Hannemann: Environmental groups still peeved over ‘Keep the country country’ ad

NORTH SHORE—Former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann may be out of the race for governor, but he’s not out of the woods yet according to several Oahu preservation groups.

In September, The Hawaii Independent reported that the Defend Oahu Coalition (DOC) and the Sierra Club Hawaii Chapter had requested of then-gubernatorial candidate Mufi Hannemann to retract an ad using DOC’s well known slogan, “Keep the Country Country.” The nonprofit groups said that the former mayor is the antithesis of what the slogan stands for and has always been a proponent for development.

“Mr. Hannemann’s advertisement is misleading and incorrect,” said Harris. “Mr. Hannemann takes credit for protecting Waimea Valley, when in actuality he tried to push through a settlement that would have allowed a half dozen luxury homes. It would have also opened up the possibility of tourist camps in one of the last undeveloped valleys on Oahu. The protection of Waimea Valley happened in spite of Mr. Hannemann’s efforts to develop it.”

On Tuesday, Robert Harris, director of the Hawaii Chapter of the Sierra Club told The Hawaii Independent that Hannemann has not retracted the ad or the statement.

“He [Hannemann] did not issue a formal response,” Harris said. “He’s continued to take credit for saving Waimea Valley and hasn’t retracted the ad or the statement.”

The ad, which was paid for by the Hannemann Committee, states that Hannemann “successfully negotiated with developers to save Waimea Valley from development and provided City funds of $5.1 million.”

Hannemann’s full page ad in an issue of North Shore News (NSN) dated September 8 reads: “When it came to keeping the country ... country, Mufi was always there for us.”

“The ‘Keep the Country Country’ movement was born in the 1970s to limit the very type of unsustainable development that Mufi has supported in much of Koolauloa and the North Shore,” said Tim Vandeveer, co-chair of Defend Oahu Coalition.

DOC, a community preservation group that has most recently been working to prevent the expansion of the Turtle Bay Resort from its current size of around 500 hotel and condo units to 4000 units, established the slogan in connection with preservation of the North Shore. The slogan is printed in block lettering on a green background, and is commonly found as bumper stickers and on T-shirts. The DOC, the Sierra Club, and many North Shore residents say the former mayor’s use of the slogan is inappropriate and contradictory to Hannemann’s actions.

“Mr. Hannemann has been a consistent proponent for development along the North Shore,” said Harris,  “His use of the ‘Keep the Country Country’ slogan is a poor attempt to greenwash his environmental record.”

“We received permission to use this slogan in order to advocate for preserving the character and feel of rural Oahu,” Vandeveer said. “It is a rallying cry that Hawaii residents have come to associate with open space, low rise structures, limited population growth, mountains, fields, beaches, the ocean, and a rural life style. ... That’s why we’re dismayed that a politician who has barely lifted a finger to preserve the country would have the audacity to steal this well-recognized slogan. The legacy of the real community leaders who started the movement cannot be co-opted in order to score political points.”

Although the ad doesn’t make any claims to preventing the Turtle Bay expansion, Hannemann’s opponents added that he was in support of the resort expansion.