I have no idea, I had read on numerous forums about the loose laws regarding Hawaiian birth certificates and this is the program under which a Chinese national applied for and received a Hawaiian birth certificate even though he had been born in China. This popped up in one of my searches and from what I understand the criteria for applying for the birth certificate were extremely loose often with the certficate given out on the word of those who knew the applicant.
Registering a birth in 1961 in Hawaii was also extremely relaxed and only the word of a reliable person was needed, unlike today when a signed document from either a midwife, or delivering doctor and including records for prenatal care and well baby records are required.
Then why link to it, in the context of Obama's birth certificate?
I had read on numerous forums about the loose laws regarding Hawaiian birth certificates and this is the program under which a Chinese national applied for and received a Hawaiian birth certificate even though he had been born in China. This popped up in one of my searches and from what I understand the criteria for applying for the birth certificate were extremely loose often with the certficate given out on the word of those who knew the applicant.
I've seen those comments also. They're interesting, but anecdotal information from anonymous individuals on the internet really isn't proof of anything.
I assume the "Chinese national" you refer to is that of Sun Yat-sen, to whom a Certificate of Hawaiian Birth was issued in 1904 by the then-territory of Hawaii, when Yat-sen was (according to the certificate) 34 years old. It was common knowledge, then and now, that Yat-sen was born in China, so that certificate is more in the order of an honorarium, or tribute to the man known as "The Father of Modern China," who once lived in Hawaii. The certificate also predates the "Certificate of Hawaiian Birth" program by seven years, Hawaiian statehood by 55 years, and Obama's birth by 57 years. It's a curious historical anomaly, produced in an era when even US states had no consistent or centralized birth registration system, so it's difficult, if not impossible, to see any relevance.
Chief:”I had read on numerous forums about the loose laws regarding Hawaiian birth certificates.”
Chief, your comment is in my opinion a critical part of this discussion. Hawaii has made public statements that they have Obama’s vault copy of his orignal BC. mlo has on occasion stated that this is proof he was born in Hawaii because why would Hawaii have an orignal BC of someone born outside the US. I think mlo has a point here and this fact leads me to some speculation.
If there is a Hawaiian long-form birth certificate in the “vault” under care of Hawaiian officials, how did it get there? And what were the requirements to issue such a document in Hawaii back in 1961? In our modern day expectations of these types of documents, we may not fully understand how casually these records may have been handled in some jurisdictions. For example, how would someone register a home birth in Hawaii where an official medical doctor was not present? (example: post #675) Would it just be a matter of filling out a form and getting it notarized? Would it even be necessary that BHO be there in the state to generate such a document? Obvously someone had enough initiative to put the birth announcement in the paper so it would seem that “creating” a birth certificate might not be that far-fetched.
The question then raised is what would be the grand-parents (or mother’s) motive for generating these sorts of documents in 1961 since their expectations of a future Obama presidency are doubtfully the motive. I think that even back in 1961 there were benefits of having birth or citizenship in Hawaii and the US. Perhaps even then they understood the hassles of getting citizenship for foreign-born babies.
Whether the baby was born in Kenya (doubtful), Canada (perhaps), or Washington State (possible), is there any motivation that you know for claiming Hawaii as the place of birth back in 1961?