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TOURISM

IN INDEPENDENT HAWAI`I

Tourism is the primary source of Hawai`i's economic vitality, and will be for some time. However, tourism is also the source of extensive cultural and environmental damage that jeopardizes our quality of life and our future. The visitor industry must undergo a steady transition, paralleling our political transition, into a different kind of tourism which will be more beneficial to both our visitors and our residents.

"Independence" means more than just political independence. Right now, we are a very "dependent" society, depending on outside sources, primarily the United States, to meet most of our basic needs such as food and energy, despite the fact that we are living on the most isolated land mass in the world. Therefore we are subject to the control of outside forces. We lack self-reliance and suffer from great vulnerability. Hawai`i must become more independent in many ways to ensure the future stability and security of our land and people.

Tourism here creates a "flow-through" economy where money comes in and goes out without much benefit for the local people. So first we need to diversify our economy with community based enterprises to meet more of our own needs locally, with markets in the visitor industry. The money that does come in through tourism must stay and circulate in the local economy, multiplying its effect and enhancing the self-sufficiency of our communities.

There are many other options to decrease our over-reliance on the tourism industry. Only as an independent country can we take full advantage of Hawai`i's unique global position in the center of the Pacific Rim, controlling our 200 mile Exclusive Economic Zone, and becoming a center for international trade and the development of global ethical banking.

At the same time, the nature of tourism itself must transform. We need to focus on quality over quantity, and emphasize Hawai`i's unparalleled value as a source of health and well-being, cultural sharing, natural beauty, and spiritual rejuvenation, through the true essence of Aloha.

Only when the independent Nation of Hawai`i is fully restored will Aloha be truly restored. Only when the original people of this land are returned to their natural position as sovereign human beings in their homeland will their Aloha be free to flow to all humanity. Then Hawai`i can share the unique spirit of this land with the world, to spread the essence of light and love necessary to help create Akua's true world order.

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