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NAGPRA Issues in Hawaii, 2023.

Coverage of NAGPRA-related topics in Hawaii first came to this website in 2003 when the national NAGPRA review committee decided to devote its national meeting to the Kawaihae (Forbes Cave) controversy. Forbes cave was the most intensively covered topic from 2003 to 2007. But other topics also came to public attention, including Bishop Museum, the Emerson collection repatriated and reburied at Kanupa Cave, the discovery of ancient bones during a major construction project at Ward Center (O'ahu), construction of a house built above burials at the shorefront at Naue, Ha'ena, Kaua'i; etc.

Eventually a "mother page" for NAGPRA issues in Hawaii was created, explaining the dispute between the the ethnic Hawaiian activist group Hui Malama i na Kupuna o Hawai'i Nei" headed by Eddie Ayau, which favors repatriation/reburial, vs. some recognized ethnic Hawaiian cultural leaders. For example, Rubellite Kawena Johnson was a claimant opposing Hui Malama for control of the Mokapu bones; Herb Kawainui Kane was a claimant competing against Hui Malama for control of the Forbes Cave artifacts; and both Ms. Johnson and Mr. Kane publicly opposed Hui Malama's assertion that the Providence Museum Spear Rest was a manifestation of the living spirit of a warrior. The mother page provides an overview of these issues and a list of links to all the annual NAGPRA-Hawaii compilations. See
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii.html

The Forbes cave controversy up until the NAGPRA Review Committee hearing in St. Paul, Minnesota, May 9-11, 2003 was originally described and documented at:
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagpraforbes.html

The conflict among Bishop Museum, Hui Malama, and several competing groups of claimants became so complex and contentious that the controversy was the primary focus of the semiannual national meeting of the NAGPRA Review Committee meeting in St. Paul, Minnesota May 9-11, 2003. A webpage was created to cover that meeting and followup events related to it. But the Forbes Cave controversy became increasingly complex and contentious, leading to public awareness of other related issues. By the end of 2004, the webpage focusing on the NAGPRA Review Committee meeting and its aftermath had become exceedingly large, at more than 250 pages with an index of 22 topics at the top. See:
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagpraforbesafterreview.html

That large webpage became so difficult to use that it was stopped on December 29, 2004; and a new webpage was created to collect news reports for NAGPRA issues in Hawai'i during year 2005. An index for 2005 appears at the beginning, and readers may then scroll down to find the detailed coverage of each topic. For coverage of NAGPRA issues in Hawai'i in 2005 (about 250 pages), see:
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii2005.html

For year 2006 another new webpage was created, following the same general format. See:
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii2006.html

NOW BEGINS YEAR 2023

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LIST OF TOPICS FOR 2023: Full coverage of each topic follows the list; the list is in roughly chronological order of the first occurrence of a topic, created as events unfold during 2023.

(1) Cornell University has returned ancestral remains to the Oneida Indian Nation that were inadvertently dug up in 1964 and stored for decades in a school archive. Twenty-two “funerary” objects that were interred with the remains also were returned. The objects include pieces of pottery, a piece of leather, a large mammal skull fragment and an acorn.

(2) Eddie Ayau, founder of Hui Malama i na Kupuna o Hawai'i Nei, represented by Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation, has filed a lawsuit against the state of Hawaii, the city of Honolulu and a real estate developer to stop construction work and halt pending permits for The Park at Ke’eaumoku, a multi-use residential/commercial condominium project, began in summer of 2022 following the demolition of the block of well-loved stores and restaurants.

(3) Kaua'i island newspaper weekly history column on April 22, 2023 describes an event from April 1993 when hunters stumbled across a family burial cave in Waimea Valley used for many generations. The hunters reported to government authorities they had found human remains, medical examiner ruled them to be ancient, family members were unsuccessful in getting control of them and police reburied them in the cave. [note: NAGPRA had been enacted in 1990]

(4) New autobiographical documentary movie "KAPU: Sacred Hawaiian Burials" about an ethnic Hawaiian who was shown his family's burial cave in Puna (Hawaii Island) at age 8 and then, as an adult, discovered that a developer planned to bulldoze the cave.

(5) U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kaua'i hosts a ceremony with lineal descendants to reinter Native Hawaiian remains found in its grounds during the past year resulting from storms and shifting sands.

