John Chau was right to go to North Sentinel, says his mission organisation
While some regard him as a hero and martyr, his actions have been widely criticised.
Dr Pam Arlund, a member of the international leadership team of All Nations, told Christian Today by email that her organisation did not accept that North Sentinel Island ought to be isolated, that the landing was not illegal and that Chau had been well prepared for his venture. Her answers are given below.
CT: How do you respond to charges that he was putting the islanders' lives at risk because of their lack of resistance to Western diseases?
AN: In preparation for his mission John Chau identified and tried to receive 13 different immunizations to try to make sure that he didn't spread diseases. We also know from his journals that he placed himself in a type of quarantine the last few days before his attempt to contact the North Sentinelese.
No one knows for sure what might or might not happen if a group outsider befriended the North Sentinelese. We are aware that in the past when local outsiders contacted populations for the first time, there was often a rapid die off of the local population due to disease. For example, when Europeans arrived in the western hemisphere this was the case. However, in the modern time period, situations are much different from in the past. For example, we have antibiotics and advanced medicines that could help local populations survive initial contacts.
These same medicines could likely help the local Sentinelese now, if only they had access to them. We do not know of their health condition, but perhaps some modern medicines would help them be healthier now. Perhaps some of them are dying of preventable diseases. We simply don't know. Denying a people group the right to medicine is not acceptable.
CT: Some commentators have said this was a 'colonial-style' undertaking, that the people had shown they didn't want to be contacted and that he should have respected that. I wonder how you respond to that view?
AN: We do not feel that honoring other cultures and leaving them alone are synonymous. We believe that all peoples everywhere have the right to hear about Jesus and his love and make their own decisions about whether to follow him or not. We believe in sharing Jesus' life affirming message in a way that honors other cultures. We know that the way Jesus is followed will look different in different places. However, we believe all peoples deserve the right to know about him.
https://www.christiantoday.com/article/john-chau-was-right-to-go-to-north-sentinel-says-his-mission-organisation/131087.htm
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prosecuted.
they need to work on their own bullshit beliefs before foisting them on others. They are all about forcing others to believe their crap or die... just like they did to the indigenous people wherever they went and still do wherever they go. I was raised by a gang of zealots like this and will gladly tell them where to stuff their bs whenever they try to spew their vile garbage in my presence.
