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Does an 1864 treaty between Switzerland and the Kingdom of Hawaii remain in effect? No. Does its historical existence prove that the Kingdom of Hawaii continues to exist and has international recognition as a sovereign nation? No. Hawaiian activists have asserted these lies for decades, twisting history to attack U.S. sovereignty in Hawaii. Examples of Leon Siu, Keanu Sai, Niklaus Schweizer regarding the Swiss treaty.

OUTLINE OF TOPICS, IN THE ORDER OF THEIR APPEARANCE: SCROLL DOWN TO FIND EACH ONE.

JUNE 24, 2023 BLOG POST BY LEON SIU REGARDING 1864 TREATY BETWEEN SWITZERLAND AND KINGDOM OF HAWAII.
It's an excellent example of how Hawaiian sovereignty activists twist history by selecting a few facts out of context while excluding major contradictory facts (Assuming that a treaty from long ago remains unchanged by later events).

USING HISTORICAL FACT TO DEBUNK SIU'S CLAIMS ABOUT THE 1864 TREATY

THE SWISS 1864 TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND COMMERCE WAS TRIVIAL COMPARED WITH THE U.S. RECIPROCITY TREATY OF 1875.

HAWAII'S INTERNAL CULTURE AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS MOVED STRONGLY AND CONTINUOUSLY TOWARD MERGER WITH UNITED STATES (WHILE RELATIONS WITH SWITZERLAND WERE DORMANT)

LEON SIU'S SELF-IDENTIFICATION AS MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF KINGDOM OF HAWAII, AND HIS DECADES-LONG CAREER AS MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE KINGDOM OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

KEANU SAI'S ADVENTURES IN SWITZERLAND (AND ELSEWHERE)

NIKLAUS SCHWEIZER'S HAWAIIAN SOVEREIGNTY ADVENTURES IN HAWAII AND SWITZERLAND

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Twice each month Leon Siu posts a short essay on the "Free Hawaii" blogsite under the heading "Aupuni Update." ["Aupuni" = government, or nation]. It appears that "Ke Aupuni" is actually the name of a now-dormant sovereignty group that named him as its foreign minister and has been inactive since 2015, so that these twice-monthly "updates" are the only remaining visible presence of the group. He has been doing these updates for several years. As shown in his updates, Mr. Siu clearly does a lot of traveling to the United Nations in New York and Geneva (Switzerland), and to other places. See his biographical information in the next section of this webpage. Go to the following webpages and search for "Leon" to find full text of each of Siu's updates from 2019 to now.

For 2019-2020: http://big11a.angelfire.com/AkakaHist116thCong.html
For 2021-2023: http://big11a.angelfire.com/AkakaHist117thCong.html
For 2023-2024: http://big11a.angelfire.com/AkakaHist118thCong.html

Here's the Ke Aupuni post from Saturday June 24, 2023

http://freehawaii.blogspot.com/2023/06/ke-aupuni-update-june-2023-our-treaty.html

Free Hawaii blog Saturday June 24, 2023

Ke Aupuni update

Our Treaty with the Swiss Confederation

For the past week I have been in Switzerland, first in Zürich to speak at an event, then Bern, to visit the Swiss Federal Archives and now in Geneva to attend the 53rd Session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The United Nations has several headquarters: the main one in New York with which most people are familiar; the much larger one in Geneva that houses the Human Rights mechanisms as well as the World Trade Organization, the World Health Organization, the World Intellectual Properties Organization, the International Labor Organization and numerous others. Then there are headquarters in Vienna and in Nairobi.

I found out something interesting. This year, Switzerland is celebrating the 175th anniversary of its 1848 Constitution, which is the official start of the current, modern-day Swiss Confederation. That means the Hawaiian Kingdom became a constitutional government eight years before Switzerland did, and the Hawaiian Kingdom was officially recognized as a modern sovereign state by the Anglo-Franco Proclamation of 1843, five years before Switzerland.

In talking about the Hawaiian Kingdom as a recognized sovereign state, we often refer to the treaties that our Kingdom had with the principal nations of the world, particularly those of Europe.

The reason I went to the city of Bern, which is the seat of the Swiss government, was to view the documents pertaining to the Swiss-Hawaiian Kingdom Treaty of 1864. It’s one thing to cite that we have a treaty and to show an image of the treaty. It is quite another thing to see the thick file of original, hand-written documents pertaining to the drafting, correspondence, discussions and ratification of the treaty. The huge files of supporting materials leading up to the treaty from the Swiss side are all there.

It is profoundly validating to know there are real documents from real people from a real country who made a real treaty with the real Hawaiian Kingdom. And that there are corresponding treaty-documents like these in the archives of other European capitals. Not only that, if one were to dig further, one would find trade records and diplomatic communications from the 137 Hawaiian Kingdom embassies and consulates from all over the world.

But, what is not in the Swiss Confederation file on the Hawaiian Kingdom Treaty is a document of notification terminating the treaty. And it would be safe to say, no such terminating document exists in the possession of any of our other treaty partners’ archives.

When we say the Hawaiian Kingdom Treaties were never terminated, abrogated, repealed, revoked, rescinded, retracted, annulled, abolished… it’s really true. The Hawaiian Kingdom actually exists in the indelible records of its treaties.

And the one treaty upon which the United States stakes it claim to Hawaii does not exist! The so-called, “Treaty of Annexation”.

“Love of country is deep-seated in the breast of every Hawaiian, whatever his station.” — Queen Liliʻuokalani
Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono. The sovereignty of the land is perpetuated in righteousness.

For the latest news and developments about our progress at the United Nations in both New York and Geneva, tune in to Free Hawaii News at 6 PM the first Friday of each month on ʻŌlelo Television, Channel 53.
"And remember, for the latest updates and information about the Hawaiian Kingdom check out the twice-a-month Ke Aupuni Updates published online on Facebook and other social media."