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FULL TEXT OF ARTICLES FOR 2022

https://ictnews.org/news/university-returns-native-remains-dug-up-in-1964
Indian Country Today News Friday February 24, 2023

University returns Native remains dug up in 1964
The remains, possibly more than 300 years old, were unearthed on an upstate New York farm

Michael Hill, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Cornell University has returned ancestral remains to the Oneida Indian Nation that were inadvertently dug up in 1964 and stored for decades in a school archive. “We’re returning ancestral remains and possessions that we now recognize never should have been taken, never should have come to Cornell and never should have been kept here," Cornell President Martha E. Pollack said at a small repatriation ceremony Tuesday, according to the university. Pollack apologized on behalf of the Ivy League school in Ithaca, New York, noting the “disrespect shown to these ancestors.”

The remains, possibly more than 300 years old, were unearthed by people digging a ditch for a water line on an upstate New York farm east of Binghamton in August 1964.

Police called a Cornell anthropology professor, who determined the remains belonged to a young adult male of Native ancestry. Repatriation records recently filed with the federal government indicate the remains represent “at minimum” three people.

The remains were stored on campus until after the professor’s death in 2014, when they were transferred to the anthropology department. They were rediscovered by colleagues during an archival inventory.

“These individuals, an adult man, a child of four years or younger and another child or adolescent of undetermined age, will be once again laid to rest in the traditions of our people,” Oneida Indian Nation Representative Ray Halbritter said at the ceremony.

Twenty-two “funerary” objects that were interred with the remains also were returned. The objects include pieces of pottery, a piece of leather, a large mammal skull fragment and an acorn.

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act requires federally funded institutions, such as universities, to return remains and cultural items.

Cornell is among colleges, museums and other institutions returning Native American artifacts and ancestral remains. Colgate University in November returned to the Oneidas more than 1,500 items once buried with ancestral remains, some dating back 400 years.

The dig site in Windsor, New York. was once a large settlement located on the banks of the Susquehanna River, in the traditional territory of the Oneidas.

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https://www.courthousenews.com/discovery-of-native-hawaiian-burial-sites-during-condo-construction-prompts-lawsuit/
Courthouse News Wednesday March 1, 2023

Discovery of Native Hawaiian burial sites during condo construction prompts lawsuit
Work has continued on new high-rises in Honolulu despite the discovery of multiple burial sites.

CANDACE CHEUNG

HONOLULU (CN) — A Native Hawaiian man has sued the state of Hawaii, the city of Honolulu and a real estate developer to stop construction work and halt pending permits until proper assessments and consultations can be done after Native Hawaiian burial sites were uncovered during a redevelopment project in one of Honolulu’s major shopping and residential districts.

Backed by the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation, plaintiff Edward Ayau says in a lawsuit filed Monday that Ke’eaumoku Develoment and the state have, in violation of statutory and administrative guidelines, refused to adhere to established process for the discovery of Native Hawaiian remains over 50 years old and in doing so, caused unnecessary disruption of the remains, preventing Hawaiians from engaging in mālama iwi, the traditional cultural practice of caring for ancestors.

“Where human skeletal remains are reasonably believed to be Native Hawaiian, [State Historic Preservation Division] shall determine whether to preserve in place or relocate the burials, following consideration and application of the criteria stated in HAR § 13-300-36 and in consultation with appropriate council members, the landowner, and any known lineal or cultural descendants,” Ayau says in his complaint.

Since construction began, 15 separate burial sites have been uncovered, as well as a former ʻauwai (a ditch or canal) and a buried road.

Ayau, a Native Hawaiian and possible descendant of those buried at the Ke’eaumoku site, takes issue with how Native Hawaiians have been left out of the process as all but approximately five sets of remains have been disinterred and relocated.

An archaeological inventory survey approved in 2021 indicated a high probability that there could be historically significant discoveries based on similar burials of iwi kūpuna — literally bones of ancestors — previously uncovered nearby, including over 60 sets of remains relocated for the construction of a Walmart across the street from the condo site.

Despite pushback from the community and local businesses, including the well-known Pagoda Hotel, that originally occupied the area, several acres of land near the state’s largest mall were sold off early last year. Construction of what will be The Park at Ke’eaumoku, a multi-use residential/commercial condominium project, began in summer of 2022 following the demolition of the block of well-loved stores and restaurants.

