III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 109 

Acknowledging and honoring brave young men from Hawaii who enabled 

the United States to establish and maintain jurisdiction in remote equatorial islands as prolonged conflict in the Pacific led to World War 

II. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 24, 2015 

Mr. SCHATZ (for himself and Ms. HIRONO) submitted the following resolution; 

which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Acknowledging and honoring brave young men from Hawaii 

who enabled the United States to establish and maintain 

jurisdiction in remote equatorial islands as prolonged 

conflict in the Pacific led to World War II. 

Whereas in the mid-19th century, the Guano Islands Act (48 

U.S.C. 1411 et seq.) enabled companies from the United 

States to mine guano from a number of islands in the 

Equatorial Pacific; 

Whereas after several decades, when the guano was depleted, 

the companies abandoned mining activities, and the control of the islands by the United States diminished and 

left the islands vulnerable to exploitation by other nations; 


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•SRES 109 IS 

Whereas the Far East during the late 19th century and early 

20th century was characterized by colonial conflicts and 

Japanese expansionism; 

Whereas the 1930s marked the apex of the sphere of influence of Imperial Japan in the Far East; 

Whereas military and commercial interest in Central Pacific 

air routes between Australia and California led to a desire by the United States to claim the islands of 

Howland, Baker, and Jarvis, although the ownership of 

the islands was unclear; 

Whereas in 1935, a secret Department of Commerce colonization plan was instituted, aimed at placing citizens of 

the United States as colonists on the remote islands of 

Howland, Baker, and Jarvis; 

Whereas to avoid conflicts with international law, which prevented colonization by active military personnel, the 

United States sought the participation of furloughed military personnel and Native Hawaiian civilians in the colonization project; 

Whereas William T. Miller, Superintendent of Airways at the 

Department of Commerce, was appointed to lead the colonization project, traveled to Hawaii in February 1935, 

met with Albert F. Judd, Trustee of Kamehameha 

Schools and the Bishop Museum, and agreed that recent 

graduates and students of the Kamehameha School for 

Boys would make ideal colonists for the project; 

Whereas the ideal Hawaiian candidates were candidates who 

could ‘‘fish in the native manner, swim excellently, handle 

a boat, be disciplined, friendly, and unattached’’; 

Whereas on March 30, 1935, the United States Coast Guard 

Cutter Itasca departed from Honolulu Harbor in great 


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secrecy with 6 young Hawaiian men aboard, all recent 

graduates of Kamehameha Schools, and 12 furloughed 

Army personnel, whose purpose was to occupy the barren 

islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis in teams of 5 for 

3 months; 

Whereas in June 1935, after a successful first tour, the furloughed Army personnel were ordered off the islands and 

replaced with additional Kamehameha Schools alumni, 

thus leaving the islands under the exclusive occupation of 

the 4 Native Hawaiians on each island; 

Whereas the duties of the colonists while on the island were 

to record weather conditions, cultivate plants, maintain a 

daily log, record the types of fish that were caught, observe bird life, and collect specimens for the Bishop Museum; 

Whereas the successful year-long occupation by the colonists 

directly enabled President Franklin D. Roosevelt to issue 

Executive Order 7368 on May 13, 1936, which proclaimed that the islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis 

were under the jurisdiction of the United States; 

Whereas multiple Federal agencies vied for the right to administer the colonization project, including the Department of Commerce, the Department of the Interior, and 

the Navy Department, but jurisdiction was ultimately 

granted to the Department of the Interior; 

Whereas under the Department of the Interior, the colonization project emphasized weather data and radio communication, which brought about the recruitment of a number of Asian radiomen and aerologists; 

Whereas under the Department of the Interior, the colonization project also expanded beyond the Kamehameha 


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Schools to include Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians from 

other schools in Hawaii; 

Whereas in March of 1938 the United States also claimed 

and colonized the islands of Canton and Enderbury, 

maintaining that the colonization was in furtherance of 

commercial aviation and not for military purposes; 

Whereas the risk of living on the remote islands meant that 

emergency medical care was not less than 5 days away, 

and the distance proved fatal for Carl Kahalewai, who 

died on October 8, 1938, en route to Honolulu after his 

appendix ruptured on Jarvis island; 

Whereas other life-threatening injuries occurred, including in 

1939, when Manuel Pires had appendicitis, and in 1941, 

when an explosion severely burned Henry Knell and 

Dominic Zagara; 

Whereas in 1940, when the issue of discontinuing the colonization project was raised, the Navy acknowledged that 

the islands were ‘‘probably worthless to commercial aviation’’ but advocated for ‘‘continued occupation’’ because 

the islands could serve as ‘‘bases from a military standpoint’’; 