PLEASE KŌKUA
Your kōkua, large or small, is vital to this effort.
To contribute, go to:
• GoFundMe – CAMPAIGN TO FREE HAWAII
• PayPal – use account email: info@HawaiianKingdom.net
• Other – To contribute in other ways (airline miles, travel vouchers, volunteer services, etc...) email us at: info@HawaiianKingdom.net
“FREE HAWAII” T-SHIRTS - etc.
Check out the great FREE HAWAII products you can purchase at
http://www.robkajiwara.com/store/c8/free_hawaii_products
All proceeds are used to help the cause. MAHALO!

Malama Pono,
Leon Siu
Hawaiian National

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USING HISTORICAL FACT TO DEBUNK SIU'S CLAIMS ABOUT THE 1864 TREATY

In January 1893 there was a revolution which overthrew the government of the Kingdom of Hawaii and replaced it with a revolutionary Provisional Government. That was the end of the Kingdom of Hawaii, although the independent nation of Hawaii continued for several more years under new management. In 1894 the Provisional Government held a Constitutional Convention which included delegates who were native-born or naturalized subjects (citizens) of the Kingdom, both native Hawaiian and Caucasian. The convention produced a new Constitution which was published in both Hawaiian and English, thereby proclaiming the Republic of Hawaii on July 4, 1894, choosing the date to display the government's desire for annexation to the United States despite U.S. President Grover Cleveland's refusal to allow it. Speaker of the Republic's House of Representatives was a full-blooded native former royalist John Kaulukou. For details see "Republic of Hawaii Constitution adopted July 4, 1894" at
https://www.angelfire.com/planet/big60/RepubHawConst1894.html

The government of the Republic kept the same flag and anthem as the Kingdom, and all treaties with other nations presumably remained in effect, including any treaty with Switzerland. President Sanford Dole sent copies of the Constitution to the local consuls of the nations which had consuls in Honolulu, asking them to request their home governments to formally recognize the Republic as the rightful successor government to the Kingdom. With no internet or other instantaneous communication or airplanes in 1894, several months were required for ships to deliver the requests for recognition around the world, for foreign heads of state to consider the requests, and for replies to get back to Honolulu. From Fall 1894 to January 1895 the Republic of Hawaii was internationally recognized by letters personally signed by Emperors, Kings, Queens, and Presidents of many other nations, and by formal letter of abdication and oath of loyalty to the Republic signed by ex-queen Lili'uokalani. 19 such letters of recognition in 11 languages, along with some accompanying diplomatic letters, translations, and envelopes; plus the Lili'uokalani documents; were photographed in the Archives of the State of Hawaii in March 2008 by Kenneth Conklin and Sandra Puanani Burgess and can be viewed on a webpage created by Jeremy Krischel at
https://historymystery.kenconklin.org/recognition-of-the-republic-of-hawaii/

In particular, on that webpage see "Recognition of the Republic of Hawaii – Switzerland" displaying the original of a two-page letter from Switzerland, in French, dated September 11, 1894, to President Sanford B. Dole, recognizing the Republic of Hawaii. The letter was signed by the Swiss federal counsel [Attorney General] on behalf of the President of the Swiss Confederation, and also countersigned by the Chancellor of the Swiss Confederation. The Swiss Foreign Minister [Secretary of State] also sent a cover letter to his Hawaiian counterpart (Minister of Foreign Affairs Francis M. Hatch) to accompany the letter to President Dole. No English translations have survived (and perhaps none were created).
Click on each photo twice to zoom in for easy reading.
https://historymystery.kenconklin.org/2008/04/06/recognition-of-the-republic-of-hawaii-switzerland/

In 1897 the Republic offered a Treaty of Annexation to the United States, which was ratified after prolonged deliberation by a joint resolution of the Senate (vote 42-21 = two-thirds) and House (209-91 = more than two-thirds), in 1898, and signed by President McKinley. See detailed webpage: "Treaty of Annexation between the Republic of Hawaii and the United States of America (1898). Full text of the treaty, and of the resolutions whereby the Republic of Hawaii legislature and the U.S. Congress ratified it. The politics surrounding the treaty, then and now."
https://www.angelfire.com/big09a/TreatyOfAnnexationHawaiiUS.html

Article III of the Treaty of Annexation says "The existing treaties of the Hawaiian Islands with foreign nations shall forthwith cease and determine, being replaced by such treaties as may exist, or as may be hereafter concluded, between the United States and such foreign nations. The municipal legislation of the Hawaiian Islands, not enacted for the fulfillment of the treaty (treaties) so extinguished, and not inconsistent with this treaty, nor contrary to the Constitution of the United States, nor to any existing treaty of the United States, shall remain in force until the Congress of the United States shall otherwise determine."

Thus the Treaty of Annexation merged the sovereignty of the Republic of Hawaii under the sovereignty of the United States. All treaties between other nations (including Switzerland) with the Kingdom of Hawaii and its successor government the Republic of Hawaii thereby presumably became, in the words of Leon Siu, "TERMINATED, ABROGATED, REPEALED, REVOKED, RESCINDED, RETRACTED, ANNULLED, ABOLISHED." [but see below for how Leon Siu might disagree]

No nation objected to the annexation; and by continuing to maintain diplomatic relations with the United States they all thereby accepted U.S. sovereignty over Hawaii and the right of the U.S. to manage the affairs of Hawaii including abrogation, revision, or new creation of treaties.

The Swiss Confederation neither protested nor suspended diplomatic relations with the independent nation of Hawaii nor with the United States at any time during the period from 1864 to now. That includes the Hawaiian revolution of 1893 and establishment of the revolutionary Provisional Government, the establishment of the permanent Republic of Hawaii in 1894, the annexation of Hawaii to become a territory of the United States in 1898 (including explicit termination of all Hawaiian treaties), Organic Act of 1900 for U.S. governance of Hawaii, and Hawaii's full integration as the 50th state of the United States in 1959. Switzerland has acquiesced in and acknowledged the extinguishment of its Hawaii treaty of 1864 by virtue of Switzerland's lack of protest and continuous diplomatic recognition of the United States throughout the entire period from 1864 to now, and especially Switzerland's diplomatic relations with the Provisional Government of Hawaii, Switzerland's diplomatic relations with AND FORMAL RECOGNITION OF the Republic of Hawaii, and Switzerland's uninterrupted maintenance of diplomatic relations with the United states, without protest, during the period from 1898 to 1900 when the Treaty of Annexation and Organic Act for U.S. governance of Hawaii were implemented.

