sumang responded that it could be the case especially when there is a military presence. “You have that threat hanging over your head,” she said.

Middleton offered another perspective saying that the threat is an excuse to keep military bases in the region.

“It’s not real,” she pointed out.

The women’s conference concludes today at the Carmel on the Hill Retreat Center in Malojloj or the former Carmelite Convent.

Participants are expected to discuss Human Trafficking and Prostitution and gather together in group meetings to develop short term and long term goals.

The conference wraps up with an art celebration featuring music, visual artworks and poetry reading starting at 6 p.m.

Source: http://mvguam.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=8568:activists-explore-post-military-economy&catid=1:guam-local-news&Itemid=2