Whereas although military interests justified continued occupation of the islands, the colonists were never informed 

of the true nature of the project, nor were the colonists 

provided with weapons or any other means of self-defense; 

Whereas in June of 1941, when much of Europe was engaged 

in World War II and Imperial Japan was establishing 

itself in the Pacific, the Commandant of the 14th Naval 

District recognized the ‘‘tension in the Western Pacific’’ 


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and recommended the evacuation of the colonists, but his 

request was denied; 

Whereas on December 8, 1941, Howland Island was attacked 

by a fleet of Japanese twin-engine bombers, and the attack killed Hawaiian colonists Joseph Keliihananui and 

Richard Whaley; 

Whereas in the ensuing weeks, Japanese submarine and military aircraft continued to target the islands of Howland, 

Baker, and Jarvis, jeopardizing the lives of the remaining 

colonists; 

Whereas the United States Government was unaware of the 

attacks on the islands, and was distracted by the entry 

of the United States into World War II; 

Whereas the colonists demonstrated great valor while awaiting retrieval; 

Whereas the 4 colonists from Baker and the 2 remaining 

colonists from Howland were rescued on January 31, 

1942, and the 8 colonists from Jarvis and Enderbury 

were rescued on February 9, 1942, 2 months after the 

initial attacks on Howland Island; 

Whereas on March 20, 1942, Harold L. Ickes, Secretary of 

the Interior, sent letters of condolence to the 

Keliihananui and Whaley families stating that ‘‘[i]n your 

bereavement it must be considerable satisfaction to know 

that your brother died in the service of his country’’; 

Whereas during the 7 years of colonization, more than 130 

young men participated in the project, the majority of 

whom were Hawaiian, and all of whom made numerous 

sacrifices, endured hardships, and risked their lives to secure and maintain the islands of Howland, Baker, Jarvis, 


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Canton, and Enderbury on behalf of the United States, 

and 3 young Hawaiian men made the ultimate sacrifice; 

Whereas none of the islands, except for Canton, were ever 

used for commercial aviation, but the islands were used 

for military purposes; 

Whereas in July 1943, a military base was established on 

Baker Island, and its forces, which numbered over 2,000 

members, participated in the Tarawa-Makin operation; 

Whereas in 1956, participants of the colonization project established an organization called ‘‘Hui Panala’au’’, which 

was established to preserve the fellowship of the group, 

to provide scholarship assistance, and ‘‘to honor and esteem those who died as colonists of the Equatorial Islands’’; 

Whereas in 1979, Canton and Enderbury became part of the 

Republic of Kiribati, but the islands of Jarvis, Howland, 

and Baker remain possessions of the United States, having been designated as National Wildlife Refuges in 

1974; 

Whereas the islands of Jarvis, Howland, and Baker are now 

part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National 

Monument; 

Whereas May 13, 2015, marks the 79th anniversary of the 

issuance of the Executive order of President Franklin D. 

Roosevelt proclaiming United States jurisdiction over the 

islands of Howland, Baker, and Jarvis, islands that remain possessions of the United States; and 

Whereas the Federal Government has never fully recognized 

the contributions and sacrifices of the colonists, less than 

a handful of whom are still alive today: Now, therefore, 

be it 


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1 Resolved, That the Senate— 

2 (1) acknowledges the accomplishments and 

3 commends the service of the Hui Panala’au colo4 nists; 

5 (2) acknowledges the local, national, and inter6 national significance of the 7-year colonization 

7 project, which resulted in the United States extend8 ing sovereignty into the Equatorial Pacific; 

9 (3) recognizes the dedication to the United 

10 States and self-reliance demonstrated by the young 

11 men, the majority of whom were Native Hawaiian, 

12 who left their homes and families in Hawaii to par13 ticipate in the Equatorial Pacific colonization 

14 project; 

15 (4) extends condolences on behalf of the United 

16 States to the families of Carl Kahalewai, Joseph 

17 Keliihananui, and Richard Whaley for the loss of 

18 their loved ones in the service of the United States; 

19 (5) honors the young men whose actions, sac20 rifices, and valor helped secure and maintain the ju21 risdiction of the United States over equatorial is22 lands in the Pacific Ocean during the years leading 

23 up to and the months immediately following the 

24 bombing of Pearl Harbor and the entry of the 

25 United States into World War II; and 


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1 (6) extends to all of the colonists, and to the 

2 families of these exceptional young men, the deep 

3 appreciation of the people of the United States. 

Æ 


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