Is Leon Siu asserting that a nation's successor government remains bound by the treaties made by that nation's previous government, even after a revolution has overthrown the previous government and a new Constitution has been enacted? In that case, then the treaty of friendship and commerce between the Kingdom and Switzerland remained in effect during the tenure of the Provisional Government and the Republic of Hawaii, and even after annexation to USA. Indeed, friendship and commerce between Hawaii and Switzerland continue to this day. No problem. If USA makes new treaties with Switzerland, then the new treaties automatically supersede the old ones. The existence of a treaty with the previous government (Kingdom of Hawaii) does not in any way prove or establish the continued existence of that previous government; it would only identify the rules of the relationship that each nation must continue to follow until a new government (Hawaii Provisional, Hawaii Republic, or USA after annexation) approves a new treaty with Switzerland. For example: the section about Keanu Sai's adventures in Switzerland, later in this webpage, provides links to newspaper reports about petitions and lawsuits filed in Switzerland in 2015 by citizens of Switzerland protesting against the [illegal] State of Hawaii or its counties forcing Swiss citizens to pay property taxes on their land and houses in Hawaii. But such complaints are absurd, because even under the treaty of 1864 (if it remains in effect) each nation would certainly have the right to impose taxes on foreigners. [unless, perhaps, they are diplomats certified by the other nation's current government; but even then taxation of personal property would probably be allowed when the property is not an official embassy or consulate.] The fact that the zealous Keanu Sai or other sovereignty activists have not provided further reports on these lawsuits would seem to indicate they they were thrown out of court or languished beyond some sort of statute of limitations.

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THE SWISS 1864 TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND COMMERCE WAS TRIVIAL COMPARED WITH THE U.S. RECIPROCITY TREATY OF 1875.

Hawaiian sovereignty activists like to celebrate the fact that the Kingdom of Hawaii had diplomatic relations and treaties with numerous nations. Leon Siu, Keanu Sai, and Niklaus Schweizer single out the 1864 treaty with Switzerland not because it's unique or unusually powerful, but merely because they have established personal relationships there, and one of them is fluent in German language, allowing them to travel there and to engage in activities that call attention to whatever they like.

Such treaties of friendship and commerce are merely a first step when two nations are greeting each other for the first time with a preliminary handshake. These little treaties simply have each nation saying to the other: Hello, nice to meet you, let's talk and get ready to do business; and if anyone comes to my country from your country for a friendly visit we will treat them kindly and fairly and respect their rights. But in the absence of additional treaties or joint projects, a treaty of friendship and commerce is nothing to get excited about. It's like a teenage boy and teenage girl seeing each other from a distance in the school cafeteria, feeling some attraction and perhaps nodding or waving, but then separately sitting down with their friends and doing their usual separate activities. Having a first date is much more significant. Going steady is a major step. Getting engaged and finally married really seals the deal (let's not talk about divorce though -- that's what Leon Siu, Keanu Sai, and Niklaus Schweitzer want between Hawaii and USA).

Another example of little, inconsequential treaties is that long ago most nations had mini-treaties, also called "postal conventions", whereby each nation agrees to accept the postage stamps of partner nations and to forward inside their own country whatever mail is sent to their residents from the partner country. Nowadays the Universal Postal Union, an agency of the United Nations, coordinates such matters so that a nation only needs to sign up one time to take care of mail among all nations who sign up. Of course the Kingdom of Hawaii had some Postal treaties or conventions. Of course today's sovereignty activists are so zealous to prove that the Kingdom was a real, internationally recognized nation, that they made a list to display all the treaties and conventions they could find. See this? How about that! Here's another one! See, the Kingdom really exists! It's similar to how a cat or dog walks around leaving a little "scent mark" here and there to mark its territory. "I'm real; don't ignore me."
List of bilateral treaties signed by the Hawaiian Kingdom
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_bilateral_treaties_signed_by_the_Hawaiian_Kingdom

By the way, the Hawaiian activists love to keep hammering away with one after another proof that the Kingdom of Hawaii really existed as an independent nation with international recognition and treaties. Maybe 50 years ago people weren't aware of that; but today nobody disputes it. Repeatedly proving it again and publicizing the proof and creating holidays to celebrate it is merely a propaganda ploy to ignore, and divert attention from, the fact that the Kingdom government was overthrown, and the Republic was recognized as its rightful successor by the same nations, including Switzerland, which had previously recognized the Kingdom; and today the U.S. is universally recognized by those same nations and all nations throughout the world as having sovereignty over Hawaii thanks to the Treaty of Annexation.

A few months after the election of 1874 King Kalakaua made a formal state visit to the U.S. from November 28, 1874, through February 3, 1875 including a state banquet with the President and speech to joint session of Congress. He succeeded in getting the Reciprocity Treaty with the United States which guaranteed that Hawaiian sugar (mostly grown on American-owned plantations) could be imported into U.S. duty-free (and therefore would cost less and sell better than sugar from elsewhere) and that the U.S. could use Pearl Harbor to repair ships and refuel them and would be the only nation that could use Pearl Harbor. From that point on, the U.S. had economic and political power in Hawaii far superior to any other nation. That was a significant treaty!

Hawaii's treaty of friendship and commerce with Switzerland in 1864 is trivial in comparison with the Reciprocity Treaty with the U.S. in 1875, just 11 years later -- the Reciprocity Treaty is comparable to going steady (an exclusive, mutually loyal relationship). Annexation is like getting engaged and also living together. Statehood is marriage. Below we'll tune in to the soap opera as the relationship between Hawaii and the United States goes through its stages leading toward getting engaged and living together (annexation).

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Another example of a minor old international agreement about the Kingdom of Hawaii that is getting unwarranted major publicity in 2023 was signed between Britain and France on November 28, 1843 (180 years ago!). All four county councils in Hawaii, plus the state legislature, passed resolutions during 2022-23 declaring a day of observance (state holiday but not letting employees off work with pay) and calling upon government officials to hold commemorative events to celebrate November 28 "Ka La Ku'oko'a" -- independence day.

