19 July 2011

The Guam United Nations Papers - Statement of Governor Eddie Baza Calvo

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THE QUESTION OF GUAM

STATEMENT
OF THE
GOVERNOR OF GUAM EDDIE BAZA CALVO
BY: CLARE CALVO

BEFORE THE
UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON DECOLONIZATION 
June 21, 2011

Hafa Adai & Good Afternoon Mr. Chairman Carrion-Mena and members of the Special Committee on Decolonization. My name is Clare Baza Calvo and I am first and foremost a daughter of Guam. As well, I am president and founding member of Conscious Living Nonprofit Organization. Our mission is to bring forth wellness and healing to Guam and her people. Through social change rooted deeply in love and respect for the interconnectedness of all life, we strive to cultivate self-empowerment by taking responsible steps to improve our over-all livelihood on our beautiful island. I AM HERE BEFORE YOU ON BEHALF OF EDDIE BAZA CALVO, GOVERNOR OF GUAM. HE CONVEYS HIS SINCEREST APOLOGIES FOR NOT APPEARING TODAY; HOWEVER, THE GOVERNOR HAS PREPARED A WRITTEN TESTIMONY IN WHICH I WILL NOW READ:

EDDIE BAZA CALVO: TESTIMONY 500 YRS OVERDUE

Ladies and gentlemen, members of the United Nations, the people of Guam need your help. We are bearing a great burden. Colonialism has weighed down upon our people for nearly 500 years. This half millennium of external rule has taken its toll. Our Chamorro ancestors came to Guam centuries before the Polynesians arrived in Hawaii. Our Chiefs held law over the land before the Kings of Europe. Our latte stones were built as the Mayans built their pyramids. Yet the only written history of this advanced and unique people are the accounts of foreigners—of Spanish Conquistadors and priests.

Our island suffered over 230 years of Spanish colonial rule. Chamorros were devastated by new diseases, war, and oppression. After the Spanish-American War, the United States claimed Guam, and rule began under the Naval government. Once again, Chamorros had no representation, and no say in their future. Japan's foray into imperialism during World War II was especially brutal for Guam, when Chamorros suffered atrocities from the Japanese Imperial Army. Our women were raped. Our men were beheaded. Chamorro families were marched into caves and exterminated like vermin. After three years of pain and suffering, America finally stormed the beaches of our island on July 1944 to take back the island. The occasion is known as Liberation Day, but while we were liberated from slavery and war, the Chamorros were still suppressed under colonialism. One of Guam's liberators, a brave American named Darrell Doss said it best. Quote.


Fifty-nine years ago, on July 21, 1944, I and more than 57,000 Marines, soldiers and sailors came ashore on the beaches of Asan and Agat, and were honored to be referred to as ‘liberators.’ But in the end, we failed to accomplish what we had come to do -- liberate you. More correctly, our government failed both of us by not granting the people of Guam full citizenship. Another injustice is not allowing Guam to have equal say, as we in the states do in governing your island home. Please remember, we men who landed on your shores July 21, 1944, shall never be fully satisfied until you are fully liberated. Unquote.


Worse yet, the Chamorro people have yet to even receive reparations for the atrocities they suffered. The United States has already acknowledged the need to address wrongdoings during World War II, which is why Japanese-Americans who were forcibly removed from their homes during the war have been compensated. These reparations were justified. Thousands of Japanese-Americans underwent forced internment, the motivations racist and ignorant. But what of our greatest generation on Guam? The Chamorros of World War II endured slavery, occupation, murder, and genocide. Yet, the U.S. Government is silent in its obligations to war reparations. Our island anxiously awaits the day where our people can receive the same amount of respect, as fellow Americans who endured unimaginable evil during that time. The silence from the administering power on this issue reinforces the point that Guam can no longer remain a colony in perpetuity.

Ladies and gentlemen, for nearly half a millennium the Chamorro people have been unable to reach their full socio-economic potential because of our political status. Now, more than ever, it is important to move forward, while there are still Chamorros left to express our right to self-determination. I am thankful our administering power: the United States recognizes this right and need. The Obama administration has agreed to match local funding I have allocated for our decolonization efforts. The Government of Guam is committed to a plebiscite. I personally would like to see a vote taken in the next general election or election thereafter. What is most important is to make sure our Chamorros make an educated decision on the political status they want to move toward.

To say, “exercising this human right is long overdue” is a gross understatement. For far too long the Chamorro people have been told to be satisfied with a political status that does not respect their wishes first. For far too long the native people of Guam have been dealing with inequality of government. We have been dealing with taxation without full representation, with quasi-citizenship and partial belonging. Now it is time for us to realize our full political destiny, so we can take control and lead and live the way that is best for our people.

