US tourist 'killed' by arrow-shooting Andaman island tribesmen

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Ajazeera


John Allen Chau, 27, believed killed with bows and arrows as he canoed to the beach of isolated North Sentinel Island.

9 minutes ago

A US tourist is believed to have been killed by an isolated Indian island tribe known to fire at outsiders with bows and arrows, Indian police said.

Seven fishermen have been arrested for facilitating John Allen Chau's visit to North Sentinel Island, where the killing apparently occurred, police officer Vijay Singh said.

. . .

In a 2015 interview with The Outbound Collective, an online community of adventure travellers, Chau was asked what was on the top of "his must-do adventure list right now".

"Going back to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in India is on the top - there's so much to see and do there!" Chau replied.

~ ~ ~

US national killed in Andaman Islands for illegally entering Sentinelese tribe area
An American tourist was reportedly killed by the tribal members of Sentinelese Community at North Sentinel Island. The victim has been identified as 27-year-old John Allen Chau.
By : Vanilla Sharma Nov 21, 2018 09:52 IST

An American tourist, who was on an adventure trip to the Andaman Islands, was reportedly killed by the tribal members of Sentinelese Community at North Sentinel Island. The victim has been identified as 27-year-old John Allen Chau.

The American national had got in touch with a few fishermen, who are known to have helped him plan his trip. Chau then hired a fishing dinghy from Chidiyatapu area with their help, using which he reached close to the Island on November 16. After this, he travelled to the area on his own canoe, according to local newspaper Andaman Sheekha.

The 27-year-old intended to interact with the tribal members of the area, and preach Christianity. However, Chau was killed by the tribe, known to be reclusive and extremely protective of their lives and area, and his body was then recovered by local fishermen.

The police have been informed of the murder and several meetings have reportedly been held to discuss the matter and decide on the course of action. "After getting relevant information a murder case has been registered," the senior officer told the newspaper. The fishermen too have been arrested.

More:
https://www.ibtimes.co.in/us-national-killed-andaman-islands-illegally-entering-sentinelese-tribe-area-786067

Read more: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/southasia/2018/11/tourist-killed-arrow-shooting-andaman-island-tribesmen-181121074347304.html

---

"Hit By Arrows, Kept Walking": American Killed By Protected Andaman Tribe

Seven fishermen who took the American John Allen Chau to North Sentinel Island, where the indigenous Sentinelese people live, have been arrested, the police said

All India | Edited by Debanish Achom (with inputs from Agencies) | Updated: November 21, 2018 15:37 IST

PORT BLAIR/NEW DELHI:

Fishermen said they last saw the man being attacked by tribes
John Allen Chau, 27, had been to Andamans several times
The tribes dragged the American man to the beach, the fishermen said

An American man was killed by a protected tribe in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the police said today. Seven fishermen who took 27-year-old John Allen Chau to North Sentinel Island, where the indigenous Sentinelese people live, have been arrested, the police said.

The Sentinelese, whose population in 2011 was estimated at 40, are known to resist contact with the outside world. Activists say the tribes are at threat from outsiders, who often bribe locals to access them.

The fishermen told the police that they last saw the American man facing a flurry of arrows after he landed on the island towards the southern Andamans on November 16. The tribes dragged the American to the beach, they said, adding that moments later as they were sailing away they saw Mr Chau's body half-buried in the sand.

"He tried to reach the Sentinel island on November 14 but could not make it. Two days later he went well prepared. He left the dingy midway and took a canoe all by himself to the island," a source told news agency AFP. "He was attacked by arrows but he continued walking. The fishermen saw the tribals tying a rope around his neck and dragging his body. They were scared and fled but returned next morning to find his body on the sea shore," the source said.

More:
https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/american-tourist-killed-in-andaman-and-nicobar-islands-seven-arrested-1950906

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

1. I wonder why the word "killed" is in quotes in the headline.

It sounds like he was actually killed, not symbolically killed, not metaphorically killed, but just killed.

Despite his stupidity for making the canoe trip, sympathy for the loved ones he left behind.

[Princess Turandot]

2. It's not in quotations in the actual IBT article. I assume that the OP added them..nt

[Judi Lynn]

52. Refer to the link provided. It's exactly the headline provided by the news source:

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/southasia/2018/11/tourist-killed-arrow-shooting-andaman-island-tribesmen-181121074347304.html

I would have no hunch what compelled the headline writer to use that wording.