The agreement between Britain and France says, in its entirety: "Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and His Majesty the King of the French, taking into consideration the existence in the Sandwich Islands of a government capable of providing for the regularity of its relations with foreign nations, have thought it right to engage, reciprocally, to consider the Sandwich Islands as an Independent State, and never to take possession, neither directly or under the title of Protectorate, or under any other form, of any part of the territory of which they are composed."

This agreement was a mutual non-aggression pact between Britain and France where they promised to each other that neither one of them would try to take over Hawaii. It was not a treaty with Hawaii, was not addressed to Hawaii, was not signed by Hawaii, and was written only in English and French but not in Hawaiian. It was only Britain and France talking with each other ABOUT Hawaii, and was signed only by one low-level diplomat from France and one from Britain.

Hawaiian sovereignty activists like to imagine that the Kingdom of Hawaii remains alive today as the rightful government, ignoring the revolution of 1893. They revive the celebration of the independence day holiday of the Kingdom period as a way of asserting their imaginary continuing independence and demanding future secession and reparations from the United States. They tout the signatures of two low-level diplomats from Britain and France, talking only in their own languages and only to each other while not addressed to anyone in Hawaii, as though that non-aggression pact is somehow as powerful as the letters of formal diplomatic recognition in eleven languages addressed directly to Republic of Hawaii President Sanford Dole in 1894 by Emperors, Kings, Queens and Presidents of at least 19 nations on four continents.

State of Hawaii legislature SB 3218
RELATING TO HAWAIIAN RECOGNITION DAY.
Designates November 28 of each year as La Kuokoa, Hawaiian Recognition Day, to celebrate the historical recognition of the independence of the Kingdom of Hawaii.
Bill text (including all amended versions), history, committee hearings, pdf of all testimony submitted to each committee, YEAs and NAYs, committee reports:
https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=SB&billnumber=3218&year=2022

Honolulu City Council resolution 22-262 urging the city administration to formally recognize and observe November 28th as La Ku'oko'a, Hawaiian Independence Day. Modern revival of an archaic holiday from the Kingdom of Hawaii seems harmless but conveys secessionist attitude, race-nationalism, and demands for reparations; similar to 30 years of hassles from 1993 apology resolution. Webpage provides full text of initial and final versions of the resolution, and a 21-page testimony in opposition by Ken Conklin.
https://www.angelfire.com/big11a/CCHonResoLaKuokoa.html

(In)Significance of Hawaiian Kingdom Independence Day vs. Republic of Hawaii International Recognition
https://www.angelfire.com/hi5/bigfiles/LaKuOKoaInsignif.html

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HAWAII'S INTERNAL CULTURE AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS MOVED STRONGLY AND CONTINUOUSLY TOWARD MERGER WITH UNITED STATES (WHILE RELATIONS WITH SWITZERLAND WERE DORMANT)

The first humans in Hawaii came from other faraway Polynesian islands between 1,000 and 2,000 years ago. Apparently the first group came from Marquesas. Then a couple centuries later a more warlike group invaded from Tahiti, killed or enslaved the Marquesans, and established a hierarchical society based on genealogy, constant warfare, and religion-based human sacrifice. Travel and commerce with other parts of Polynesia slowed and stopped completely for several centuries, although there may have been a few shipwrecked Spanish sailors whose clothing and hats inspired the natives (for example, the mahiole [chiefly helmet made with fabric and birdfeathers]). British explorer Captain Cook arrived in 1778, was initially given ceremonial reception as a god but then killed by natives in a dispute over theft of a small boat. Most foreign visitors during the first few decades after Captain Cook were British sailors and merchants who greatly impressed the natives and enabled Kamehameha to do what no other Hawaiian had ever been able to do -- vanquish all opponents and unify the entire archipelago under a single sovereignty.

As foreigners began coming to Hawaii to do business or pick up food and water on their way to somewhere else, Hawaii's chiefs and kings began to realize the importance of establishing friendly relations with leaders of other nations. They also felt a need to have a few other nations as allies to protect them against possible enemies.

George Vancouver had been an officer on Captain Cook's expedition which "discovered" Hawaii; and he met the youthful chief Kamehameha aboard the ship. Vancouver returned leading his own expeditions throughout the Pacific in the 1790s, became close friends with Kamehameha, brought cattle which became a huge herd under Kamehameha's protection, and helped Kamehameha acquire metal swords, guns, cannons, and oceangoing ships which eventually enabled Kamehameha to kill his opponents and consolidate all the Hawaiian islands into a unified nation. Vancouver gave Kamehameha a British flag so that foreigners would respect Hawaii, and Kamehameha actually ceded (gave) Hawaii to Britain. However, at that time Kamehameha controlled only about 2/3 of Hawaii Island (the "Big Island") and none of the other islands; furthermore, the gift of sovereignty to Britain was never implemented or taken seriously.

Thereafter the United States continuously gained strength and soon became Hawaii's most influential economic partner and strongest ally. What follows is a description of historical events that made annexation to the U.S. become culturally, economically, and militarily inevitable.

Starting around 1800 some Hawaiian natives had managed to leave Hawaii. Several native men traveled to America and ended up at Yale University's Divinity School. The most famous was Opukaha'ia who acquired the English name Henry Obookiah [The divinity students at Yale probably liked that name not only because it was a reasonable transliteration into English of the pronunciation of Opukaha'ia, but also because it reminded them of the old-testament prophets Jeremiah, Hezekiah, Zedediah, etc.]. He became fluent in English, converted to Christianity, and gave highly impassioned sermons. He begged for missionaries to be sent to Hawaii to liberate his native people from their pagan lifestyle and heathen beliefs. See
https://www.angelfire.com/hi5/bigfiles/opukahaia.html

Although Opukaha'ia died before the first boatload of missionaries could be sent, four of his native friends at the Divinity School accompanied those missionaries, including Humehume, the crown prince of Kaua'i who was the son of King Kaumuali'i. On their 160-day voyage to Hawaii the natives helped the missionaries become fluent in Hawaiian and to develop a Hawaiian alphabet and written language for printing the Bible. The presence of high-status Humehume persuaded Liholiho Kamehameha II, his stepmother/regent Ka'ahumanu, and Hawaiian chiefs to give the missionaries a one-year trial residency.

