Be sure to give, too

We’ve heard both sides of the Hawaiian monk seal issue and — though I haven’t personally seen the facts to support their views — facts are available for anyone willing to put any effort into it.

In 1805, Russian explorer Lisianski reported seals in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. In 1899, German scientist Hugo Hermann Schauinsland also reportedly found a monk seal skull on Laysan Island.

I don’t know of any conspiracy to control Hawaiian waters back then, but neither the Civil War nor the Hawaiian Constitutional Monarchy had started yet, so a conspiracy to control Hawaiian waters would have been most unlikely.

 Even in ancient times, shoreline fishing was unpredictable and with the growing population in the islands they could not keep on expecting the sea to provide them with a constant supply. Loko i’a, or fishponds, were created to address this issue.

At one time there were over 480 fishponds in Hawaii, capable of producing almost 2 million pounds of seafood per year.

People speak of gathering rights but nothing of the the kapu that came along with it. The so-called traditions today are nothing like the traditional ways of the past. Even during the reign of King Kamehameha I, a 5-month no fishing restriction was cast.

Instead of pointing fingers to nature’s predators for the dwindling supply of fish, they worked hard to safeguard their stock in these fishponds to prevent larger predators from getting to them, ensuring that a constant supply is being produced.

The focus to me should not be on whether the HMS retains a place in Hawaii’s history or not, but on man’s personal kuleana and efforts to traditionally replenish the seas resources as our ancestors once did.

To take and not give back is not a Hawaiian tradition. Sustainable methods most definitely were.

• Dominic Acain is a resident of Kekaha.