I am urging this body to support our human rights as citizens of this world, to help us become citizens of a place—of our place in this world. Kao siña un ayuda ham ni' ManChamoru. Kao siña un rikoknisa i direchon-måmi para in-din-tet-minan maisa. Ayuda ham humago' i guinifen-måmi. Manespisiåt ham. Mambanidosu ham. ManChamoru ham. Thank you for the opportunity to speak on behalf of the people of Guam.




The Guam United Nations Papers - Statement of Edward Alvarez, Guam Decolonization Commission

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THE QUESTION OF GUAM

STATEMENT

OF THE

EDWARD ALVAREZ

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, COMMISSION ON DECOLONIZATION

GOVERNMENT OF GUAM

BEFORE THE

UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON DECOLONIZATION

JUNE 21, 2011


HAFA ADAI (GREETINGS) CHAIRMAN FRANCISCO CARRION-MENA, ALL GOVERNMENT AND NON-GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, AND THE COMMITTEE OF 24 AMBASSADORS.

MY NAME IS EDWARD ALVAREZ, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE GUAM COMMISSION ON DECOLONIZATION. WHILE ATTENDING THE SEMINAR IN ST.VINCENT AND THE GRENADINE ISLANDS LAST MONTH, I REPORTED THAT GUAM HAS MADE SIGNIFICANT STRIDES IN A POSITIVE LIGHT REGARDING DECOLONIZATION IN THE LAST FOUR MONTHS. THE GOVERNMENT OF GUAM WILL BE EMBARKING ON AN AGGRESSIVE CAMPAIGN TO PARLAY OUR SITUATION TO A NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL AUDIENCE. IN ADDITION, GUAM’S CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATE HAS INTRODUCED LEGISLATION TO APPROPIATE MONEY FOR A CHAMORRO SELF-DETERMINATION EDUCATIONAL CAMPAIGN. THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR HAS EXPRESSED INTENT TO FUND THE EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM IN THE FUTURE.

HONORABLE CHAIRMAN, WHEN I THINK ABOUT THE LAST 20 YEARS THE COMMITTEE HAS BEEN INVOLVED WITH THIS ISSUE, COUPLED WITH ALL THE HISTORIC TESTIMONY, IT MADE SENSE TO ME THAT IT WAS TIME TO EXPLORE INNOVATIVE WAYS TO GET THIS ACCOMPLISHED. I WOULD ASSUME BY NOW, WE ALL MUST BE EAGER TO BRING CLOSURE TO THIS ISSUE AND DELIST THE 16 REMAINING NON-SELF GOVERNING TERRITORIES.

OUR HONORABLE GOVERNOR, EDUARDO BAZA CALVO, HAS GIVEN THIS ISSUE PRIMACY AND AIMS TO HOLD A PLEBISCITE IN THE NEXT FIVE YEARS FOR THE EXERCISE OF CHAMORRO SELF-DETERMINATION. CHAMORROS ON GUAM HAVE CLEARLY BEEN DEFINED AS THE COLONIZED PEOPLE ON GUAM WITH THE INALIENABLE HUMAN RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION IN LOCAL LEGISLATION PUBLIC LAW 23-147 AND GOVERNOR CALVO INTENDS TO UPHOLD THIS POSITION.

 MORE SPECIFICALLY, WE DO NOT INTEND TO DRAFT A CONSTITUTION AT THIS TIME; RATHER, WILL PURSUE THE RESOLUTION OF GUAM’S POLITICAL STATUS BY FACILITATING THE PROCESS OF CHAMORROS EXERCISING THEIR RIGHT TO SELF-DETERMINATION- PARTICULARLY IN THE MIDST OF THE MILITARY BUILD-UP AND THE STATE OF THE WORLD ECONOMY.

U.S. PRESIDENT BARRACK OBAMA HAS ASSERTED IN THE CASE OF EGYPT. THAT THEY HAVE INALIENABLE RIGHTS, INCLUDING THE RIGHT TO THEIR OWN POLITICAL DESTINY, AND THE UNITED STATES WILL STAND UP FOR THEM EVERYWHERE; THIS SHOULD ALSO APPLY TO CHAMORROS ON GUAM.

