Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 12, Number 2, 1 February 1995 — HSEC steams ahead with plebiscite reqistration [ARTICLE]

HSEC steams ahead with plebiscite reqistration

bv Jeff CIark OHA Trustee Kīna'u Boyd Kamali'i, OHA's representative on the Hawaiian Sovereignty Elections Council (HSEC), says job one for the body is educating Hawaiians about the upcoming plebiscite and registering them to take part. The word will be spread through TV, radio, and a big eoncert at Kualoa Ranch tentatively scheduled for July. Kamali'i disagreed with the suggestion that the need for educational and promotional efforts shows that perhaps the eall for sovereignty has subsided. She said these efforts are meant to ensure that the people ean include themselves in the process for whieh they clamored at 'Iolani Palaee two years ago on the anniversary of the overthrow. "The eall is out there - there's no question about it," she affirmed. Aside from education, HSEC's workplan includes distributing registration forms, deciding how

votes will be counted, making decisions regarding apportionment and number of delegates, and setting logistics for the eonvention itself in the event the answer to the plebiscite is "yes." The plebiscite question is: "Shall the Hawaiian people elect delegates to propose a native Hawaiian government?" That will be answered by Hawaiians 18 and over, whether they live in Hawai'i or elsewhere. A disclaimer printed on the ballot will state that Hawaiians are not relinquishing any of their inherent rights to land or sovereignty if the majority answers "no."

Those who voted in the 1994 OHA election are automatically registered for the plebiscite, whieh will be conducted by mail. Others must fill out an affidavit and application for voter registration. Registration forms will be available from the HSEC office. Prison inmates will be included in the plebiscite (in the U.S. system prisoners lose their voting

rights); Kamali'i said the HSEC members "felt it was a right for all Hawaiians to vote on the plebiscite. Some (members) said it would be giving them false hope; no - it's real hope that they are not forgotten Hawaiians." Kamali'i said inmates will be unable to vote for convention delegates but able to vote on whether to ratify the document produced by the convention. On the issue of a possibly tainted voter list, Kamali'i aeknowledged reports of non-Hawaiians voting in the last OHA election. She said the state Attorney General and the City and County of Honolulu should enforce the law against election fraud, for one, and that the Legislature should appropriate funds to elean up the current OHA voter list. There is currently no solution, she conceded, but added that the Hawaiian home lands waiting list

and OHA's Operation 'Ohana enrollment could be used as bases for voter registration. Regarding the number of eonvention delegates, HSEC members calculated that having 200 delegates would end up costing about $8 million, so they are looking at the alternative of having just 100, Kamali'i said.

Here is the timeline: Jan. 17 - registration began Nov. 30 - registration ends Nov. 15 - ballot mailing begins Dec. 29 - deadline for ballots to be received Jan. 17, 1996 - plebiscite results announced If the answer to the plebiscite is YES: Feb. 1996 - March 1997 - island hālāwai (pre-convention meetings on issues of island and eommunity importance), delegate election planning, sovereignty education

May 1997 - election of delegates July 1997 - convention begins Kamali'i said HSEC will dissolve by the start of the convention. "Onee the dates for the eonvention are set, we're pau. Our work is done." Last year, the Legislature cut HSEC's budget in half and OHA funded the other half with trust funds. That may happen again, but not if Kamali'i ean help it. "The Legislature has no authority to tell OHA how to expend trust funds," she said. HSEC's strategy for the budget is to "let it ride its bumpy ride over there" at the Legislature and then see what happens, said Kamali'i. HSEC's budget proposal includes staff raises but those are reflective of gains made through collective bargaining so are not out of the ordinary, Kamali'i said. The HSEC phone number is 587-2834.