Malu 'Aina

Hawaiʻi County Council Member, District 8 (North Kona) requested his staff to draft a repeal of the military exemption to Hawaii County’s Historic Nuclear-Free Ordinance.

Aloha Hawaii Council members,

This is a request that you seriously consider repealing the military exemption (Ordinance 84-39) passed in July 1984 from Hawaii County Historic Nuclear Free Law (Ordinance No. 665) passed in Feb. 1981.

July 18, 2024 marks the historic 40th anniversary of hundreds of people turning up on the Hilo docks to uphold Hawaii’s historic Nuclear-Free Law.

After 3 years of requesting the US Navy to respect our county’s Nuclear-Free law without success, (leave your nuclear shoes in Pearl Harbor) our organization announced a month in advance that we planned a non-violent peaceful swimming protest of the next Navy Nuclear ship visit. A Navy Nuclear ship visit was planned for the July Hawaii Japanese Chamber of Commerce Festival of the Pacific.

On July 17, 1984, the day before the nuclear warship’s scheduled arrival, the Hawaii County Council, under the leadership of Council chair, Stephen Yamashiro, passed an emergency amendment “exempting the military” from the Nuclear-Free law.  There are questions of whether the emergency amendment met legal requirements of proper notice and hearings according to the Sunshine law.  In any event, having an amendment to the Nuclear-Free Law to exempt the military is like having an exemption for smokers from No smoking laws.  It makes no sense.

On July 18, 1984, the day the Navy Nuclear ship arrived, a Federal security zone for the entire Hilo Bay was established by the US Coast Guard at the request of the Navy. Anyone putting their toe in the water with a protest sign was subject to a felony violation. July 18. 1984 Hilo Bay was like a war zone.  Coast Guard Cutters escorted the Navy Nuclear warship.  Military helicopters patrolled overhead.  Naval Seal teams in zodiacs were in the water. On the docks hundreds of people offered pule, sang peace songs, and held signs — Respect County Law!  Nuclear-Free Zone! No Nukes! Peace Now! etc.  Approximately 100 people were prepared to enter the water in protest to uphold Hawaii County’s Nuclear-Free Law.  I discouraged people from doing so.  I urged people not to do the right thing for the wrong reason.  The military was threatening felony charges for a swim for peace.  A felony was serious business.  Before taking such action, people needed to think the implications through and discuss matters with their families.  As a result 3 of us –close friends Warren Wineman, a former Naval Officer and Hilo business person, fellow farmer Jim Snyder and myself decided to swim for peace.  When the Navy nuclear ship entered past the breakwall and headed towards the docks, we jumped from the Hilo Harbor pier and entered the water with our hands up to signify STOP as we began swimming slowly toward the ship.  Within minutes, Naval Seals arrested us and the ship eventually docked to awaiting protests.

In summary, we were tried in Federal Court before a visiting Federal Judge who had been a Lt. Commander in the Navy.  Our County’s Nuclear Free law was declared irrelevant.  We were found guilty and sentenced.  Warren Wineman had a lien placed on his home and fined. Jim Snyder I believe was given 30 days in jail,. As the leader of the protest I was given the maximum sentence — 3 years in Federal Prison and was ordered to report to prison within 2 weeks, despite a pending appeal. My sentence also had a special provision that I couldn’t even become eligible for parole before I completed at least 1/3 of the sentence.  Fortunately, mainly due to international protest, including government officials from around the Pacific, I was released from prison on parole after a little more than 1 year. Still a long time for a swim for peace that harmed nor endangered anyone but ourselves.  In the 1970s and 80s, people and governments around the Pacific passed a Nuclear-Free Pacific treaty and protested nuclear warships, testing, etc. strongly.  No one to my knowledge was ever even sentenced to 3 days in jail for a peaceful protest let alone 3 years.  I had done public speaking in several Pacific countries and attended Nuclear-Free and Independent Pacific Conferences which provided me a lot of support.

Jim

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Jim Albertini Malu 'Aina Center For Non-violent Education & Action P.O. Box 489 Ola'a (Kurtistown) Hawai'i 96760
Phone 808-966-7622 Email ja@malu-aina.org Visit us on the web at www.malu-aina.org