[IronLionZion]

66. Tourist should be in quotes because he wasn't a tourist at all

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

81. +1. "good" catch! ":)" nt

[Voltaire2]

100. Yup.

[SWBTATTReg]

3. And this US citizen, despite the protected status of this tribe, still thought he had the ...

right to interfere w/ the 'protected' status of this tribe and still go preach to them the virtues of Christianity.

How many times in history has this so called preaching 'Christianity' to others ended up destroying a culture? Way too many.

The ignorant idiot, who willfully ignored all warnings, deserves being executed by this tribe according to their beliefs and/or edicts and thus, should never face any backlash.

Besides those who guided the idiot man child to this island (the fishermen) in being prosecuted (who, I think, should be found innocent, after all, they didn't actually put him on shore, he did, w/ his own boat).

Also, those in the US, such as any churches or others that encouraged this idiot man child to go to this island and interfere in the customs of this tribe should be prosecuted for not doing enough to stop the actions of this misguided man child/idiot. I do not feel sorry one bit for the actions of this idiot man child. He brought it on himself.

[oberliner]

5. This is sick

[Voltaire2]

6. Perhaps but the victim knew exactly what he was doing.

He went there explicitly to mess with their culture, knowing that they would violently resist his intrusion.

So it was indeed sick, but what exactly was the sickness?

[JI7]

7. how did he try to mess with their culture ?

maybe he was interested in their culture.

(i didn't read the article so may have missed something on this)

[tblue37]

17. He went there to convert them to Christianity. nt

[KCDebbie]

36. EXACTLY!

He knew the risks he was taking and he was willing to die for his "God"...

This last action of his played into his Christian persecution complex, I'm sure...

[dawg day]

45. He's bringing germs that could literally wipe them out.

They have no immunity to our many germs.

Leave them alone. They have done us no harm. We have done tribes like them enormous harm. They aren't playthings for bored "adventurers" or bible-slingers.

[cstanleytech]

74. They probably had some of that happen already as there has been some interaction with the natives

with the outside according to what I read over the past few hundred years.
What I find baffling though is why this guy thought the natives would react much differently to him than they did in the majority of past encounters.

[LeftInTX]

92. Anthropolgists can't get close to them

I saw a documentary about them.

[Voltaire2]

99. He went there to indoctrinate them in his religion.

Oh and by the way any contact can be lethal to the indigenous people.

[Red Mountain]

9. Ignorance with a touch of arrogance

Lethal.

[oberliner]

14. The sickness is seeming to justify the murder of a person for "messing with their culture"

[LisaL]

42. They don't want outsides contacting them and made that clear.

They also won't be prosecuted because they are considered sovereign citizens.

[Pisces]

47. No outrage necessary. Same as with hikers that want to go to Iran or Afghanistan. Being American

Does not give you the right to go to other countries and do as you please. I hope this prevents other stupid people from thinking they can do as the please in other countries. THat is no sickness.

[SWBTATTReg]

8. He brought it on himself. No one else did. Interfering w/ a protected culture isn't sick, eh?

Most cultures do have the right to do as they see fit, as misguided as their actions may be in our eyes. However, our cultural norms don't apply here.

[oberliner]

13. Killing someone is worse

I don't think "interfering with a protected culture" is justification for killing a person.

[SWBTATTReg]

16. I agree, but neither of us were there. They are. Only 40 or so members of a tribe that's ...

probably verging on the fringes of being wiped out. No wonder that they have strict protections against interlopers, which the unfortunate man child / idiot was. He trespassed and paid the price.

[ck4829]

18. Not to mention there is another factor, one of pure biology

A problem I've read about when it comes to contacting uncontacted people is that the germs we carry and we have assimilated into our bodies can kill them... this isn't like with Fox News talking about super-diseases in the caravan, I'm talking about an influenza virus that makes us feel bad would be lethal to them. And people going to meet uncontacted people have to be really, extremely, careful to limit physical contact with them or when it comes to giving them items in addition to making sure they are vaccinated and healthy before going.

He could have meant well and ended up killing them.

[SWBTATTReg]

19. Exactly. Reminds me of the time that traders in the old American West carrying ...

blankets infected w/ smallpox etc. Not that this man child/idiot would have done the blanket scenario, but his actions and appearance could have easily wiped the whole tribe out (with his germs/etc.).

[melm00se]

34. I hate to say this to you (and everyone else)

but this claim (usually sourced originally to Ward Churchill in 1992) is based upon fabrication of evidence.

