More than 20 rare, carved wooden figures dating to the early 19th century recently were discovered in a cave at North Kona, Hawaii, according to several newspaper reports from the Big Island.
The California firm of Kennedy-Wilson International owns the property, which is being developed by Rutter Development Corporation.
An archaeological consultant with the North Kona's site developer, Paul Rosendahl, said that since no human bones were found in the lava tube cave, the landowner controlled rights to the found objects. Three West Hawaiian cultural groups, however, are fighting those claims. The groups are Kohanaiki 'Ohana, Pono I Ke Kanawai, and Na Keiki He'e Nalu O Hawai'i.
In a joint statement, the groups said: "Rutter, with their consultants and advisors, are wrong to see our ki'i as their property, and that only they will decide what's best for and when to exclude the Hawaiian people. We challenge their assertion, and remind them that Gods do not belong to individuals, they belong to the community whose values and practices they represent. They are the cultural and intellectual property of a social group, and the society that the sacred icons symbolize and represents have the right to determine the care and disposition of their god-forms."
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