HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0377.450 2024-2026From: Hoku Liu Akana
Sent: Tuesday, September 2, 2025 11:55 AM
To: Council Testimony
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Subject: Protect Pohakuloa - Hawaii County Council Resolution 234-25
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Testimony in Strong Support of Resolution 234-25
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Regarding Use of Pohakuloa,Hawaii IslandNO
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Aloha Chair, Vice -Chair, and Members of the Committee,
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I write in strong support of Resolution 234-25. This measure takes a clear and necessary stand in
defense of Hawai`i's lands, waters, and people.
The continued military use of Pohakuloa has already left behind a legacy of contamination, destruction,
and displacement. To move forward responsibly, we must reject all land swaps and tease renewals,
and instead require a comprehensive cleanup, restoration, and bioremediation of Pohakuloa.
Anything less would allow further desecration and environmental damage to compound what has
already been done.
Furthermore, I strongly condemn any backroom deals between the Governor and the military. Such
secret agreements are unlawful and directly undermine the rights, interests, and voices of the Kanaka
Maoli and the broader community of Hawaii. Decisions of this magnitude must be made transparently,
with public accountability, and with the well-being of future generations as the highest priority.
Resolution 234-25 affirms what many in Hawai'i have long known: our `aina is not expendable, our waters
are not replaceable, and the rights of the Kanaka Maoli cannot be ignored or negotiated away in the
shadows.
For these reasons, I urge you to pass Resolution 234-25 and stand firmly for cleanup, restoration, and
justice at Pohakuloa.
Mahalo nui loa for your time and consideration.
Respectfully submitted,
M. Hoku Akana, MedEL
Kanaka Maoli Resident
808-330-3147
Smile and appreciate the world around you; Don't be afraid to love & bless people the way that God
loves & blessed you Il Aloha kekahi 1 kekahi —
Comm.
Ref. To:
1 Ref. Date FEW-1 2025
"To acquiesce is to lose ourselves entirely and implicitly agree with all that has been said about us. To resist is to retrench
in the margins, retrieve what we were and remake communities, cultures, languages, and social practices -- all may be
spaces of marginalization, but they have also become spaces of resistance and hope" Linda Tuhiwai Smith
"Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand." — Chinese Proverb
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