NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

An interesting discussion on the possibilities of a "third" option when thinking about decolonization in the Pacific. In Guam, I have written about the risks or dangers of "fourth kinds" or "fourth options," but I still found this article to be enlightening.  In Guam, I refer to the fourth kind as potential political status traps. Decolonization in the most general sense is about achieving a genuine level of self-governance. There are, as we can see in the world today, a wide variety of arrangements whereby a colonizer or administering power can call a place self-governing, while still maintaining colonial control.  For example, when looking at the United States, Puerto Rico is a "commonwealth" and isn't supposed to be a colony or non-self-governing territory anymore. But if you compare the status of Guam and Puerto Rico, their level of self-governance, they are almost in the exact same position, with only a fancy title separating th

Some recent articles about budgets and bills and the yinaoyao between the Legislature, most notably Senator BJ Cruz and Governor Eddie Calvo and his team at Adelup. Ti menhalom yu' put este na asunto siha, pues tåya' otro sinangån-hu. Taitai este siha, ya hagu un diside håyi gaitinina yan håyi mambebende dinagi. ******************** September 10, 2016 The Honorable Edward J.B. Calvo Governor of Guam Ricardo J. Bordallo Governor’s Complex Hagåtña, Guam 96910 Re: Response to Lapse Message on Substitute Bill No. 250-33 (COR) Dear Governor Calvo: Håfa adai! On September 1, 2016, I delivered a letter to you relative to the concerns you identified regarding Substitute Bill No. 250-33 (SB250), now the Annual Appropriations Act of FY 2017. I had hoped my clarifications would have prompted you to direct your fiscal team to reconsider its initial findings on SB250. Unfortunately, based on your lapse message to Speaker Judith T. Won Pat, you have disregarded the fact

It has been a while since my last message of this type. To be honest the Commission on Decolonization of which the Independence Task Force is a part hasn't been very active for the past few years. Inertia and lack of motivation seeped into the Commission from a variety of angles making it incapable of doing anything. That period is hopefully at an end however as the Commission has shown some signs of life since the start of this year. Although the Commission has received money since 2011 for salaries, no money has been set aside for public education, which is what the Commission on Decolonization is meant to oversee. This year there is at last a $100,000 budget set specifically for conducting public education. The Independence Task Force will be meeting this month and start to make plans for the coming year. If you are interested in joining the Task Force, please email me at mlbasquiat@hotmail.com or leave a comment below. This past week I saw an interesting piece of news out o

--> After months of waiting and speculating, the military has finally released their plans for Pagan and Tinian. Read the articles below to learn more. Five years ago the mood in the CNMI was one very supportive of militarization. The leadership there seemed willing to offer Pagan and Tinian and anything else on a plate to the DOD, especially in the context of resistance to military increases on Guam. It is good to see that this has changed. *************** Government should focus on homestead program: Aldan By Cherrie Anne E. Villahermosa  Marianas Variety 4/15/15 Northern Islands Mayor Jerome Aldan’s message to the military is to "pack up and leave Pagan alone." Aldan was among the public officials who were in the House chamber yesterday to hear what the representatives of the Marine Corps Forces Pacific had to say during a meeting that lasted for more than three hours. Aldan in an interview said he has not changed his position and is still op

“Okinawa Part 3” Michael Lujan Bevacqua Marianas Variety 3/6/13 This coming week I’ll be in Okinawa. This will be my third trip there in the past year and a half. For my first trip I joined a delegation of Chamorros who attended the Japan Peace Conference, an annual gathering organized by peace activists. Different prefectures take turns hosting the conference, the only condition being that it must be held in an area with “contested” US military facilities. Last year I travelled with Ed Alvarez, the Executive Director of the Commission on Decolonization and former Senator Marilyn Manibusan on a weeklong speaking tour to different universities and community groups. The focus for this trip was “decolonization.” We often hear about Okinawa through the concept of “demilitarization,” since almost 1/5 of the main island is US military bases. As the bases are both a scar of the war that engulfed hundreds of thousands of Okinawans and a testament to their

Last night, I got to watch ( mismo read along with the commentary) as Sachin Tendulkar scored the first ever double century in an ODI match, when he made 200* against South Africa in Gwalior. It was an incredible feat, breaking the previous records of 194 and 194*, but even more so because of the fact that Tendulkar is almost 37 years old and has had a fantastic past year in both ODI and Test cricket. In the past 12 months he's collected 6 Test hundreds and 4 ODI hundreds. With last night's 200 not out, he is just seven shy of completing a century of international centuries (from Tests and ODIs combined). I watched a match a few weeks ago where Chris Coventry a Zimbabwe player challenged to surpass Saeed Anwar's record initial record of 194, but only ended up tying it. Witnessing Tendulkar's feat last night, and this coming when he has been on an incredible streak lately was very exciting to watch. I'm pasting some pictures and articles about this below. *******