Posted by Pono Kealoha on July 24, 2008 at 11:30pm
DMZ HAWAII ALOHA AINA * AFSC/Demil ProgramWAIMANALO * JULY 26 * SATURDAY * KU'E RIMPAC/ OPPOSE RIMPAC WARGAMES * SIGNHOLDING * 8AM-12PM * Entrance BELLOWS AIRFORCE STATION / Kalanianaole HwyRIMPAC 2008 is here. The wargames will be in full force this SaturdayJuly 26 at Bellows Waimanamo Airforce Station. Come out to oppose this continued assault on our aina and kai.RIMPAC - DID YOU KNOW ?RIMPAC is the world's largest multinational exercise and is held biennially under the direction of the US Pacific Command. This year there are 10 nations, 35 ships,150 aircraft, six submarines and 20,000 peopleinvolved. Participants include the United States, Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, Netherlands, Peru, Republic of Korea, Singapore, and the United.According to the U.S. Pacific Command, the purpose of RIMPAC is to* deal with "threats of terrorism by Muslim groups inIndonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines* threats by communist China to invade democratic Taiwan inthe event of the island's declaration of independence, and* threats by communist North Korea against the United States, democratic South Korea and Japan."KU'E RIMPACMany people have fought against RIMPAC wargames in ka pae'aina for decades. We associate the war games with the bombing of Kaho'olawe, which was for years a major component of RIMPAC. The PKO & the Nuclear Free andIndependent Pacific movement played a vital role stopping RIMPAC exercises, exposing the Navy's legacy of destruction & contamination to the aina and kai. But the wargames continue...Environmentalists have also fought against RIMPAC & the Navy's use of sonar. In 2006 Marsha Green, founder of the Ocean Mammal Institute and the International Ocean Noise Coalition, said the Navy's use of sonar in their games doesn't just disturb whales, it kills them."It causes hemorrhaging in their brains and lungs. They've found them bleeding from their ears, bleeding from their eyes."In March 2000, she says, 17 beaked whales in the Bahamas beached themselves and died after being exposed to 150 to 160 decibel sonar.AND THERE'S MORE...INVASIONCheck out the photos taken at Nohili (Barking Sands),Kauai last week July 14. The military describes this as Indonesian Marines advancing through a field during a beach assault exercise at Pacific Missile Range Facility Barking Sands as part of this year's Rim of the Pacific. Thatʻs the same scene weʻll be seeing at Waimanalo's this weekend.MALAMA AINA, ALOHA AINA * KU'E RIMPAC WAIMANALO !! Come down Saturday, July 26th 8am to 12pm, meet at the entrance of Bellows Airforce Station !Bring a sign, water, something to snack on. Kupunas, please bring a chair, umbrella or your favorite hat. See you folks there...tk
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