Native Hawaiian leader calls for construction moratorium at sacred summit after arrests

HONOLULU, Hawaii – Scientists hoping to see 13 billion light years away, giving them a look into the early years of the universe, are facing opposition from Native Hawaiian groups who say the construction site of a new telescope is on sacred land.

On Friday, a Native Hawaiian leader called on the state and the University of Hawaii to adopt a moratorium on construction after dozens of protesters were arrested the day before.

Peter Apo, a trustee for the Office of Hawaiian Affairs, said he’s asking Gov. David Ige and University of Hawaii President David Lassner to bring people together during a 30-day moratorium to work out a long-term solution.

“Hawaiians absolutely believe in science. How that plays out on this mountain is going to be a matter of getting the right set of people in the room to negotiate some sort of compromise that everyone can live with,” Apo told reporters.

Stopping construction would be key, he said.

“You can’t even get to the discussion point until they stop construction,” he said.

University spokesman Dan Meisenzahl said the school welcomes all calls for more dialogue and is actively meeting and addressing the issue at the highest levels.

The governor’s office didn’t immediately comment on the request.

The dispute has pitted Native Hawaiians, who believe the telescope site is sacred because it is where their creation story begins, against scientists, who believe it’s an ideal location for one of the world’s largest telescopes because of its remote and sheltered position, nestled in the crater of a dormant volcano.

About 300 protesters gathered at the mountain Thursday, and police and state law enforcement arrested 20 people who tried to block a road leading to the summit of Mauna Kea on Hawaii’s Big Island. Eleven more were arrested atop the peak, the highest point in the state.

Project opponents question whether land appraisals were done correctly and whether Native Hawaiian groups were consulted, so they have tried to prevent construction of the $1.4 billion Thirty Meter Telescope. Project leaders say they regret the arrests but safe access to the site needs to be preserved.

While the Native Hawaiian groups do not oppose the telescope itself, they disagree with constructing it on Mauna Kea.

“It is the burial grounds of some of our most sacred and revered ancestors,” said Kealoha Pisciotta, a project opponent. “It is a place where we go for sanctuary and release from the world around us, and it is also the home of our god.”

All of the highest points in the islands are considered the home of deities, she said.

The people arrested Thursday were trying to block trucks heading to the peak.

Work got underway after the protesters were arrested and the path to the summit was cleared, Sandra Dawson, a project spokeswoman, said in an email to The Associated Press.

Police said they warned protesters who formed a roadblock Monday that anyone who obstructed the street would be arrested. Those apprehended Thursday were released after each posting bail of $250.

“We regret that police action had to be taken to enable our legal access to the project site,” Thirty Meter Telescope project manager Gary Sanders said in a statement.

The university subleases the land atop Mauna Kea for the telescope project. A partnership of Canadian and U.S. universities plans to build the telescope along with institutions in China, India and Japan.

The observatory is expected to be operational by 2024, the same year a 39-meter telescope is expected to be completed in Chile.

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Follow Caleb Jones on Twitter: http://twitter.com/CalebAP.