THE SENATE |
S.C.R. NO. |
30 |
TWENTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2004 |
H.D. 1 |
|
STATE OF HAWAII |
||
RESOLUTION
endorsing and supporting THE SPIRIT OF HAWAII GOODWILL AND FRIENDSHIP COASTAL KOREA VISIT and urging the DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA to support jae kwon lee and jonathan cowles on their journey to north korea.
WHEREAS, the idea for the Spirit of Hawaii Goodwill and Friendship Coastal Korea Visit began in 1997 when the Navy of the People's Republic of China sent the first goodwill visit to the United States and Honolulu; and
WHEREAS, the goodwill visit inspired and nurtured mutual understanding and respect between neighboring countries in the Pacific Asian basin; and
WHEREAS, Hawaii played a pivotal and historic role as both the gateway and bridge between East and West and inspired the building of the rowboat "Spirit of Hawaii"; and
WHEREAS, the "Spirit of Hawaii" rowed by Korean project coordinator Jae Kwon Lee and Jonathan Cowles, founders of the Hawaii Goodwill and Friendship Coastal Korea Visit, began its journey in the Republic of Korea in 2003 to help commemorate the Korean Centennial of Immigration to the United States; and
WHEREAS, the journey enhanced and supported stability on the Korean Peninsula, improved public relations, and fostered the understanding of differing points of view and cultures; and
WHEREAS, success of the original South Korean project initiated an invitation to discuss continuing the project along the North Korean coast as a broader gesture of goodwill; and
WHEREAS, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea has responded favorably and is awaiting further endorsement and support; and
WHEREAS, the House of Representatives of the State of Hawaii is coordinating efforts to adopt a resolution noting a request for a 15 percent matching financial support and endorsement from the Maine State Legislature; and
WHEREAS, if the project is completed by rowing along the North Korean coast and the Yalu River, it will be a dramatic gesture in the best tradition of former President Dwight Eisenhower's People to People initiative; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-second Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2004, the House of Representatives concurring, that the Legislature hereby endorses and supports this project and urges the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to give its approval for Jae Kwon Lee and Jonathan Cowles to continue rowing their boat along the North Korean coast under the supervision of the North Korean Maritime Police; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the founders of the Hawaii Goodwill and Friendship Coastal Korea Visit for presentation to the North Korean Committee for Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries, the House of Representatives of the State of Maine, and the Consulate-General of the Republic of Korea in Honolulu.