TMT OPPONENTS HIGHLY CRITICAL OF OHA DECISION
Empire Star Tribune - May 1, 2015
A decision was finally handed down by the trustees of the Office of Hawaiians Affairs yesterday and that is to pullout their support in the building of the Thirty Meter Telescope. However, they are not outright opposing it. The decision, nevertheless, didn’t sit well with those who are against the project.It was in the year 2009 the board of trustees expressed their support in the building of the $1.4 billion gigantic telescope but now they had to rescind it due to the relentless demonstration adopted against the project. The final straw was after the police arrested 31 of demonstrators’ during the early part of this month when they blocked the passage to the construction site.
Trustees could have voted for any of these 3 measures such as maintaining their support for the project, oppose or take back their previous decision or just take a middle ground stand. They’ve been listening arguments from both those who are for and against it and in the end they’ve decided to just rescind their present position and stopped short in deciding to oppose it outright.
“We have the opportunity to send a strong message that it is no longer business as usual for Hawaiians,” said trustee Dan Ahuna.
Peter Apo, one of the Trustees said their decision to rescind without opposing it would give the OHA a window in allowing more discussions to the matter with the final goal of removing all the other telescopes already installed on the hollowed grounds of the mountain.
It’s not clear yet what will be the final effect of the OHA’s of decision to the project. The main aim of the office is to safeguard the wellbeing of Hawaiians.
“We are naturally disappointed that the Office of Hawaiian Affairs has changed its position on the Thirty Meter Telescope project. However, we are by no means discouraged,” TMT International Observatory Board Chairman Henry Yang said in a statement. “We must now redouble our commitment to respectfully continuing dialogue and engagement with OHA and all other stakeholders.”
Some of those who are against the project were dismayed by the decision of the OHA.
One of the protestors who was arrested earlier was Kuuipo Freitas, is a student who is taking up a master’s degree in Hawaiian language and literature at the University of Hawaii’s Hilo campus.
“Standing for the mauna, the biggest gain of all will be the support and trust of the Hawaiian people,” she told the board before the vote. “That’s what OHA has been striving for, for years.”
The rental and financial aid that the telescope foundation has promised for education is “soft money,” she said. “OHA needs to stop bowing down to the dollar and starting bowing down to the mauna.”