HONORABLE CHAIRMAN, YOU STATED IN ST.VINCENT THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE "FRESH IDEAS" AND ENCOURAGE US TO BE IMAGINATIVE FELL IN LINE WITH THE STATEMENTS OF PRESIDENT OBAMA AND OUR GOVERNOR AND I BELIEVE THERE IS A RENEWED SENSE OF COMMITTMENT TO THIS ISSUE AND HOPE THAT ALL LEVELS OF ADVOCACY IN THE UNITED NATIONS WILL BE AFFORDED TO THE PEOPLE OF GUAM.
THEREFORE, I PROPOSE A DUAL APPROACH ALONG THIS LINE TO PARLAY THE AWARENESS AND PLIGHT OF THE COLONIZED CHAMORRO PEOPLE WHOSE POLITICAL DESTINY IS WAY OVER DUE.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1) A REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE UNITED STATES PRESIDENT'S OFFICE TO HELP IN FACILITATING THIS ISSUE IN CONGRESS AS WE ENGAGE THEM AND THE DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR AS WELL AS THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE. THEN WE WILL REACH OUT TO NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL MEDIA PROGRAMS TO GET OUR STORY TOLD AND MESSAGE ACROSS. WE WILL THEN SEEK ADVOCACY FROM AS MANY GROUPS, ORGANZATIONS, CELEBRITIES AS WE CAN AND BEGIN MAKING THE CASE THAT OUR PRESENT RELATIONSHIP NEEDS TO END.

2) THE UNITED NATIONS ADVOCATE FOR GUAM AND PUT PRESURE ON THE U.S. WE WILL DO THIS THROUGH A NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN AND MAY REQUEST AN INVITATION TO THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE.


CONCLUSION

HONORABLE CHAIRMAN, THE TIME HAS COME FOR ALL OF US TO COME TO GRIPS WITH WHAT IS RIGHT AND JUST FOR THE CHAMORRO PEOPLE OF GUAM AND WE ARE ASSURED THAT WITH YOUR LEADERSHIP, OUR QUEST AS A NON SELF-GOVERNING TERRITORY WILL BE A SUCCESS.

SI YUUS MA’ASE AND THANK YOU HONORABLE CHAIRMAN FROM THE COLONIZED PEOPLE OF GUAM.















The Guam United Nations Papers - Statement of LisaLinda Natividad, Guahan Coalition for Peace & Justice

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THE QUESTION OF GUAM

STATEMENT

OF THE

GUAHAN COALITION FOR PEACE AND JUSTICE

BY: LISALINDA NATIVIDAD, PHD

before the

UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON DECOLONIZATION


Introduction

Hafa dai (greetings) your Excellency Mr. Chairman Carrion-Mena and distinguished members of the Special Committee on Decolonization. Un dangkulo na si Yu’os ma’ase (a sincere thank-you) for the opportunity to share perspectives relative to the progress of decolonization and priority areas on the Question of Guam to this most esteemed committee.

I am Dr. LisaLinda Natividad, a Chamorro professor at the University of Guam and a recently appointed member of the Guam Commission on Decolonization. However, I present testimony today in my capacity as President of the Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice; a Guam-based coalition comprised of grassroots organizations advocating for the political, cultural, social, environmental, and human rights of the people of Guam.

Our coalition is an active member of various regional and global networks related to militarism and has been a consistent voice of dissent for Guam relative to the hyper-militarization plans of our administering power, the United States. In 2006, the U.S. entered into a bilateral agreement with the government of Japan that revealed the U.S.’s plans to transfer 8,000 U.S. Marines from Okinawa, Japan to Guam. This process occurred without any consultation of Guam leaders or the Chamorro people; rather, was learnt about through U.S. mainstream media sources. The unresolved political status of Guam is the underlying condition that allows for such policy development. In the words of U.S. military Captain Robert Lee, “We’re seeing a realignment of forces away from Cold War theatres to Pacific theatres and Guam is ideal for us because it is a US territory and therefore gives us maximum flexibility.”1 These telling words validate how Guam’s current colonial condition sets the stage for the exploitation of our land and the rights of the Chamorro people in support of the U.S. militarist agenda.

Militarization of Guam

It was the announcement of the planned military build-up of our island that prompted a return of our people to the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization after a nearly 10 year absence to evoke your support and advocacy in the face of major plans for the further exploitation of Guam. Our absence of 10 years is indicative of the lack of faith and hope that we had come to know of the United Nations. Since the announcement of the Guam military build-up in 2006, we have ensured that every single year, members of our Chamorro community have come before the United Nations pleading for your intervention. So the story I will share today is not a new one. It is one that you have heard annually for the past six years and echoes the same calls to action from the United Nations that has been requested for three generations of Chamorros at this forum, yet nonetheless; our political status remains unresolved.

As I speak, my son of eleven years, Atdao-mami, sits in this hall and if the past is a predictor of the future- his generation of Chamorros will continue to revisit this place as though our words are falling on deaf ears today. So as you hear the dismal realities of our island home, we ask that you do something different. We ask that you focus on the specific actions that can be taken by the United Nations and this esteemed committee to bring about change and resolution to the question of Guam.