Ayau claims no archaeological survey or assessments were conducted after demolition and despite the subsequent findings of burials and related sites and features. The state and city have granted several permits for work at the Ke’eaumoku site and construction has continued despite the discoveries.

According to the complaint, the State Historic Preservation Division decided to authorize relocation for all the found remains without input from possible descendants, the Oʻahu Island Burial Council or the Native Hawaiian community at large.

The developer and the state have considered the newfound burial sites as “inadvertent discoveries” to avoid triggering further archaeological or preservation assessments. But Ayau says that “based on the AIS’s disclosure that encountering burials during construction was likely, these additional burials are not 'unanticipated' burials.” He also contends that beyond the survey’s discoveries, the burial sites were known to Native Hawaiians through either oral orr written testimony.

Ayau wants a court order barring any further disturbance to the remains, the Ke'eaumoku Development ordered to halt all construction operations, and for the state and city to rescind permits granted to the site.

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** Ken Conklin's note:
Eddie Ayau's legal complaint (by Native Hawaii Legal Corporation) can be seen at
https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/ayau-v-soh-keeaumoku-complaint-oahu-cc.pdf

Edward Halealoha Ayau worked closely with Hawaii Senator Inouye to develop and implement the NAGPRA law passed by Congress in 1990. [Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act] He was founder and head of the Hui Malama i na Kupuna O Hawai'i Nei whose purpose was to get museums and other institutions to surrender native Hawaiian bones and artifacts to be ceremonially reburied. The "Forbes Cave" controversy was the focus of a major hearing before the NAGPRA Review Committee in May 2003, where several competing individuals and groups of claimants demanded that Bishop Museum in Honolulu must surrender bones and artifacts that had been taken from the Kawaihae cave on Hawaii Island. For a major webpage about the NAGPRA law, including numerous subpages covering many related controversies and tracking news reports and commentaries year-by-year from 2003 to now, see
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii.html

For Conklin's detailed analysis of major issues related to Hawaiian bones and burials, including citations to sources, see "Hawaiian Bones -- The 3 Rs -- Rites For the Dead, Rights Of the Living, and Respect for All" at
https://www.angelfire.com/planet/big60/HawaiianBonesDetailed.html

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https://www.thegardenisland.com/2023/04/22/lifestyles/island-history-a-burial-cave-was-desecrated-in-waimea-valley-kauai/
The Garden Island Saturday April 22, 2023, Island History

A burial cave was desecrated in Waimea Valley, Kaua‘i

By Hank Soboleski

In April 1993, hunters stumbled upon a burial cave deep inside Waimea Valley several miles above Waimea town. Within the cave, they uncovered five human skulls, bones and cloth material.

Police were then notified and removed the remains in a plastic bag.

Deputy Police Chief Kenneth Robinson said police needed to remove them to determine if they were the remains of hikers who’d vanished in the Koke‘e area. He also said police handled them carefully with no intention of desecrating anything.

But, when Aletha Kaohi of Waimea — a historian and preservationist of Hawaiian culture and artifacts whose ancestry extends back six generations to Kaumuali‘i (the last king of Kaua‘i) — learned the details of what had occurred, she protested, insisting the cave had been desecrated.

She said, “The police should have been able to recognize a burial cave and that when it is ancient, it is no longer their responsibility. Hawaiians believe bones have life, and when you put them in a plastic bag, you snuff out the spirit in them.”

She was also personally offended, since the bones were, in fact, those of her ancestors. She explained that when she was a child, she and her father, William Kapahukaniolonookainoahou Goodwin, often rode horseback into the valley and visited that very same cave — the burial cave of her ancestors.

Kalani Flores, a member of the Kaua‘i Historic Preservation Review Commission, said the police should have first consulted an authority on Hawaiian artifacts, and by improperly disclosing the cave’s location, they’d caused Hawaiian families to worry that people would begin searching for caves to collect or sell the artifacts they’d find.

Edward Ayau, spokesman for the state Historic Preservation Division, also stated that by law, police should have brought an archaeologist to the cave before removing the remains.

Upon examination, the county medical examiner deemed the remains to be ancient and those of a family — an infant, a teenager and two adults – but the fifth skull was unknown.

Aletha Kaohi was unsuccessful in reclaiming the remains before police reburied them at the cave.

