Islands in the central Pacific Ocean
1993, with the consent of the us congress and Senate, then president Clinton signed the apology bill. On behalf of the American government, he apologized for forcing the independent Hawaiian monarchy to disintegrate by force a hundred years ago.
To better understand this story, let's review the history of Hawaii first.
Hawaii is an archipelago of eight islands, which was formed by an ancient submarine volcano. It is located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 3700 kilometers away from the United States, at the intersection of air and sea of the United States, Asia and Australia.
The earliest people who came to this island were Polynesians, who settled in the Hawaiian Islands in 100 BC or earlier and became local aborigines. About 13 century, Hawaiian aborigines still lived alone in this archipelago. They have their own language: Hawaiian, and gradually formed a hierarchical society.
However, because it is surrounded by the sea and the cultural environment is relatively closed, the civilization of the Hawaiian Islands has always lagged behind the world. It was not until 1778 that Chief Kamehameha unified the whole Hawaiian Islands and called himself King Kamehameha I of Hawaii. At this time, in the era of great navigation, the European navigator Cook landed on Oahu Island in Hawaii. Soon, this kingdom will no longer be lonely.
1794, British explorer george van Coover came to the Hawaiian Islands and presented the British flag to the king. The Kingdom of Hawaii also added the British flag to its national flag as a symbol of friendship between the two countries.
Subsequently, more and more immigrants came to Hawaii, and these immigrants brought colorful culture to Hawaii. 1843, the kingdom of Hawaii signed a treaty with the United States and officially became a sovereign country recognized by the international community.
The arrival of the invaders
The arrival of a group of American immigrants changed the fate of the kingdom of Hawaii.
At first, some American missionaries came to Hawaii to spread Christianity. Later, they showed great interest in business and spontaneously formed a landlord organization to control the production of sugarcane.
However, as the economic status of the organization improved, their influence became more and more important, and they began to try to interfere in the political events of the kingdom.
1893, the queen of Hawaii promulgated a new constitution. These American immigrants think that the new constitution may threaten their political and economic rights, so they want to overthrow the queen's rule. Their actions were supported by American Ambassador to the Kingdom of Hawaii Steven. So in June 65438 +654381October +07, the United States sent troops to the kingdom of Hawaii to "arrest" the queen and coerce her to abdicate.
With the collapse of the monarchy in the kingdom of Hawaii, American colonists established the Republic of Hawaii in Hawaii the following year.
Of course, Hawaiians, the aborigines here, don't want to be eaten by others. They gathered together to resist and petitioned the American government. They didn't want to be annexed. Of the 40,000 aborigines in Hawaii, 38,000 signed the petition.
However, this small kingdom with weak military strength was unable to compete with the thriving United States of America at that time. So, 1898, the national flag of the kingdom on the Hawaiian Islands was slowly lowered and replaced by the American flag. Since then, Hawaii has entered the puppet regime and has been shrouded in American rule since then.
Stolen paradise
After the Americans took over Hawaii, they gradually began to "Americanize" the local residents.
At that time, in Hawaii, although the use of Hawaiian was not explicitly prohibited, all public schools were required to teach in English. If a student uses Hawaiian in school, he will even be punished.
These colonists not only took away the land and culture of Hawaiians, but even defined what "Hawaiians" were. According to American law, people with 50% or more Hawaiian ancestry can be called "Hawaiians".
After years of cultural aggression, the United States finally took the last step in 1959. The United States Congress voted to establish Hawaii as a state, and Hawaii has since become the 50th state in the United States.
After Hawaii became the state capital, the United States has been trying to turn it into a tourist city and a holiday paradise, but what it can't hide is the history of usurping power and seizing power behind the paradise.
strategic point
Because of its unique tourism resources, after Hawaii became the 50th state in the United States, the United States set a strategic goal of focusing on developing tourism, making Hawaii a world-famous resort. But did the U.S. government take pains to seize the Hawaiian Islands just to get a holiday island?
In fact, at first, the United States coveted the Hawaiian Islands because of its superior geographical location. The Hawaiian Islands are called the "crossroads" of the Pacific Ocean, and they are located in the center of the Pacific traffic arteries. The distance from here to America, Australia and Asia is appropriate.
In addition to the invasion of American colonists, the geographical location of the Hawaiian Islands also brought it war. During World War II, the Japanese navy attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. As a result, the most important battle in World War II broke out-the Pacific War, in which the center of the US-Japan struggle was the Hawaiian Islands.
Because the Hawaiian Islands connect America, Asia and Australia, it is the largest relay station in the Pacific Ocean among the four oceans. Whoever gets the Hawaiian Islands controls most of the Pacific Ocean. It is for this reason that the United States is so determined to take the Hawaiian Islands from the Hawaiian aborigines.
Hawaiian resistance movement
1993, this "apology" from the U.S. Congress claimed that the U.S. participation in overthrowing the local kingdom of Hawaii was indeed "illegal", and customized relevant provisions to give economic and cultural "subsidies" to make up for the debt owed by the U.S. government to Hawaiian aborigines.
However, Hawaiian aborigines don't buy it. Although the US government expressed "repentance" for past crimes, it did not return the land and political rights that originally belonged to Hawaiians.
Apart from tourism, Hawaii's modern economy largely depends on the military strength of the United States. According to the report of RAND National Defense Research Institute, Hawaii's military industry accounts for 18% of its total GDP, exceeding1200 million US dollars every year.
Military industry has become Hawaii's largest real economy except tourism. This means that if the United States has a military dispute with other countries, Hawaii, which is far away in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and a military industrial center, will become the target of public criticism. Obviously, such a strategic layout ignores the safety of the Hawaiian people.
The rogue behavior of the United States aroused the sovereignty movement of Hawaiian aborigines, trying to get back Hawaii's rights as an independent country. Some sovereign activists began to be active in Hawaii. They began to promote the language and culture of Hawaii, and even spontaneously established a legitimate Hawaiian government. "
Because they want to restore the power of the kingdom of Hawaii, which was overthrown in 1893, although the "legitimate government of Hawaii" has been established for more than ten years, it has never been recognized by American law.
Despite the difficulties, these Hawaiian aborigines never gave up defending their sovereignty. They don't want to participate in international disputes. They just want to protect this land that carries the thousand-year-old civilization of their ancestors and protect the rights and interests of poor Hawaiian aborigines under the glamorous tourist city.