The missionaries were, of course, Americans. Their language, and the language of Captain Cook, George Vancouver, and other early visitors, was English. The Americans and British were Caucasians, and shared a generic "Western" lifestyle. American businessmen, sandalwood merchants, and whalers quickly came to dominate the economy in Hawaii as British influence faded, and eventually the massive American-owned sugar plantations reduced the British influence. In 1874 King Lunalilo died without naming a successor. There were two candidates in the election for monarch: Kalakaua vs. Emma. Emma was the dowager wife of King Alexander Liholiho Kamehameha IV; and she was 1/4 Caucasian, of British ancestry. Emma was granddaughter of British Navy officer John Young, Hawaiian name Olohana, who had become chief advisor, military strategist and battlefield general to Kamehameha in his wars of conquest, appointed Governor of Kamehameha's home Hawaii Island, whose tomb is in Mauna Ala (Royal Mausoleum) and guarded by a pair of pulo'ulo'u (sacred taboo sticks). Emma's father was John Young Junior, Hawaiian name Keoni Ana, who served under King Kauikeaouli Kamehameha III in the position of Kuhina Nui (Premier) with veto power even over the King -- his signature is immediately under the King's signature, as required, on the first Constitution of the Kingdom in 1840. Emma was the last hope for British influence to rise above American influence in Hawaii, but she lost the election of 1874 to Kalakaua, and riots in the street by her supporters were not able to overturn the result. Kalakaua was known for being very favorable to the United States.

A few months after the election Kalakaua made a formal state visit to the U.S. from November 28, 1874, through February 3, 1875 including a state banquet with the President and speech to joint session of Congress. He succeeded in getting the Reciprocity Treaty with the United States which guaranteed that Hawaiian sugar (mostly grown on American-owned plantations) could be imported into U.S. duty-free (and therefore would cost less and sell better than sugar from elsewhere) and that the U.S. could use Pearl Harbor to repair ships and refuel them and would be the only nation that could use Pearl Harbor. From that point on, the U.S. had economic and political power in Hawaii far superior to any other nation.

Hawaii's culture and even its government remained surprisingly continuous and stable throughout the transition from Kingdom to Provisional Government to Republic to U.S. Territory. During the revolution of 1893 nobody was killed and only 5 people lost their jobs: Queen Lili'uokalani and her 4 cabinet ministers. Some department heads, government bureaucrats, and members of the Royal Hawaiian Band voluntarily resigned because they refused to take the oath of loyalty to the new government, just as some U.S. citizens today exclude themselves from government jobs or military service because they refuse to take the required oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States.

Two men deserve great credit for the generally peaceful internal political transitions and stability of international relations: Sanford Ballard Dole and Curtis Piʻehu Iaukea.

Sanford Ballard Dole was native-born at Punahou, Honolulu on April 23, 1844, son of missionary Daniel Dole who founded Punahou school. Sanford grew up in Honolulu and Koloa (Kaua'i) with native kids as his playmates and friends. He went to Massachusetts to study law and, back home later, donated his services as lawyer to natives. He circulated freely among all social classes, and was a participant in social activities of the royal court. He adopted a native girl Elizabeth Napoleon Low, daughter of a member of the royal court, as helper to his infirm wife, and was probably the biological father of Lizzie's child whom she named Sanford Ballard Dole Low (many prominent Native Hawaiians are at least hanai, and probably biological, descendants of Sanford Dole, including famed pwo navigator and President of the Polynesian Voyaging Society, Nainoa Thompson). Sanford was elected to the legislature of the Kingdom of Hawaii, and subsequently appointed by Kalakaua as Supreme Court Justice and reconfirmed by his friend Lili'uokalani. As tensions escalated between royalists and reformists, both sides admired and trusted Sanford Dole. The revolutionary Committee of Safety realized that Dole was probably the only man who could be accepted as leader by royalists and reformists alike, so they begged him to accept the Presidency of the Provisional government. Dole honorably resigned as Supreme Court Justice the day before the revolution in January 1893 and became President of the Provisional Government and of the Republic of Hawaii, and then Governor of the Territory of Hawaii, with his ceremonial office in Iolani Palace continuously for all 11 years of those turbulent and dangerous transitions. Then he resigned to become judge in the U.S. District Court for the Territory of Hawaii; and after retiring he resumed advising and donating legal services to native groups and indigent individuals. See
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/dole.html
and
https://www.angelfire.com/hi2/hawaiiansovereignty/dolebiog.html

The following summary biography of Colonel and Ambassador Curtis Piʻehu Iaukea, comes from information in this webpage created by many contributors where it is accompanied by great detail and numerous footnotes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtis_P._Iaukea

Colonel Curtis Piʻehu Iaukea (December 13, 1855 – March 5, 1940) was raised from an early age to serve the Hawaiian royal family. He first gained prominence during the reign of King Kalākaua when he served as an important court official and an army officer in the volunteer army of the Kingdom of Hawaii. He held numerous significant positions including governor of Oahu and chamberlain to the Royal Household. He also served as Hawaii's ambassador to Europe and Asia, attending the coronation of Tsar Alexander III of Russia [who later signed Russia's formal letter in 1894 recognizing the Republic of Hawaii!!] and the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria [who later signed the formal letter of recognition of the Republic of Hawaii!!]. Iaukea received numerous Hawaiian honors and foreign decorations during his service to the kingdom. [See the full Wikipedia page for lists of his honors and positions] Following the overthrow of the monarchy, he continued to work for the subsequent Provisional Government and the Republic of Hawaii. He served as an officer on the military staff of President Sanford B. Dole and represented the Republic at the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria. After Hawaii's annexation to the United States, he became a member of the Democratic Party of Hawaii and served in many official positions in the newly created Territory of Hawaii including sheriff of Honolulu County, senator of the Third District, secretary of Hawaii, and acting governor of Hawaii. As one of the last surviving representatives of the Hawaiian royal court, he served as business manager and private secretary to the deposed Queen Liliʻuokalani until her death in 1917.

