Kuleana Lands

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As stated in the book, kuleana lands were described as "plots of land given by the governing ali'i of an area...to an 'ohana or as an individual as their responsibility without right of ownership. (Vaughan 5) But "the concept and process of awarding ownership under the Kuleana Act was very foreign. Maka'ainana had to register for ownership of their kuleana lands, pay to have that land surveyed, find two other native residents as well as one "foreigner" or non-Hawaiian citizen to testify in support of their claims, and, if awarded, pay taxes." 

Today, there are still a few 'ohana with kuleana lands. For instance, my hanai mom and her 'ohanas hui, as they call it, has/had kuleana land in Kona from the mountain to the sea. Over time, their hui discussed amongst themselves and decided to sell part of their kuleana lands. As new developments were being built, the government wanted to buy more land to expand the mall in Kona, but the hui decided to not sell the rest of their kuleana land they had left. So, as you drive through Kona on the highway, you can still see the remainder of their kuleana land, untouched.

I attended Hokule'a's 50th Birthday this past weekend and met a local guy, Mason Kekoa Akiona, who resides on the windward side of Oahu. He and his family still have kuleana lands, and some of his family members want to sell their kuleana lands, but the rest disagree, so they will be meeting up in the next month to figure out what can do or what they need to do to maintain and malama their 'ohana kuleana lands on Kaua'i.

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