The most recently passed United Nations Resolution on the Universal Realization of the Right of Peoples to Self-Determination states:

"The General Assembly…Welcoming the progressive exercise of the right to self-determination by peoples under colonial, foreign or alien occupation and their emergence into sovereign statehood and independence,



Deeply concerned at the continuation of acts or threats of foreign military intervention and occupation that are threatening to suppress, or have already suppressed, the right to self-determination of peoples and nations,



Declares its firm opposition to acts of foreign military intervention, aggression and occupation, since these have resulted in the suppression of the right of peoples to self-determination and other human rights in certain parts of the world [and]



Calls upon those States responsible to cease immediately their military intervention in and occupation of foreign countries and territories and all acts of repression, discrimination, exploitation and maltreatment…”

While these firm words express support for our circumstances, our Guam experience has been that it is not coupled with the authority to bring about change in such circumstances. On September 20, 2010, the Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Energy, Installations, and Environment), Jackalyne Pfannensteil, signed and released the Record of Decision on the Guam build-up, setting into motion the awarding of Department of Defense contracts for construction and other projects. This occurred even after approximately 10,000 comments were submitted by members of our community on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) raising concerns about the social, cultural, and economic impacts to those living outside military fences.

In spite of the intensity of community outcry during the DEIS process, the only changes reflected in the U.S. Department of Defense Final Environmental Impact Statement was to spread out the plan of implementation to comply with United States Environmental Protection Agency concerns about the overtaxing of the island’s utility and wastewater system and treatment plants.

Our resistance to the increased military presence on Guam is rooted in an exploitative relationship with the U.S. military. Militarism has historically been used as the imperial hammer that ensures the suppression of Guam’s colonized peoples. As one of the longest colonized peoples in the world, Chamorros have experienced the ill effects of militarization for many centuries. In particular, U.S. military presence in Guam and Micronesia has resulted in radiation exposure, environmental devastation, and toxic contamination of the island and its people. These catastrophic effects are evidenced in the poor health outcomes of Chamorros. Despite advocacy efforts of groups on Guam for compensation for radiation exposure as a result of downwinds from atomic testing between the 1940s and the 1960s in the Marshall Islands, Guam residents are still not eligible for compensation through the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act of U.S. Congress.

In addition, the island has had 19 superfund sites, which are, “the federal government’s program to clean up the nation’s uncontrolled hazardous waste sites.”2 In addition to Superfund sites, there are 95 Installation Restoration Program sites located on the island’s current military bases. Consistent with pervasive exposure to these toxic sites, Chamorros have manifested excessively disproportionately higher rates of cancer as compared to many other ethnic groups on Guam, as well as compared to U.S. national averages. The 2003-2007 Guam Cancer Facts and Figures reported, “an 18% increase in the annual age-adjusted incidence rates”.3 Further, excessively high rates of rare types of cancer such as cancer of the nasopharynx and oral cancer are also manifested by Chamorros.

There are a myriad of other concerns connected to the militarization of Guam. For example, it has resulted in a segregated school system as a result of the Guam Department of Education being found to provide substandard education. Rather than providing additional resources to ensure access to adequate education for all children on Guam, the Department of Defense established its own premiere school system. In addition, the U.S. military has taken land under its control with its current footprint of approximately 33% of Guam today. However, there is great controversy over the additional landtaking of 2,200 acres in the north of the island intended for the construction of a live firing range complex in the ancient historical and sacred Chamorro village of Pagat. There is currently a lawsuit filed against the U.S. Department of Defense on this issue. With the acquisition of Pagat, the U.S. military will increase its presence on Guam to roughly 45% of the island. Lastly, increased militarization of Guam will result in the continued political minoritization of the Chamorro people when a self-determination plebiscite is realized.

Recommendations

In light of these concerns, the Guahan Coalition for Peace and Justice offers the following recommendations:


1. That Guam remain on the list of Non-Self Governing Territories until Chamorros have had an opportunity to exercise our inalienable human right to political self-determination;


2. That the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization reaffirms and declares that Guam’s militarization plans by the administering power, the United States, poses an impediment to the exercise of the Chamorro peoples’ human right to self-determination and decolonization;


3. That the United Nations provide both financial and technical assistance for an educational campaign for all people of Guam relative to the political status plebiscite in the near future;


4. That the United Nations sends a Visiting Mission to observe the plebiscite that should occur in the next five years; and


5. That the United Nations adopt a Resolution that reflects a case by case decolonization plan for each of the non-self governing territory to be achieved in the Third Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism.