This article is one of the better ones detailing this.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

62. On the other hand: the 1837 Great Plains smallpox epidemic

1837 Great Plains smallpox epidemic

Disease: Smallpox
Arrival date: 1837
Origin: steamboat on the Missouri River
Deaths: 17,000+

The 1837 Great Plains smallpox epidemic spanned 1836 through 1840, but reached its height after the spring of 1837 when an American Fur Company steamboat, the S.S. St. Peter, carried infected people and supplies into the Missouri Valley. More than 17,000 Indigenous people died along the Missouri River alone, with some bands becoming nearly extinct. Having witnessed the effects of the epidemic on the Mandan tribe, fur trader Francis Chardon wrote, "the small-pox had never been known in the civilized world, as it had been among the poor Mandans and other Indians. Only twenty-seven Mandans were left to tell the tale." The Commissioner of Indian Affairs in 1839 reported on the casualties: "No attempt has been made to count the victims, nor is it possible to reckon them in any of these tribes with accuracy; it is believed that if [the number 17,200 for the upper Missouri River Indians] was doubled, the aggregate would not be too large for those who have fallen east of the Rocky Mountains."

There was an article about this in Smithsonian magazine several years ago.

I found it. I used the search term "chardon."

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/search/?q=chardon

Tribal Fever
Twenty-five years ago this month, smallpox was officially eradicated. For the Indians of the high plains, it came a century and a half too late

By Landon Y. Jones
Smithsonian Magazine | Subscribe
May 2005

I really should clean house more often.

[melm00se]

68. There is no doubt

that smallpox ripped thru the Native American population. What is highly doubtful is that it was intentional.

The current scholarship indicates that Europeans on the S.S. Peter were sick with smallpox and/or carriers.

[oberliner]

23. That is true

I just don't like the idea of insulting someone and calling them names after they were just killed.

[ck4829]

21. This kind of sounds like suicide by uncontacted people to me

He went supposedly to convert them and maybe he did, but I think there's another reason...

He's been to Andaman Islands before, so there's no way he didn't know about that one forbidden island and what happens when people try to go there.

If he did any sort of research before going, he may have, he probably would have known these people don't like visitors and shoot arrows at them on sight.

And if he did research, he would also found out that these people shoot at you, they're not going to be prosecuted, they won't get in trouble no matter what. So that probably would have cleared his conscience.

Being killed by an angry tribe is the stuff of pulp fiction, this may have been his perception of a chance for being recognized and he certainly got it, it's a lot different than "Depressed man commits suicide", it would been local news and people would have forgotten about it after a couple days, this guy is immortalized in Wikipedia.

And then there's the whole disturbing tidbit that he survived a couple of arrows and instead of fleeing or taking cover, he kept on walking.

Sounds kind of suicidal to me, but that's just my opinion.

[oberliner]

24. Understood

I just don't think it's justified to kill someone under these circumstances (which the post I responded to seemed to sort of be implying).

[ret5hd]

77. Please , impart your wisdom on an appropriate government response!

Arrest, trial, and sentencing of the guilty tribespeople?

[essme]

90. It's nice to be able to sit

in our comfy temperature regulated homes and trust the USDA to make sure our food is safe. I get that-

Stop it.

Those people see it- and so do I- as self defense.

Exposing them to outsiders can kill all of them.

[atreides1]

26. I do

Especially when you take into consideration that he was a carrier of diseases that this tribe hasn't been exposed to!

Would it have been better if he had wiped out 40 people with virus?

[oberliner]

29. It makes me sick to read someone here justifying murder

He had already visited this tribe four or five times before.

[ck4829]

33. He's visited the rest of the Andaman Islands four or five times before

The people there everywhere else are very welcoming and friendly once you get permission to enter... it's just that one island you shouldn't try to go to.

[LisaL]

37. He hasn't visited this tribe four or five times before.

Tribe doesn't like visitors, they have killed two fishermen in 2006.

[Perseus]

32. What gave him the right to try to mess around with that culture?

It is pure religious fanaticism combined with narcissism to think you can go where you are not supposed to go and "convert" them to your religion.

Why do so many people think their religion is the best, the only one? Practice your religion and let others practice theirs...or if they don't have a religion, that is each person's prerogative.

Also, understand that to these people, he was an intruder, what happened to him was the same that happened to "conquistadores" many years ago...its like finding a burglar in your house, he is an intruder, you will do whatever it takes to protect you family.

I do feel sorry for his family, but he must have known what the risk was.

[ck4829]

35. I think he did know the risk, I honestly think he was setting out to die

Maybe he was trying to convert the people there but in my mind it's equally plausible this was a suicide by proxy.

It'll be up to the family to find out.

