Editorial
ADB protest march: a success all around
Both protesters against the Asian Development Bank and Hawai'i public officials delivered on their promises yesterday in an atmosphere of peaceful dissent that should establish Honolulu as a premier site for meetings of this sort.
Whether it's the ADB, the World Trade Organization, the North American Free Trade Association, the World Bank or any of the other alphabet-soup combinations of trading nations, the place to have serious, meaningful meetings is now beyond doubt.
These groups have tried to meet in Seattle; Quebec; Davos, Switzerland; Chiang Mai, Thailand; and other cities, and the results were havoc. Well-meaning demonstrations by people who seriously and properly object to the activities of these organizations were quickly overtaken by bused-in thugs who rioted, trashing businesses, burning cars, filling jail cells and hospital wards — and then blaming police.
That didn't happen yesterday in Honolulu. What was billed as a peaceful protest march came off as just that.
The anti-ADB demonstrators, while they may be disappointed at the size of their turnout, should be proud of the message they carried and the way they presented it. Dissent does not require cracked heads or tear gas. All that's needed is a different idea, ardently argued.
And heard. Our guess is that the anti-ADB folks had more contact with and more influence on the meeting delegates than at any of the conventions that saw riots.
Because there was no threat of violence, Tadao Chino, the president of ADB, was able to walk out the front door and listen to the reading of a long petition of complaint and to talk to demonstrators.
Our mail has brimmed with organized write-ins complaining that local people were being intimidated from participating in the march by the threat of police "brutality" and that their message was being suppressed by establishmentarian media.
Such assertions are simply wrong. Our police and other security personnel are our friends and neighbors, and they handled themselves appropriately to assure both public safety and the right to public protest. The media, out of a sense of fairness, have made much more of the anti-ADB message than it probably merits. And as we've said, if there's an issue that can make Hono-lulu residents take to the streets, the ADB isn't it.
While some may regret that the state and the city overspent in preparation for this event, we'd point out that it was their duty and responsibility to be prepared for the worst — and that most of the equipment will be available for reuse during the many future meetings that likely will result from yesterday's experience.
The bottom line: no one hurt, no damage and message delivered loud and clear. We'd call that a success all around.