In closing, un dangkulo na si Yu’os ma’ase (many thanks) for the opportunity to share the experience of Guam and the Chamorro people with U.S. militarism. We evoke members of this committee to exercise its authority to hold administering powers of the world accountable to the principles of decolonization and true self-determination.


References

1 Bohane, B. America’s Pacific Speartip, The Diplomat, Sept/Oct 2007.


2 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Retrieved from www.epa.gov/superfund/ on June 16, 2011.


3 Guam Department of Public Health and Social Services Guam Comprehensive Cancer Coalition. 2003-2007 Guam Cancer Facts and Figures published in October 2009.

The Guam United Nations Papers - Statement of Lisa Baza, Conscious Living

*****

THE QUESTION OF GUAM - GUAHAN
STATEMENT OF
CONSCIOUS LIVING
By: LIZA BAZA
BEFORE THE
UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON DECOLONIZATION

June 21, 2011

Introduction

Hafa adai (greetings), buenas tardes Your Excellency Mr. Chairman Carrion-Mena and Vice Chairman Mosquera, kushe Vice Chairman Davies, sa’eeda Rapporteur Ja’afari, and distinguished members of the Special Committee on Decolonization. I join our friend from Okinawa and my fellow Guam contingent in expressing our sincere thanks “nifee deebiru’ yan “un dangkulo na si Yu’us ma’ase” for accommodating our respective schedules and allotting each of us an opportunity to participate in this forum.

I am Lisa Baza, a psycho-therapist in public service. I respectfully submit testimony on behalf of Conscious Living, a non-profit holistic wellness organization and our president Clare Calvo, who is a part of this contingent today. It is the mission of Conscious Living to promote holistic wellness, body, mind and spirit.

We come before you today with health disparities (the highest rate of nasopharynx and oral cancer) as reported by Dr. Natividad, a mind in the process of decolonization and the unrelenting spirits of our ancestors, our ma’naina ever present. As we move through this Third International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism (2011-2020), we are guided by the fundamental and universal principles in the Charter of the United Nations, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. We once again appear before this governing committee to seek justice, long overdue. Further, we join in tenets of General Assembly resolution 65/119 that summarily calls for the elimination of colonialism in this decade through the intensification of efforts to implement a plan of action, and calls upon the administering powers to cooperate in the facilitation of this mandate.

Recommendations

1. That Guam remain on the list of Non-Self Governing Territories until Chamorro’s have had an opportunity to exercise our inalienable human right to political self-determination;

2. That the United Nations provide both financial and technical assistance for an educational campaign for all people of Guam relative to the political status plebiscite in the near future;

3. That the United Nations sends a Visiting Mission to observe the plebiscite that should occur in the next five years;

4. That the United Nations adopt a Resolution that reflects a case by case decolonization plan for each of the non-self- governing territories to be achieved in the Third Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism;

5. That the administering power assist the Territory by facilitating public outreach efforts, consistent with Article 73 b of the Charter of the United Nations and calls upon relevant United Nations organizations to provide assistance to the Territory;

6. That should the referendum in five years pass, that a transitional period be established in collaboration with the C24 to encourage compliance with international law, for integration into the United Nations and for economic development purposes;

7. That the United Nations Development Program assists non-self-governing territories financially in order to deal with poverty related issues caused by the economic dependence of non-self-governing territories on the administering power and assist with independent revenue generating economic development; and

8. That the United Nations consider revisiting the development of a Declaration of Rights for Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous people are those who have experienced prior occupancy, dispossession and group identity. The establishment of the rights of indigenous peoples in this permanent forum will allow the colonized voices to be heard and prevent a colonizer from participating and covertly representing the best interest of our administering power.


Self-Determination

Guam is a colony without self-determination and rights to control its own economic and political affairs. Colonization is characterized by ethnic discrimination, political dependence, social inferiority, and economic subjugation. This internalization of inferiority with consequent negative self-definition has led to a question of identity. Guam’s relationship with our administering power is a colonial relationship that clearly contradicts the basic principles of democracy. Whereas our economic, social and political affairs are largely influenced by a government wherein we have no control, nor do we participate in. Our nation cannot continue to enforce democracy throughout the world and at the same time deny political participation to its own citizens.

Guam’s process of self-determination will once again be revisited with a plebiscite within the next five years. Our administering power through the Department of Interior has pledged funding for education as we work towards such plebiscite. We ask the committee to implore our administering powers to follow this mandate.