A biography of Iaukea consisting of his own writings plus reminiscences by his daughter Lorna Kahilipuaokalani Iaukea Watson (1885-1972) was published in 1988 in a book entitled "By royal command: the official life and personal reminiscences of Colonel Curtis Pi'ehu Iaukea at the court of Hawaii's rulers." 'Iaukea served in the inner circle of every Hawaii head of state from Kamehameha IV through Sanford Dole, personally witnessed at close quarters the most important personal and political events of Hawaii's leaders, and served as a Hawaiian diplomat in the United States, Europe, and Japan. Mr. 'Iaukea's autobiography made fascinating observations about the corruption, infighting, and political instability of the Kalakaua and Lili'uokalani regimes; and provided an insider's look at the death of Kalakaua, the ascent of Lili'uokalani, and the overthrow of the monarchy. Mr. 'Iaukea came to support the political efforts of Sanford B. Dole and to work as his ambassador during the Republic, and as an emissary for Governor Dole during the first years of the Territory. Being published 16 years after the death of Iaukea's daughter, the book was edited by Niklaus Schweizer, a zealous advocate for Hawaiian sovereignty who inserted a chapter by himself in which he tried to downplay Iaukea's loyalty to the Republic and Territory, and portray Iaukea as forever a royalist -- that's what today's activist history-twisters like to do. This book was published by Hui Hanai, an auxiliary of the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center, which focuses on social work for benefit exclusively of ethnic Hawaiian children, and uses its facilities to host meetings by Hawaiian sovereignty groups.

An even more radical twisting of history comes in a more recent book about Iaukea from his great-great-granddaughter, Sydney L. Iaukea, published in 2011: "The Queen and I: A Story of Dispossessions and Reconnections in Hawai'i". A blurb written by Sydney Iaukea on the Amazon website says: "In this exposé Sydney L. Iaukea ties personal memories to newly procured political information about Hawai`i’s crucial Territorial era. Spurred by questions surrounding intergenerational property disputes in her immediate family, she delves into Hawai`i’s historical archives. There she discovers the central role played by her great-great-grandfather in the politics of late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century Hawai`i―in particular, Curtis P. Iaukea’s trusted position with the Hawaiian Kingdom’s last ruling monarch, Queen Lili`uokalani. As Iaukea charts her ancestor’s efforts to defend a culture under siege, she reveals astonishing legal and legislative maneuvers that show us how capitalism reshaped cultural relationships. She finds resonant parallels and connections between her own upbringing in Maui’s housing projects, her family’s penchant for hiding property, and the Hawaiian peoples’ loss of their country and lands."
https://www.amazon.com/Queen-Story-Dispossessions-Reconnections-Hawaii/dp/0520272048

See Sydney Iaukea's own webpage at
https://sydneyiaukea.com
where she shows some leg and makes her own radical views perfectly clear:
Sydney Lehua Iaukea is a Native Hawaiian educator who holds a Ph.D. in Political Science, with an emphasis in Hawaiʻi Politics. She was a recipient of a Mellon Hawaiʻi postdoctoral fellowship and she completed Peace Corps service in Costa Rica. Sydney has taught over 80 college courses in Political Science and Hawaiʻi Politics, and she was also the Hawaiian Studies program manager for the Hawaiʻi Department of Education. You can purchase Sydney's books here, take upcoming courses, view her public presentations and keep up with her blog here. You can also view her TED Ed video-- "The dark history of the overthrow of Hawai'i." Mahalo nui for your interest in Aloha ʻĀina--love of the land and nation.

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LEON SIU'S SELF-IDENTIFICATION AS MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF KINGDOM OF HAWAII, AND HIS DECADES-LONG CAREER AS MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE KINGDOM OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS

H.E. [His Excellency] Leon Kaulahao Siu created a profile on "Linked In' at
https://www.linkedin.com/in/leon-siu-25976349

For us less exalted folks who lack membership at Linked In, he also posted a profile at
http://www.hawaiiankingdom.net/uploads/1/1/9/9/119986669/•_lks_cv.pdf

H.E. Leon Kaulahao Siu
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Kingdom of the Hawaiian Islands

H.E. Leon Kaulahao Siu is the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Ke Aupuni Ko Hawaii Pae Aina — the Kingdom of the Hawaiian Islands — and has served in that capacity since the year 2000. Mr. Siu has been involved since the mid 1990s with the reactivation of the lawful Hawaiian Kingdom as an independent nation-state. In 1997 he was appointed the Deputy the Minister of Foreign Affairs by the Privy Council of Ke Aupuni O Hawaii and became the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2000. His duties are to revive, develop, nurture and advance diplomatic, trade and other forms of friendly relations with sovereign states and international bodies.

He was nominated in 2016 for the Nobel Peace Prize — the only Hawaiian to have had that distinction. Mr. Siu participates in numerous international fora concerning human rights and the rights of original peoples and nations, particularly with regard to self-determination in governance, economic development, human rights, maintaining sovereign and cultural integrity, and so forth. He has advocated these matters before the UN Human Rights Committee, Human Rights Council, Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Permanent Forum on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, the Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, World Intellectual Properties Organization, and others.

He has also led the reentry of the Hawaiian Islands into crucial discussions on global sustainability. He participated in the Marshall Islands conference on climate change at Columbia University, and attended and contributed to regional discussions on sustainable development in the Pacific conducted by the Melanesian Spearhead Group, the Pacific Islands Development Forum and the Pacific Islands Forum.

Minister Siu is the current chair of the Decolonization Alliance a coalition of original nations and supporting organizations working to improve the UN’s decolonization process in order to provide the opportunity for self-governance to original peoples and nations. Minister Siu was nominated for the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize for his collaborative work in espousing the legal basis for independence for West Papua. He was also a recipient of the Decree of Consecration Diploma and Gold Medal UN Peacemaker Sergio Vieira de Mello award from the International Parliament in 2017. In 2015 he was awarded the Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Kamehameha. Minister Siu is the co-author of the book, Modus Vivendi Situation of West Papua (2017) the seminal analysis of the West Papua situation under international law.

