Transcript
VICTORIA LOLA LEON GUERRERO: This is not actually a civil rights issue. In fact a decolonisation vote is not a right that should be extended to all because it is a vote that is intended to restore a right that was taken away from a very specific group of people. And that is the human right of sovereignty, and in this case this specific group of people are the Chamorro people are the native people of Guam. And through colonisation, the island's community has become very diverse and we have a huge settler community here. And so Dave Davis is arguing that all who have settled in Guam as a result of colonisation should be equally entitled to this vote. That really misses the genuine intent of decolonisation to right the historical wrong of colonisation in the first place. The judge's decision was that the plebiscite in particular was race-based discrimination and not allowing Dave Davis who is not a native inhabitant of the island to register to vote in the plebiscite that that was race-based discrimination and violated the fourteenth and fifteenth amendments of the constitution. But we are regularly reminded, and as enforced by the insular cases, that the constitution doesn't entirely apply to the unincorporated territories.
JAMIE TAHANA: Ok, so the argument here that it's unconstitutional has a certain irony, considering you can;t actually vote (in the US) or anything like that?
VLLG: Exactly. And this idea that the constitution applies only when the United States wants it to, right when it benefits their interests and not ours, you know, that is incredibly ironic. And the irony also of classifying this plebiscite as a racist action, when colonisation itself was a form of racism that we continue to live with the effects of. In (the case of) Downes v Bidwell, they literally called us an alien race not deserving of the same rights as Americans, and that the constitution does not apply. And so in that tone, that is where the racism actually occurred. And so it is deeply problematic that the judgement and now the community rhetoric around this notion that a native people seeking self-determination is racist is very destructive to our community, to our sense of identity and also to the decolonisation process as a whole. We are simply saying that this particular decision, this particular remedy to a historical wrong should be done by those who were wronged. And in that, we are not using a racist classification or denying people their basic, everyday human rights. But the Chamorro people have been denied their right to sovereignty and therefore the Chamorro people should determine and exercise that right.
JT: The settler community has been there for a long time. Do they have a right to any kind of say in all this?
VLLG: Well not in the initial plebiscite which is really an expression of indigenous desire, right, what is the desire of the indigenous group that was colonised in moving forward? What type of political status would we desire as an indigenous community that was colonised? After that desire is expressed and fought for in congress, whatever political status is chosen would essentially need a constitution, would essentially need to design a government around that political status. And in that time, you would open up to the entire community because it would form the new government of Guam.
JT: What does this ruling mean for the current process towards a plebiscite?
VLLG: Well Judge Frances Tydingco-Gatewood basically banned the government of Guam from having a plebiscite with the definition of native inhabitants, right, so having this type of plebiscite. What it means is the government itself and the people of Guam, particularly the Chamorro people of Guam will have to figure out how will we proceed? Do we have to draft a new law, create a new decolonisation process? But the judge's decision does not allow for the plebiscite to occur as it is currently dictated by law. So then this will be a matter that our lawmakers will have to address, 'how then shall we proceed'. The Governor has said that he wants the Attorney-General to appeal to the highest court. But he's also said that he's willing to have a plebiscite that everybody will vote in, and that there will be two separate boxes - they identify whether they are native or non-native. I think that right now, it's so fresh in our community. We still need to strategise, we still need to come together and find out what are the next steps. But for us, the next step is not to cower or stop in our efforts, but rather to work harder.