Scarcity of Resources and Forced Dependency

A significant determinant of dependency on our administering power relates to scarcity of resources as a direct result of uncontrolled immigration. The colonial government advertises immigration as a flexible means of earning a living. Immigration fosters a dichotomy between indigenous peoples and various ethnicities in the struggle to attain limited resources (health, social services, education, natural resources, etc.). Surveys on immigration showed a regional immigrant population on Guam rose 80% since 2003. Preliminary results of a U.S. Census Bureau Survey show that Guam’s population of immigrants from the Freely Associated states has increased by 80 percent since 2003 and is now at 18,305. Fifty-six percent of the FAS immigrants have relocated to Guam instead of Hawaii, the Northern Marianas and American Samoa, according to the survey results. As a result of the scarcity of resources, this generation of immigrants has had little recourse but to become dependent on welfare assistance from our administering power.

In 1962, without input from our people, President Kennedy lifted the Naval Clearing Act which allowed travel to Guam without a security clearance. Twenty-three years later the Compact of Free Association authorized unrestricted immigration into Guam, enabling citizens to establish residences as non-immigrant aliens. Although these diverse populations have contributed to a developing Guam, the social changes have created greater diversity to the detriment of decolonization. Erosion in traditional family structure, decreased standard of living, move from subsistence farming and fishing to a wage based economy have led to an increase in crime rates, an increase in poverty, a high drop- out rate and forced dependency on welfare. Our youth are subjected to tremendous pressure to conform to western values that often run counter to the traditional values of our indigenous people.

Indigenous Practices and Cultural Preservation

Indigenous research and practice is about bringing to the center and privileging indigenous values, attitudes and practices rather than disguising them in Westernized labels such as collaborative research. Traditional knowledge is unique to persons of this territory. Knowledge is accessible to all within a culture, developed over a lifetime and requires respect and reverence. Traditional knowledge is sacred to members of a culture and is protected. Language is intimately connected to traditional forms of knowledge. Likewise spiritual and healing practices.

The impediment or challenge to decolonization includes introduction of teaching practices and values of our administering power. For example, the Direct Instruction program, a highly supported and funded evidence- based phonics program resurging from the No Child Left Behind initiative. This move from whole language to phonics deemphasizes cultural phonetics and language nuances of the Chamorro people. The entire history of public education by our administering power has been a political one, designed primarily to domesticate lower socio-economic groups, in this instance our Chamorro people.

Similarly, most aspects of our traditional knowledge base that differs from the dominant Western worldview appear to be inappropriately pathologized. For example, a traditional person seeking help from a suruhana for treatment of physical, emotional, or spiritual adverse symptoms may be considered to be using primitive practices. Therefore, traditional medicinal practices on Guam are facilitated in a covert manner to prevent sanctions on licensures and applicable laws mirroring those of our administering power.

Psychological Decolonization

In psychology, colonized individuals are often exposed to imperialism at the expense of their cultural values. They are subjected to what is referred as the cultural Stockholm syndrome, a condition in which members of an oppressed group accept the dominant cultural values, including the stereotypes of their own group. The Stockholm syndrome involves being taken hostage by other people's cultures and perceptions of themselves, while coming to internalize and believe them. Hence, politically repressed people maintain the privileges of the administering power, thus silencing cries for social justice. For colonized people, colonization creates pervasive identity conflicts, alienation, self-denial, assimilation, strong ambivalence, and a fundamental need for change.

A process of therapeutic decolonization entails raising consciousness of the colonized mentality, correcting cognitive distortions, recognizing the contexts of colonization, affirming collective identities, and working for personal and collective transformation. Indigenous approaches effectively enable colonized people to share their cultural struggles and subsequent quest for independence. This C24 forum creates a space for the indigenous voices and action oriented resolutions in our movement.

Conclusion

Achieving liberation demands more than advocacy. Toni Morrison (1994) stated that the function of freedom is to free someone else. Taking sides and in this permanent forum, choosing to take action on the decolonization process of Guam, a non-self-governing territory, proposes a radical, yet humanistic approach that promotes the liberation of a marginalized people while fostering a balance of self-determination, care, and compassion. Such decisions demand critical consciousness, a process of personal and social transformation that oppressed individuals experience while authoring their own reality.

Our mind is still the mind of the colonizer, justifying all we steal, and our society is still one of conquest. The same war of conquest that coveted our land continues under the guise of national defense and eminent domain. What was once called Manifest Destiny to justify violence, enslavement and genocide that built this country is now called Globalization to justify the final conquest of everything. The greatest resources are found in property lines, our exclusive economic zone, and the acquisition of natural resources because our most important measure of everything is how much can be acquired for free. The consequences of this colonial mindset and colonial war of conquest loom for each one of us, as the living systems of the earth itself are destabilized by greed. Rethinking this mindset requires questioning many of the fundamental operating principles of society as a whole. Ending the colonial war of conquest requires a conscious refocusing of our society away from the glamour of materialism and toward respect for people and their way of life as a simple measure of things.

