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Posted: Saturday, August 20th, 2005 6:55 AM HST

Royal descendant seeks return of Hawaiian artifacts

By Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) _ A descendant of Hawaiian royalty has gone to court to demand the return of ancient Hawaiian artifacts loaned by the Bishop Museum and believed to be buried in a Big Island cave. Heiress Abigail Kawananakoa and Hawaiian martial arts practitioner La`akea Suganuma filed a lawsuit in U-S District Court today, seeking an injunction demanding that the museum secure the return of the 83 items that a controversial Native Hawaiian group said it reburied in what is known as Forbes Cave near Kawaihae. Defendants in the lawsuit are the museum and Hui Malama I Na Kupuna O Hawaii, a group founded in 1989 to reclaim Native Hawaiian remains and artifacts. Suganuma has argued that the loan to Hui Malama prevented other claimants from fairly staking their right to the objects under the federal Native American Graves and Repatriation Act. Edward Halealoha Ayau, a spokesman for Hui Malama, declined to comment until he has reviewed the lawsuit. Bishop Museum Director Bill Brown said the museum strongly believes that the objects should be recovered. (Copyright 2005 by the Associated Press. All rights reserved.)