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https://www.khon2.com/local-news/protecting-sacred-hawaiian-burials-is-a-david-v-goliath-tale/
KHON2 Honolulu TV station Saturday April 22, 2023

Protecting sacred Hawaiian burials is a David v. Goliath tale

by: Sandy Harjo-Livingston

HONOLULU (KHON2) — It’s your chance to see one of the most important documentaries on Native Hawaiian culture this year.

For hundreds of years, Native Hawaiians had a rich spiritual belief system that heavily relied on the lives, experiences and knowledge of their ancestors, also known as kūpuna.

In particular, on Hawaiʻi Island, Native Hawaiians utilized caves to lay the sacred remains of their kūpuna. These caves provided protection as well as a means of visitation and meditation. As Hawaiʻi became colonized by Europe, the United States and other interests, many of the sacred burial caves were gutted, either by looters or for development purposes. Although the sacred cave burials became a part of Hawaiʻi’s past, one man felt the calling to preserve his kūpuna’s final resting places.

Keoni Alvarez was born and raised on Hawai’i Island. He returned to his home in 2019 to take on the mission of saving the memories of Hawaiʻi’s ancestors. Fortunately for the world, Alvarez decided to make a documentary on his work and the resultant outcomes. “Over twenty years ago, I found my calling when I stumbled upon a secret cave in the forest near my ancestral home of Puna on Hawaiʻi Island,” reminisced Alvarez. What he found in these caves changed his life forever. “Inside this cave were iwi, the sacred bones of Kānaka maoli from generations past. At only eight years old, I could not begin to imagine how this discovery would change my life,” he said.

Alvarez explained that in 2002 his district was targeted by developers who wanted to obtain a bit of affordable property on the Big Island. “Faced with a powerful, wealthy outsider who threatened to plow through the cave near my home, I found myself in my very own David vs. Goliath scenario,” explained Alvarez.

Kapu: Sacred Hawaiian Burials is a new documentary that sheds light on the Native Hawaiian struggle to preserve their heritage, traditions and kūpuna. (Photo/Keoni Alvarez)

KAPU: Sacred Hawaiian Burials promises to take viewers along Mr. Alvarez’s journey in realizing his identity, heritage and ultimately his legacy within the tradition of protecting his land for his people. “Until I know what will happen to the property, I will remain the keeper of this cave to prevent this burial ground from going under,” said Alvarez.

Kapu has made a big splash in the film world. The passion and deep devotion to his work that one experiences is palpable. The brilliance of this full-length documentary is that you feel like you are standing beside Alvarez as he takes his quest. The documentary has won numerous awards at film festivals such as the Hawai’i International Film Festival.

On Tuesday, April 25, you can experience the documentary at the State Capital Auditorium for yourself.

A Hawaiian independent producer, director and writer from the island of Hawai’i, Alvarez was able to travel the world for several years on Norwegian Cruise Line where he worked in the Broadcast department. This experience introduced him to many different cultures, peoples and places. In 1990, he began his career as a graduate of Na Leo O Hawaiʻi Public Access Station and the WGBH Producers Academy in Boston. Through his early adulthood, he always enjoyed filming his Hawaiian culture through stories, language and dance. He said his goal is to inspire his students to express themselves and to take pride in their culture.

Palikapu Dedman organized a protest against the largest mass burial desecration in Hawai’i’s history. This burial ground is the most important historical site at Kapalua on Maui. The site was unearthed when digging began for the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Kapalua. When the importance of the discovery was realized, the hotel was moved inland. The area, which contains over 900 ancient Hawaiian burial sites dating between 610 and 1800, has been recognized as a sacred site. This burial ground and Palikapu’s stand to protect it started a movement of thousands of Native Hawaiians protesting to protect burials. “He is recognized and respected in the Hawaiian community for his knowledge and activism to protect Hawaiʻi’s culture, land and natural resources,” said Alvarez.

Kalaʻi Kamuela is another Native Hawaiian who has been working with Alvarez. “I descend from thousands of generations of kūpuna. The only reason I exist today is because of my kūpuna. I have kuleana, duty, obligation and responsibility to mālama and protect iwi kūpuna burials. I am Kālai. I am moʻopuna,” said Kamuela.

