STAND. COM. REP. NO. 1338

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 1999

                                   RE:  S.C.R. No. 185
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 1999
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Water, Land, and Hawaiian Affairs and
Education and Technology, to which was referred S.C.R. No. 185
entitled:

     "SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION ENCOURAGING THE RESTORATION OF
     MOKU'ULA AND LOKO O MOKUHINIA,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to encourage the County of
Maui to restore Moku`ula and Loko O Mokuhinia.

     The measure also calls for the County of Maui to work in
concert with the Friends of Moku`ula to resolve any land issues
regarding the area now known as Maluuluolele Park and to further
work with the Friends of Moku`ula to address any other concerns
regarding the restoration of Moku`ula and Loko O Mokuhinia.

     Testimony in support of the measure was received from the
Representative from the Seventh Representative District of the
State of Hawaii, the Mayor of Maui County, four Councilmembers of
the Maui County Council, the Friends of Moku`ula, the Ka`anapali
Beach Hotel, Lahaina Town Action Committee, and a number of
concerned citizens.

     Your Committees find that prior to contact with Western
civilization, Moku`ula was considered as the axis mundi or "piko"
(center) of spiritual and political power among the highest
ranking ali`i of Hawai`i.  It is at Moku`ula, at the den known as
Kalua `O Kiha (The Pit of Kiha), that the deified mo`o goddess,

 
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Kihawahine, the progenitor of the Pi`ilani Line of Maui chiefs,
lives.  The fishpond surrounding Moku`ula, Loko O Mokuhinia
(Fishpond of Mokuhinia), served as a natural moat surrounding
Moku`ula.  The fishpond was stocked with the Ali`i's favorite
fish, served as a lo`i kalo (taro field), and was fed by the
streams of Kau`aula and Pahumanamana.

     Moku`ula and Loko O Mokuhinia were home to and the sacred
retreat of the Kings and Queens of Hawai`i up to the time of
Kamehameha V.  In fact, Moku`ula served as a resting place for
Keopuolani, Nahiena`ena, the children of Kauikeauoli (King
Kamehameha III), along with many other ali`i in a mausoleum built
especially for them.

     Since the property's ceding to the County of Maui, diversion
of water from the streams that fed Loko O Mokuhinia eventually
led to the filling of the loko and the establishment of a county
ball park.

     Recent archaeological evidence shows that Moku`ula and Loko
O Mokuhinia, connecting pathways, and an old pier located on the
island remain intact.  Due to this information, there is
significant interest in restoring and preserving Moku`ula and
Loko O Mokuhinia for the purposes of educating and preserving the
historical and spiritual significance of this place.

     To this end, your Committees also find that a community-
based non-profit organization known as Friends of Moku`ula, Inc.,
has been created to conduct activities that will lead to the
restoration and preservation of Moku`ula and Loko O Mokuhinia and
all other related sites.

     Your Committees have amended the measure by making
technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity
and style.

     Your Committees believe that the measure will lead to
widespread support to the restoration of this culturally and
historically significant site.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your
Committees on Water, Land, and Hawaiian Affairs and Education and
Technology that are attached to this report, your Committees
concur with the intent and purpose of S.C.R. No. 185, as amended
herein, and recommend that it be referred to the Committee on
Ways and Means, in the form attached hereto as S.C.R. No. 185,
S.D. 1.


 
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                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committees on Water, Land, and
                                   Hawaiian Affairs and Education
                                   and Technology,



____________________________       ______________________________
DAVID Y. IGE, Chair                COLLEEN HANABUSA, Chair

 
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