8 Arrested While Praying At Site Of Controversial Telescope In Hawaii

HONOLULU (AP) — Eight people were detained early Wednesday in the latest round of arrests in an ongoing battle over construction of a giant telescope atop a mountain many Native Hawaiians consider sacred. The state Department of Land and Natural resources said 20 of its officers arrested the seven women and one man on Mauna Kea at about 1 a.m. The officers were enforcing an emergency rule created to stop people from camping on Mauna Kea. The land board approved the rule in July. It restricts access to the mountain during certain nighttime hours and prohibits certain camping gear. The rule was prompted by protesters' around-the-clock presence to prevent construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope. Work on the telescope has been stalled since April. Protesters say officers hauled them away while they were praying. In video footage provided by the state, officers are seen walking toward a group of people huddled in a circle and chanting. A man's voice is heard saying, "Eh, they're praying you guys, they're praying." Officers had to pull the arrested man, Bronson Kobayashi, off the roof of a wood-and-straw hut, where he appeared to be filming the arrests. Four officers carried him away. Kobayashi, 23, couldn't immediately be reached for comment. The footage shows officers putting plastic handcuffs on women and putting them into the back of a vehicle. "Why do I have to have my hands behind my back?" a woman asked. "Because you'll be placed in restraints, ma'am," an off...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news