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Council Testimony September 19a' 2007 Madame Councilwomen and councilmen; I have sat before you numerous times in the last year as we have debated the future of the ahupua'a of Punalu'u. Each time I and my associates, members of Ka'u preservation and the wider community shared with you our hope and vision for this very special place and sacred lands. You aze awaze of all that has transpired in the various hearings. You have heazd the pros and cons of a development and the pros and cons of making a park on the Ahupua'a of Punalu'u. I believe that you have felt that in general the testimony was heaztfelt and sincere. AND that it was presented in a respectful atmosphere where various positions could be shazed. In the biggest hearing on June 4a' in Na'alehu over 450 residents showed up and testified until almost midnight. Of those who spoke and those who attended over two thirds of them were opposed to the development and favored the pazk being created. The chairperson of that meeting,Mr Yagong, praised all who attended for the respect that they showed to their fellow citizens when they testified. Yet,the mediators in their report have indicated that people they interviewed felt intimidated by Ka'u Preservation. Up until now, we have been quiet regarding the allegations that have been made against us and pazticulazly against the leadership of Ka'u Preservation. We had eazly on identified a conscious effort on the part of the developer to split the community by grabbing onto very old rivaMes and then using them to divide the community. We refused to bite. We went on with our efforts in spite of these attacks. It has been the main concerted effort of the developers and those that they enlisted in their cause to plant endless doubts about our sincerity and commitment to the key issues of the resolution of the development or non development of the Punalu'u Ahupua'a. Eazly on they began using words like thugs and bullies to describe us. Somewhere they conveniently ignored the host of experts in the fields of anthropology,azcheology,marine sciences, urban planning and cultural practitioners who came ,often at great expense of time and distance, to testify to the need to preserve the Ahupua'a of Punalu'u. Were they thugs and bullies ?And when us common folk testified with our heart and soul were we the thugs and bullies ? I must confess that it was a masterfiil campaign carefully orchestrated and directed using the old tactic of consistency.....no matter what the facts ALWAYS refer to the Ka'u Preservation folks as thugs and bullies. To be successful it was necessary to ignore any effort of reconciliation by Ka'u Preservation. On the night of June 4a', after the very long hearing, I walked crossed the gym floor to greet Mr. Enriques. I told him of our developing plan to hold a cultural and music festival. I asked him to allow me to come and talk to his members about the festival. He responded that the festival was away of making money for our cause and a propaganda tool. I repeated my request and his response was I don't think so. I reassured him that I was ,at that very time, pursuing additional grants so that the festival would be a free event and that the primary purpose was COMMUNITY BUILDING....bringing people together. I also told him that I fully expected that Ka'u Preservation would realize zero profit. A prediction that was to be fulfilled on September ls~ and 2"a con,. Na. 3 ~ 9.913 Ref. To:e!yee!-' Ref. Date