Hawaiian Society
of law and politics

THE HAWAIIAN SOCIETY OF LAW AND POLITICS SYMPOSIUM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAI‘I AT MĀNOA’S ART BUILDING AUDITORIUM (FEB. 11, 2023)

“The Royal Commission Of Inquiry—investigating War Crimes And Human Rights Violations Committed In The Hawaiian Kingdom”

The Hawaiian Society of Law & Politics (HSLP), in collaboration with the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, the National Lawyers Guild, Kanaeokana, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Native Hawaiian Student Services (NHSS), and the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa College of Education, invites you to its February 11, 2023 Symposium showcasing of the Royal Commission of Inquiry - Investigating War Crimes and Human Rights Violations Committed in the Hawaiian Kingdom. The event is at no cost but youʻll need to register to ensure you can get a seat. The auditorium is air conditioned and sits 300.
The half-day symposium will feature experts in the fields of international law, international relations, international criminal law and war crimes, and Hawaiian Kingdom law on the topic of the American occupation of the Hawaiian Kingdom since January 17, 1893.
Dr. Kamana‘opono Crabbe will open the symposium with a Hawaiian chant and then followed by a special appearance by Hawaiian actor Jason Scott Lee who acted in films such as Dragon - the Bruce Lee Story, the Jungle Book, Rapanui, Mulan, and The Wind and the Reckoning. Suzanne Adely, President of the American National Lawyers Guild and member of the International Association of Democratic Lawyers, will give a brief look into the efforts both entities have exerted in exposing the Hawaiian Kingdom's occupation. Presenters to follow include Professor William Schabas, renowned expert in international criminal law and war crimes from Middlesex University London, author of "Legal Opinion on War Crimes Related to the United States Occupation of the Hawaiian Kingdom since 17 January 1893;" Professor Federico Lenzerini, professor of international law from the University of Siena, Italy, and Deputy Head of the Royal Commission of Inquiry, author of "Legal Opinion on the Authority of the Council of Regency of the Hawaiian Kingdom;" and Dr. Keanu Sai, a Lecturer in Political Science and Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawai‘i, and Head of the Royal Commission of Inquiry, author of "The Royal Commission of Inquiry." The presenters will discuss the subject matter of their respective articles which have been published by the Hawaiian Journal of Law and Politics. Following their presentations, the presenters will sit together on a panel to answer questions from the audience.

The symposium will also have as a finale a presentation celebrating Aloha ‘Āina (Hawaiian Patriotism) through mele (song) by well known Hawaiian entertainers and musicians featuring Mele Apana, Lina Girl, Davey D, Amy Gilliom, Mailani Makainai, Ku‘uipo Kumukahi, Sean Pimental, Glenn Maeda, Danny Kennedy, Na Wai Ho‘olu‘u o ke Ānuenue, and Heuaʻolu Sai-Dudoit.

The first 200 registrants will receive a complimentary copy of the Royal Commission of Inquiry, the chapters of which will be the subject of this symposium.
SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE: The symposium will begin at 11:00am and end at 4:30pm at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa's Art Building auditorium across from Varney Circle where the water fountain is. Here is a link to a map of UH Mānoa. Light lunch and drinks included at no cost. Registration is now open for all UH Mānoa students, faculty and staff, as well as community members. The Symposium will be streamed at NHSS' Facebook page, which can be found under the username "Native Hawaiian Student Services - UH Mānoa." REGISTRATION DEADLINE: February 10, 2023

Click Here for Registration

About the Acting Council of Regency

William Schabas

WILLIAM A. SCHABAS is Professor of International Law at Middlesex University, London. He is also Professor Emeritus of International Human Law and Human Rights at Leiden University, Professor Emeritus of Human Rights Law at the University of Galway, and an invited visiting scholar at the Paris School of International Affairs. Recognized as a leading expert on international human rights law, international criminal law, genocide and capital punishment, he is the author of more than 20 books and 350 journal articles on these issues. He is also Editor Emeritus of Criminal Law Forum, the quarterly journal of the International Society for the Reform of Criminal Law. Professor Schabas was a member of the United Nations’ Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He also worked as a consultant on capital punishment for the UN Office of Drugs and Crime, and drafted the 2010 and 2015 reports of the UN Secretary-General on the status of the death penalty. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada, a Member of the Royal Irish Academy and he has been awarded the Vespasian V. Pella Medal for International Criminal Justice by the Association Internationale de Droit Pénal. Professor Schabas is the author of the “Legal Opinion on War Crimes Related to the United States Occupation of the Hawaiian Kingdom since 17 January 1893,” published in vol. 3 of the Hawaiian Journal of Law and Politics.

Federico Lenzerini

FEDERICO LENZERINI is Professor of International Law, European Union Law and International Human Rights Law at the Department of Political and International Science at the University of Siena (Italy). He is also Professor at the LLM program in Intercultural Human Rights on the African System of Human Rights, St. Thomas University School of Law, Miami, Florida, USA. His fields of research include human rights law, asylum and refugee law, rights of indigenous peoples, international trade law and law of cultural heritage. Professor Lenzerini is a consultant to UNESCO (Paris). On several occasions he has been counsel to the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for international negotiations related to cultural heritage. He is member of the Italian Society of International Law and of the International Law Association (ILA). Professor Lenzerini has also been a member of the Scientific Committee of the Wroclaw Commentaries on Culture and Human Rights, patronized, among others, by the European Union Initiative of European Capitals of Culture and the Council of Europe. He has been a visiting professor in several foreign universities and provided over 120 lectures in more than 20 countries. Professor Lenzerini is the Deputy Head of the Royal Commission of Inquiry and is the author of the “Legal Opinion on the Authority of the Council of Regency of the Hawaiian Kingdom,” published in vol. 3 of the Hawaiian Journal of Law and Politics.

Keanu Sai

KEANU SAI is a Lecturer in Political Science and Hawaiian Studies at the University of Hawai‘i Windward Community College and at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa College of Education graduate division. Dr. Sai received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa specializing in International Relations and Law. His research and publications have centered on the continued existence of the Hawaiian Kingdom as an independent State. Dr. Sai also served as Lead Agent for the Council of Regency representing the Hawaiian Kingdom at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in Larsen v. Hawaiian Kingdom from 1999-2001. Dr. Sai is currently serving as Chair of the Royal Commission of Inquiry and is the author of “The Royal Commission of Inquiry,” published in vol. 3 of the Hawaiian Journal of Law and Politics.

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