DLNR special police stand guard at the front of 'Iolani Palace just days after a self-proclaimed king tried to sit on the throne. – Photo: Blaine Fergerstrom

'Iolani Palace break-in rumbles community

By Lisa Asato / Ka Wai Ola

Increased security, shock and proposed discussions at the University of Hawai'i are all part of the aftershocks reverberating through the Hawaiian community following the break-in at 'Iolani Palace by a group attempting to seat its king on the throne.

“I'm just very disappointed. I think it's disrespectful when you desecrate anything on the palace grounds,” said Mahealani Kahau of the independence group Hawaiian Kingdom Government, which itself blocked access to non-Hawaiians to 'Iolani Palace for more than six hours on April 30, and has continued to resume the seat of the Hawaiian government there on weekdays, completing a state permit to do so.

DLNR special police stand guard at the front of 'Iolani Palace just days after a self-proclaimed king tried to sit on the throne. – Photo: Blaine Fergerstrom

Kahau said she had heard rumblings at a Maui meeting of the state Department of Land and Natural Resources that the group known as Kingdom of Hawai'i, Nation, would be coming down to the palace, but said she was “shocked” that they broke in, allegedly assaulted a palace employee and attempted to seat their leader, James Akahi, known as Akahi Nui, and chain him to the throne. At least six individuals have been charged with second-degree burglary relating to the incident on August 15 Admission Day, a sensitive date for some, as it celebrates Hawai'i became a state. They are scheduled to appear in Honolulu District court on Sept. 20, the state Attorney General's office said in a statement. A seventh individual, Donald Alfred Love-Boltz, has been charged with second-degree assault for an alleged assault on Betty Jean Noelani Ah Yuen, the facilities manager for the Friends of 'Iolani Palace. All seven were released on $5,000 bail each, the statement said.

Concerns were also raised that jurisdictional issues kept a Honolulu Police Department officer from intervening during the alleged assault. The next week, coming out of a meeting with Gov. Linda Lingle and state and county law enforcement officials, state Attorney General Mark Bennett told media that an investigation was ongoing on the matter, but that state and county officials would not hesitate in the future of intervening for public safety no matter where incidents occur. The palace sits on state land.

The palace was closed following the incident and reopened Aug. 20 with increased security. Hardware at the palace and barracks were damaged, but “there was no loss or damage to artifacts, though the risk was great,” said a statement by Kippen de Alba Chu, the executive director of the Friends of 'Iolani Palace. “The thrones, which are on loan from Bishop Museum, have the original upholstery fabric from the monarchy period,” said de Alba Chu. Both the fabric and the gilded surfaces of the wood frame are extremely fragile. The use of chains on the thrones would have caused gouging of the wood frame and abrasion of the gilded surface. Any pressure on the delicate threads of the upholstery fabric would cause them to tear.”

Mahealani Kahau of Hawaiian Kingdom Government calls the actions of Akahi Nui "disrespectful.". – Photo: Blaine Fergerstrom

At the University of Hawai'i, professor at the Kamakakūokalani Center for Hawaiian Studies Lilikalā Kame'eleihiwa was asked whether there's any credence to Akahi's claim of being the heir to the throne. “I haven't seen Akahi Nui's genealogy so I can't really say, but I would say this – that there are hundreds of Hawaiians today who have the genealogical right to lead a nation and then there are thousands of Hawaiians today who have the intellectual right to lead the nation. And when we vote on who that person will be – that's who'll sit on the throne,” said Kame'eleihiwa, who is also a genealogist.

Maenette Benham, the new dean of UH's Hawai'inuiākea School of Hawaiian Knowledge, said 'Iolani Palace “represents who we are as a people and a history” and it is the people's responsibility to care for it. The “events at 'Iolani Palace are very symbolic of something much larger,” she said, and is a siren call to begin to educate “everyone in Hawai'i about our history and our genealogy so we don't have to ask questions like (who's the rightful heir),” she said.

DLNR held statewide meetings in August to discuss proposed rule changes for the use and protection of the 'Iolani Palace State Monument. Written testimony may be mailed by Sept. 5 to: Administrator, DLNR Division of State Parks, 1151 Punchbowl St., Room 310, Honolulu, HI 96813. A copy may be requested in person from the state parks offices on each island or by mail to: Administrator, DLNR Division of State Parks, 1151 Punchbowl St., Room 310, Honolulu, HI 96813. The proposed changes are online at hawaiistateparks.org/administrative/index.cfm.