Police arrested about 30 protesters in Hawaii for blocking passage to the construction site of a giant telescope.
The Thirty Meter Telescope is expected to cost $1.4 billion and will be placed on Hawaii’s highest peak, Mauna Kea. The project has created a rift among native Hawaiians that are fine with the project and others protesting the construction on top of what they say is sacred land, according to the Associated Press.
Police removed about 30 protesters from the crowd on Wednesday. Protest leader Kealoha Pisciotta said that those arrested were the protest elders, or Hawaiian “kupuna.”
“This is about our right to exist,” said Kaho’okahi Kanuha, another protest leader. “We fight and resist and we stand, or we disappear forever.”
Native Hawaiians in support of the project say the new telescope to be build on the summit of Mauna Kea will not impact cultural ceremonies that happen closer to the base.
“It’s going to be out of sight, out of mind,” said Annette Reyes, a Big Island resident.
Mauna Kea is one of the best places on Earth to observe the sky and gather data because of its clear weather and minimal light pollution. The new telescope will also add to the educational opportunities for Hawaii’s youth. Officials building the telescope have pledged to pay $1 million a year to local STEM education.