Mr. Siu attended the University of Hawaii, majoring in fine arts and minoring in history. He has an illustrious career as a musician, composer, recording artist and a pioneer producer of multi-arts, multi-media projects using cutting edge technology.

** Note by Ken Conklin: The government that Mr. Siu says appointed him to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and then elevated him to Minister of Foreign Affairs is "Ke Aupuni" ["The Government"] whose Facebook page appears to have been created in 2014 and last updated 2015: https://www.facebook.com/keaupuniohawai/

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KEANU SAI'S ADVENTURES IN SWITZERLAND (AND ELSEWHERE)

On Monday, November 11, 2013 Keanu Sai gave a presentation entitled "Hawai'i – An American State or a State Under American Occupation" The event was at the invitation of a group of retired Swiss diplomats, at University of Zurich.

About 10 days after the November 11 presentation, the website of the Swiss Diplomats posted a short report about the event including photos of the panel and the audience. The report stated no conclusions agreeing or disagreeing with Mr. Sai's views, but merely said that the event was interesting and enjoyable. The fact that it took more than a week for the Swiss diplomats to post a report might indicate they had some disagreements among themselves about what to say. The fact that they did NOT issue a statement supporting Mr. Sai's views is very significant in view of the fact that they had issued the invitation for Mr. Sai to make the presentation. Mr. Sai and his sidekick Niklaus Schweizer must be very disappointed indeed, having spent all that money and traveled halfway around the world, only to end up with a report saying what an interesting and enjoyable event it was (sort of like a theatrical performance might be).

The report by Swiss Diplomats was posted on their website at a link which is now dead.
http://swissdiplomats.net/index.php/past-activities
SwissDiplomats - ZurichNetwork
Past Activities

The report was published in German. Ken Conklin speaks German with moderate fluency, and made the following translation with help of his massive "New Cassell's German Dictionary" published 1958:

Event on the topic: "Hawai'i - U.S. State or Pacific Kingdom"
On Monday, November 11, 2013 an event was held at the University of Zurich on the topic "Hawaii - U.S. State or Pacific Kingdom", which was organized by Swiss Diplomats - Zurich Network.
The approximately 75 attendees were informally welcomed by Max Stern , Director of foraus, and Max Schweizer. Then Niklaus Schweizer, who works as a professor at the University of Hawai'i, presented a richly illustrated introduction to the topic "Hawai'i". The highlight of the event was the presentation by Dr. David Keanu Sai, Ambassador-at-large of Hawai'i. Through an exposition of the history of Hawai'i he led the enthusiastic listeners to see that the country is still a currently occupied but independent state. The subsequent panel discussion with Dr. Sai, Christian Blickenstorfer, formerly Ambassador to the U.S., and Niklaus Schweizer, was moderated by Max Schweizer.
The reception afterward made for a cozy conclusion of the successful, insightful evening.

On November 25 Keanu Sai finally posted on his blog a report about what happened at his presentation to the Swiss Diplomats group in Zurich (which had taken place on November 11). It seems quite possible that Keanu Sai posted this self-flattering report to counteract Ken Conklin's comment of November 22, above, which had noted that the Swiss Diplomats had posted a report about the event which did not in any way comment upon or support the substantive claims which Mr. Sai had made to them. Is Mr. Sai's report accurate? Or is it merely his wishful thinking, like his assertions about an alleged Lili'uokalani assignment and an alleged Executive Agreement of Restoration?
http://hawaiiankingdom.org/blog/?p=980 ** [This link is now dead, but the contents were previously copied as follows:
Hawaiian Kingdom Blog
Weblog of the acting government of the Hawaiian Kingdom presently operating within the occupied State of the Hawaiian Islands.
[Keanu Sai's blog]
November 25, 2013

Ambassador Sai's Presentation to the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network Well Received

On November 11, 2013, Dr. David Keanu Sai, as Ambassador-at-large for the acting government of the Hawaiian Kingdom, was invited by the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network to present on the status of the Hawaiian Kingdom at the University of Zurich. Dr. Sai was received and introduced as the Ambassador-at-large of the Hawaiian Kingdom with all the diplomatic protocol and etiquette.

The program began promptly at 6:30 pm with an introduction by Dr. Max Schweizer, Executive Director of the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network, welcoming everyone in attendance, which included former Swiss Ambassadors and Diplomats, students from the University of Zurich's Center of Foreign Affairs & Applied Diplomacy, as well as people from the public sector. Dr. Schweizer is Head of the Center of Foreign Affairs & Applied Diplomacy that trains future diplomats from Switzerland and other foreign countries. Dr. Schweizer also introduced Maximilian Stern, Executive Director of foraus, a think-tank for Swiss Foreign Policy, which co-sponsored the event.

At 6:40 pm Professor Niklaus Schweizer, a former Honorary Swiss Consul and current member of the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network, provided a short presentation on the historical background of Swiss-Hawaiian relations. Professor Schweizer is also a faculty member at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa and teaches a college course titled Europeans in the Pacific. Professor Schweizer also provided an incredible link from Huldrych Zwingli (1484-1531), who was a religious leader of the Reformation in Zurich, to John Calvin (1509-1564) who was part of the Reform in Geneva, Switzerland, to the Calvinist missionaries from the United States that arrived on the island of Hawai'i in 1820. His presentation ended by stating there is a lot more history to Hawai'i than Waikiki and tourism.

Dr. Sai then followed with his power point presentation Hawai'i: An American State or a State under American Occupation. The presentation covered the legal and political history of the Hawaiian Kingdom; its treaty with Switzerland, the illegal overthrow; the ensuing illegal and prolonged occupation by the United States; the Protest and Demand filed with the United Nations General Assembly; the Referral filed with the International Criminal Court; the Application Instituting Proceedings at the International Court of Justice with Switzerland named as a defendant; and the ongoing commission of war crimes. A panel discussion immediately followed the presentation.