Alvarez, who wrote, produced and directed Kapu will be in attendance at the State Capital showing of the film. He hopes that more legislators and island leaders — like Mayor Mitch Roth (pictured below) — will take the time to see and understand the quest to protect these sacred sites. You can see the film on Tuesday, April 25. The event begins at 5 p.m. and concludes at 8 p.m. It is free and open to the public.

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** Ken Conklin's note: This TV news report is a bit disjointed because of the insertion of information about Palikapu Dedman and the desecration of a burial ground in the sand dunes on the property of the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Kapalua on Maui, in an area known as Honokahua. A corporation was excavating near the shoreline to build a large hotel. The hotel was redesigned to be set back farther from the shoreline. There is now a burial ground on the ocean side of the Ritz Carlton Hotel, set off from the rest of the hotel property by bushes and informational signs asking tourists to show respect. The Honokahua controversy appears to have been brought to a final conclusion reasonably satisfactory to both the developers and the ethnic Hawaiian activists. For further information about Mokapu and Honokahua, see
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagpramokapuhonokahua.html

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https://www.thegardenisland.com/2023/07/17/hawaii-news/pmrf-hosts-ceremony-to-reinter-native-hawaiian-remains/
The Garden Island [Kaua'i] Monday, July 17, 2023

PMRF hosts ceremony to reinter Native Hawaiian remains

By Dennis Fujimoto

Courtesy of U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility Public Affairs [* Photo caption] Capt. Brett Stevenson, commanding officer of the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands, offers a ho‘okupu (gift) of naupaka from Kuaki‘i during Ka Mauiki‘iki‘i O Ke Kauwela at the crypt on the base near Kekaha.

BARKING SANDS — The lineal descendants of iwi kupuna discovered on the grounds of the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) were joined by leadership of the facility during the two-day Ka Mauiki‘iki‘i O Ke Kauwela, or celebration of the summer solstice.

The protocol and ceremony wrapped up on June 21 at the crypt at PMRF.

“It is our sacred duty to honor the iwi kupuna, and the connection with the Native Hawaiians who rest on these grounds,” said PMRF Commanding Officer Capt. Brett Stevenson. “PMRF is entrusted with watching over this sanctuary, and ensuring the care of the iwi kupuna. PMRF is honored to be included in the broader ‘ohana of the descendants.”

During Ka Mauiki‘iki‘i O Ke Kauwela, participants honored their ancestors and laid to rest iwi kupuna discovered at PMRF over the past year.

Because PMRF is situated on ancient burial grounds, the climate change, storm and tidal surge conditions have resulted in a shifting landscape that reveal the iwi kupuna.

When remains are discovered, cultural experts at PMRF work in consultation with the lineal descendants in accordance with Native Hawaiian traditions and customs on the most appropriate path forward, whether in reburying the remains or conducting an archaeological process to inter the remains at the crypt.

On the evening of June 20, the descendants gathered for a sunset ceremony where the iwi kupuna were repatriated following the appropriate cultural protocols and entombed into their moe loa, or eternal resting place. The crypt was then resealed for the final time. Tara del Fierro, the cultural resources manager and archaeologist at PMRF, said a new crypt will be added to the site.

During the solemn ceremony, the descendants, PMRF leadership team and guests placed lei and gently tossed flowers on the crypt. Stevenson added to that lei ho‘okupu with the presentation of a native naupaka plant from Kuaki‘i, or Divers Landing, at PMRF, where major storm surge had revealed iwi kupuna. Stevenson’s ho‘okupu is for the future design of the crypt, and to create a lasting connection to the site.

“Our responsibility in creating this sanctuary will always endure,” Stevenson said. “It is one of my most important responsibilities.”

** Ken Conklin's online comment: It's good to know that the lineal descendants are happy to have the U.S. Navy as kahu (custodians and guardians) of the iwi kupuna (bones of their ancestors).

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LINKS

This present webpage covers only the year 2023.

For coverage of events in 2005 (about 250 pages), see:

https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii2005.html

For year 2006 (about 150 pages), see:
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/nagprahawaii2006.html

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Send comments or questions to:
Ken_Conklin@yahoo.com

GO BACK TO: NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act) as applied to Hawai'i -- Mokapu, Honokahua, Bishop Museum Ka'ai; Providence Museum Spear Rest; Forbes Cave Artifacts; the Hui Malama organization

GO BACK TO OTHER TOPICS ON THIS WEBSITE