press statement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 12/26/19

Press Statement from Pu'uhonua o Pu'uhuluhulu*

WE ARE COMMITTED AND WE WILL NOT LEAVE MAUNAKEA UNTIL THE TMT LEAVES HAWAI‘I

MAUNAKEA ACCESS ROAD, 12/26/19 - Today, we received written assurances from Mayor Harry Kim that construction of the TMT will not proceed until the end of February at the earliest and that law enforcement will stand down for the duration of that time. In response to the mayor's commitment, the kūpuna will open the road for safety reasons. They will remain in place alongside Maunakea Access Road with the full support of the Pu‘uhonua and will be prepared to respond to any threat of construction by TMT in the future.

We'd like to thank the hundreds of kia‘i who responded to the Hawai‘i island kāhea today and were on hand to hear from the kūpuna directly. We would like to remind everyone to remain vigilant and steadfast, as Aunty Noe Noe reminded us today, "if there are any signs of construction, we'll be right back in the middle of the road."

We are committed and we will not leave Maunakea until the TMT leaves Hawai‘i.