Gracias yan si Yu’us ma’ase!

References


Amnesty International. (1999). United States of America: Police brutality and excessive force in the New York City police department. London: Author.

Blanco, A. (Ed.). (1998). Psychology of liberation. Spain: Editorial Trotta.

Guam Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy, Government of Guam, Guam Economic Development and Commerce Authority, April 2003.

Kingsbury, B. (1998). Indigenous peoples in international law: A constructivist approach to the Asian controversy. American Journal of International Law 92(3).

Natividad, Lisalinda, Ph.D., Health disparities. Interview on June 1, 2011.

Pacific Daily News, Hagatna, Guam, March 4, 2009.

Ryder, R.J., Burton, J.L. and Silberg, A. (2006). Longitudinal study of direct instruction effects from first through third grade. Journal of Educational Research 99(3), 179-191.

United Nations. (1990). UN Committee on Social, Economic, and Cultural Rights: General Comment Number 3. (UN Doc. E/1991/23/Annex III). New York: Author.

United States President's Initiative on Race. (1998). One America in the 21st century: Forging a new future. Washington, DC: Author.

Walker, Webster, Article, April 16, 2001.











The Guam United Nations Papers - Statement of Yasukatsu Matsushima, We are Loochoo

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WE ARE LOOCHOO
By Dr. YASUKATSU MATSUSHIMA

Before the
UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL COMMITTEE of 24 on DECOLONIZATION

66th Session

Towards the Demilitarizaton of Guam

21 June 2011

Kuyoonaara(Hello)

I appreciate for Your Excellency Francisco Carrion-Mena, Chairperson of the Special Committee of 24, members of the Special Committee on Decolonization to give me the opportunity to speak before your Committee.

1. Introduction

I am Dr.Yasukatsu Matsushima, an Okinawan. I was born and raised on Okinawa. Okinawa consists of 160 islands in the EastAsia Sea surrounded by Japan, Taiwan, China, Philippines and its population is about 1.4million. I will appeal that the necessity of demilitarization of Guam from the perspective of Okinawa because the militarization of Guam and Okinawa has been linked strongly by US and Japanese Governments.

2.The Brief History of How Guam and Okinawa Share the Colonization

The militarization of Guam is linked with the building of new bases on Okinawa and the moving of 8,522 US Marines, 9,000 their dependents from Okinawa to Guam. Japanese Government has paid public funds to make new bases on Guam and its Self-Defense Forces has been training with US Forces on Guam. Why Guam and Okinawa is related militarily by US and Japanese Governments? We should understand the historical background of the colonization of Guam and Okinawa. As Guam has been controlled by Spain, US, Japan and now US, Okinawa has been under the control of Japan, US and now Japan and US.

.In1879, Japanese Government annexed Ryukyu Kingdom with its military invasion and started to rule Okinawa as its colony. The Japanese Government has imposed colonialist policies, prohibiting the Okinawan language in school ..Also in Guam, Chamorros had been forced to speak English in school until 1950s. It can be called a cultural genocide.

In 1945, Japanese Government had used Okinawa as a battle ground. The number of the Okinawan fatalities reached around 150 thousand. In 1941, Immediately after Pearl Harbor, Japanese Forces occupied and controlled Guam until 1944. Many Chamorros had been massacred,killed by the Japanese soldiers and destroyed land of Guam thoroughly. Japanese Government has not done the war reparations for Chamorros until now.

During Pacific War, in Guam a lot of lands of Chamorros had been deprived by US Government to make military bases. Okinawa had been directly under the control of US Military Government. Many lands of Okinawans were taken by US Government with weapons.

In 1950s, US Marine Bases had been moved from Japanese Main Islands to Okinawa. Now US Marines will move to Guam.

In 1962, following the United Nations Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, the Ryukyu Legislature passed a resolution, stating that the US rule over Okinawa violated the principles of self-determination and non-expansion of territories prescribed in the UN Charter. This resolution was sent to all 104 member States of the UN at that time.

In 1972, the colonial administration of Okinawa was retransferred from US to Japan. The strong wishs of Okinawans to remove all US bases were ignored. Military bases and economic activities become connected each other in Guam and Okinawa, but almost benefits of base-related economies have gone out of these islands to other places. The military policies on Guam and Okinawa have been decided by US and Japanese Governments unilaterally to ignore these peoples’ claims. So the colonization of Guam and Okinawa has been very clear militarily, politically, and economically.