The panel was comprised of Dr. Sai, Professor Schweizer and Dr. Christian Blickenstorfer, who is President of the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network as well as former Swiss Ambassador to the United States, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, and Germany. Dr. Schweizer moderated the panel. Dr. Blickenstorfer stated that when he visited the Hawaiian Islands while Ambassador to the United States, he clearly saw two versions of the Hawaiian Islands that he didn't expect. First was the perception that Hawai'i was the 50th State of the United States and the other was a kingdom with a Palace and the Royal Hawaiian Band. He clearly didn't understand the distinction until Dr. Sai's presentation, which he said was very informative and clear. Dr. Schweizer then asked Dr. Sai about his position as Ambassador-at-large and if he could explain to the audience his position and how he was appointed. Dr. Sai responded with a short narrative of how the acting government was established in 1996 utilizing laws of the Hawaiian Kingdom as it existed before the occupation in the provisional and temporary establishment of a Regency that was provided for under the Hawaiian constitution under the legal doctrine of necessity. The panelists and audience understood the application of the doctrine of necessity as it applies to government.

Questions were then taken from the audience that centered on the economy of the Hawaiian Kingdom and how would it look like during and after the occupation ends. Another question was by a Swiss Human Rights activist asking for Dr. Sai's response to actions taken by Mr. Leon Siu who is trying to get Hawai'i listed on the United Nations list of colonies in order for Hawai'i to be de-colonized. She explained that Mr. Siu stated to her that all it takes is one country to support Hawai'i's listing, and she asked Dr. Sai for his thoughts or whether or not Switzerland could be that country. Dr. Sai's responded that it was not the appropriate action to be taken regarding Hawai'i's occupation, because to say that Hawai'i is a colony of the United States is to imply that Hawai'i is not an already existing sovereign, but occupied, State. He explained that de-colonization is the process of self-determination where the population of a colony will decide whether it wants one of three options; first, to be an independent and sovereign State; second, a status of free association with the former colonizer; or, third, total incorporation into the sovereignty of the colonizer. Because Hawai'i's government was illegally overthrown by the United States, does not mean Hawai'i became a U.S. colony. The diplomats in the audience understood Dr. Sai's response and agreed that de-colonization is not the process because the issue is State continuity and not the creation of State.

After the panel there was time for everyone to have some wine and to mingle. Dr. Sai was soon surrounded by the diplomatic students who were from Russia, France, Switzerland and Spain. The students from Russia, in particular, wanted a picture taken with Dr. Sai. There were specific questions from the students regarding economic trade between the Hawaiian Kingdom and European countries and how would that would look like. Dr. Sai explained that the treaties are still in force and that Hawaiian law provides for free trade. What resonated among the students and the diplomats was the clear understanding that the Hawaiian State would still exist under international law, despite its government being illegal overthrown. This was the basis for the Hawaiian Kingdom's continued existence and the formation of the acting government.

The evening ended with a dinner in Dr. Sai's honor at Kantorei restaurant, which was walking distance from the university. The senior officers of the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network's Executive Committee hosted the dinner. The diplomats and officers of the Swiss Diplomats-Zurich Network gave their support to the actions taken by the acting government and wished it well as it proceeds towards the path of de-occupation. What was conveyed to Dr. Sai, as they walked to the restaurant, was how logical a path the acting government has taken in light of a prolonged occupation. What was especially welcomed to these diplomats was the focus on re-education at the collegiate and secondary levels, as well as the community at large.

The next day Dr. Sai was given a message from one of the former Swiss ambassadors in attendance at the presentation the night before, where he wanted to convey to Ambassador Sai that he is a "very good diplomat." Dr. Sai asked the individual who delivered the message if that was a compliment. His response to Dr. Sai was absolutely, especially coming from another Ambassador who was a seasoned diplomat.

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Because Keanu Sai publicized his event in Zurich weeks ahead of time, Ken Conklin was able to compose a detailed rebuttal of the major points he expected Sai to make, and on November 7 emailed the rebuttal to the retired Swiss diplomats who had issued the invitation. The rebuttal begins this way:

"In this message I will make several points, which I hope you will keep in mind during Mr. Sai's presentation. Please make use of these points to cross-examine him. He would like to enlist your group of diplomats as accomplices in his ongoing scams and publicity stunts. I'm hoping that instead, you might issue a statement repudiating his assertions."

A summary of 6 main points was provided, and then those points were explained in detail. Everything can be seen at this webpage:
"Keanu Sai's Hawaiian history fantasies underlying his adventures with the International Criminal Court, the community of diplomats, and the Hawaii mortgage market. The alleged Liliuokalani Assignment, and the alleged Executive Agreement of Restoration"
https://www.angelfire.com/big09/SaiFantasiesSwissDipl111113.html

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Keanu Sai's forum with the "Retired Diplomats" in Zurich in 2013 was not the beginning nor the end of his ongoing adventures in Switzerland. An interesting collection of emails regarding personal meetings in Switzerland in 2018 with the Universal Postal Union is on Mr. Sai's own website at
https://hawaiiankingdom.org/pdf/UPU_Communication.pdf
Note that a group of 3 sovereignty activists was scheduled to meet in Berne with the honorable Deputy Director General of the Universal Postal Union on February 21, 2018. The group identified themselves as
Dr. David Keanu Sai, Ambassador‐at‐large, Provisional Government of the Hawaiian Kingdom
Mr. Blaise Bissen, Attache to the Ambassador
Professor Niklaus R. Schweizer, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Swiss Federal Council

Letter to UPU Deputy Director General
Hawaiian Ambassadoratlarge
Wed, Feb 28, 2018 at 12:44 PM
To: RAKOTONDRAJAO brigitte
Cc: "Dr. Max Schweizer" ,
Niklaus Schweizer ,
Blaise Bissen
Dear Madam.
Please find attached a letter to the honorable Deputy Director General regarding our meeting with you on the ground floor of the UPU headquarters on 23 February 2018.
Furthermore, any further communication with you will be through my attaché, Mr. Blaise Bissen, whose email is bbissen@gmail.com.
Thank you so much and I sincerely hope that you enjoyed the Hawaiian chocolates.
Also my very best regards to Mr. Clivaz, Deputy Director General, and that he had a speedy recovery.
D.K.S.
---
David Keanu Sai, Ph.D.
Hawaiian Ambassador-at-large
P.O. Box 2194
Honolulu, HI 96805-2194
Website http://hawaiiankingdom.org/

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