But Chamorros has used international networks for the decolonization by their groups such as OPI-R(Organization of People for Indigenous Rights), Guhan Coalition for Peace and Justice, We are Guahan and Chamorro Nation and so on. Also Okinawans has participated to UN organizations to resolve colonization problems. In 1996 I had participated to UN Working Group on Indigenous Peoples. Until now, Okinawans have taken part in several UN organizations to decolonize, and demilitarize Okinawa.

In 2006, Dr. Deu Deu Dien,a special reporter of UN Commission on Human Rights, came to survey military bases on Okinawa. He reported that Okinawan situation was abnormal and Japanese Government discriminated against Okinawans. In 2010, UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination said that US military base problems on Okinawa are racial discrimination to Okinawans.

3.Towards the Demilitarization of Guam

If US Marines will move from Okinawa to Guam, Chamorro people will face many problems such like Okinawan cases. We must understand military base problems on Okinawa because ‘Build Up’ in Guam is conditioned to that of Okinawa by US and Japanese Governments.

74% of US military bases in Japan have been concentrated in Okinawa which covers only 0.6% of all Japanese territory. Many military bases reside in small and highly populated island. That is why there are so many accidents and crimes committed by US personnels.

We have faced such serious damages as fieldfires and bomb accidents caused by live ammunition practices, planes and helicopters crashes, deafening roar, t raffic accidents, destruction of environment and historical sites, indigenous cultural heritages, infringements upon the daily life of the Okinawans and so on. From 1972 to 2010, military related criminal cases have occurred 5,705. From 1972 to 2010, accidents and incidents related to Military training have occurred 1,545.

Two of the most shocking cases are the rape case by 3 US soldiers against a schoolgirl (12years old) in 1995 and the US helicopter crash in 2004 at Okinawa International University. This helicopter belonged to Futenma Air Base.

The Japanese Government hasn’t changed the Agreement on the Status of US Armed Forces in Japan in spite of the strong outrage of almost all Okinawans. This Agreement gives the US military personnels the special privileges to refuse handing over suspects to Japanese authority and on-the-spot inspections.

In 2006, US and Japanese Governments agreed on Roadmap for Realignment Implementation of US bases. This Roadmap includes the reversion of Futenma Air Base and 5 other facilities, after the completion of Futenma Relocation Facility in Henoko, Nago City, and moving of 8,522 Marines, 9,000 their dependents from Okinawa to Guam.Futenma issue and Guam realignment are “package”. Japanese Government has been complicit in the construction of new bases in Guam by supplying large public fund ($6.09 billion) even though the big earthquake, tsunami and nuclear accidents have occurred in Japan after March 11 this year. Excuse to pay money, Japanese Government will send more their Self-Defense Forces to Guam for military training.

So much of Okinawans reject the plan of construction of new military base on coral reef of Henoko.Okinawa Pref.Governor Hirokazu Nakaima and Nago City Mayor Susumu Inafuku also refuse to accept a new base anywhere in Okinawa.

Okinawans are against moving of US Marines to Guam and the construction of new bases there because the colonial situation of Guam will be fixed so deeply and the militarization on Guam is against the process of decolonization on UNC-24.

The reduction of bases on Okinawa will promote that of Guam. I think the relationship of Guam and Okinawa is like sisters and brothers. We insist that Guam should be demilitarized on this decolonization process in UN C-24.

I appreciate Former Senator Hope Cristobal and Dr.Lisa Natividad so much for accepting me for a member of Guam delegation and giving a chance to speak in UN C-24.

Niifaiyou (Thank You)

References


Joseph Ada (1993) The State of the Colony, Guam Government,


Wakako Higuchi (2001) “The Japanisation Policy for the Chamorros of Guam, 1941-1944” in The Journal of Pacific History,Vol.36,No.1


Okinawa Prefectural government (2011), US Military Base Issues in Okinawa,Okinawa Prefectural Government


Political Status Education Coordinating Commission (ed.) (1996)Issues in Guam's Political Development: The Chamorro Perspective, The Political Status Education Coordinating Commission


R.Rogers (1995) Destiny’s Landfall-A History of Guam, University of Hawaii Press


Pedro Sanchez (1988) Guahan Guam-The History of Our Island, Sanchez Publishing House 


Ronald Stade (1998) Pacific Passages-World Culture and Local Politics in Guam, Stockholm Studies in Social Anthropology


Robert Underwood (1998) The State of Guam’s Agenda in Washington 1997, The Office of Underwood


Yasukatsu Matsushima (2007) Micronesia - The Challenge of Islands’ Peoples for Self-governance, Waseda University Press(Japanese version)