[LisaL]

38. I very much doubt this was suicide by proxy.

[ck4829]

40. And that's OK

[Marrah_Goodman]

57. How about bringing disease to a population without immunities?

That killed almost the entire population of the Americas native population. Think Mr. white christian guy would have EVER been held responsible for the deaths he caused.

[yardwork]

73. Except that bringing germs could wipe out the whole community.

Suppose that happened? Would that too be murder?

Or is this self-defense?

If somebody breaks down your door and comes charging in without your permission, you have a right to shoot them dead as they enter your home.

If North Korea were to invade the United States, would you say it was wrong for our military to respond with deadly force?

I'm not clear on how this is different.

[dawg day]

95. How about killing by infection?

That is the likely outcome of a modern person bringing outside germs to an isolated island group. They have no immunity against many diseases
he had to know that, and endangered them for his own selfish reasons. they have every right to keep us all away. save sympathy for those who have no cjoice... and that is not this man who wanted to be like missionaries for centuries , bringing disease and conflict to people who just wanted to be left alone.

[Voltaire2]

101. Contact can be lethal for these people.

They do not have immunity to many of our “germs”.

So if it would help your concern, consider it an act of self defense.

By the way apparently they tried to avoid killing him at first, the initial shots were non-lethal. He didn’t turn back and instead kept approaching.

He may very well have managed to infect them anyway.

[lamsmy]

4. The Andamans are restricted area

This article failed to point out that the entire Andaman and Nicobar chain of islands are a restricted travel area that require a special permit to visit.

Within the Restricted Area, special tribal areas and islands are entirely off limits to all visitors. Even UN delegates require a waiver to access these places.

The islands are one of the least developed places on the planet and the indigenous tribes are extremely wary of outsiders. The travel restrictions are well known and all visitors are given stern reminders upon arrival.

While none of this excuses murder, the American was knowly breaking Indian law and tribal traditions. The fisherman who abetted him would have understood this as well. It is a tragedy all around but this fool walked straight into it.

[SWBTATTReg]

10. Well said. NT

[dawg day]

44. It is not "Murder". It's self-defense.

Indigenous tribes like these have no immunity to many diseases. Exposure to very common and relatively harmless (to us) illnesses could wipe out the tribe in weeks. We know this. We've seen it happen in South America and Africa.

So an outsider who tries to contact them is deliberately putting not just himself but the entire tribe at risk for extinction.

He deserves no sympathy, frankly. He knew what he was doing. He knew he was risking killing 40 people who did not want him there for extremely good reasons.

[hueymahl]

70. You are absolutely right

I don't like people trying to defend him using various straw-man and red herring techniques. He knew what he was doing. He purposefully broke the law. He put their health and safety at risk. They responded according to their customs to protect their society.

The guy is not a dumbass (well, maybe he is a dumbass also). He is knew exactly what he was doing and why it was wrong.

I guess the best I can say about him is he was suffering from religious delusions.

[ToxMarz]

11. He was a one man caravan

to the North Sentinel Island. They are particularly tough on illegal immigration.

[3Hotdogs]

22. Maybe he threw stones at them first.

[LisaL]

43. Far from it, he was supposedly trying to offer them gifts.

[ToxMarz]

49. Yeah, the gift of Christianity

Maybe they saw how well that worked out for the natives of the New World

[LisaL]

51. No, actual material gifts, from what has been reported.

[ToxMarz]

63. From the article

"The 27-year-old intended to interact with the tribal members of the area, and preach Christianity."

Obviously they weren't interested in his trinkets.

And also from other reports

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6413235/American-tourist-27-killed-protected-tribesmen-remote-island.html

"Now, a friend has revealed to DailyMail.com that Chau was 'committed' to travelling to the remote island, deep in the Indian Ocean, to preach Christianity to the tribesmen and had been planning the trip for at least three years."

[LisaL]

78. He brought them gifts.

"He apparently tried several more times to reach the island over the next two days, the police say, offering gifts such as a small soccer ball, fishing line and scissors."
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/21/world/asia/american-killed-andaman-island-tribe.html

[ToxMarz]

80. So if someone brings a small soccer ball, fishing line and some scissors

They can come uninvited into your home as they please?

I'd shoot 'em (since I don't have a bow and arrows).

[Conflict]

85. Of course you mean with a camera...

[LisaL]

93. Is there anything in my post to support that idea?

[Voltaire2]

105. As usual we remove agency from indigenous people.

They are part of the scenery. A tourist attraction. Scenery has no territorial rights.

[LisaL]

31. They have no immunity against common diseases.

It's deadly to them to interact with the outside world.

[jpak]

12. "The 27-year-old intended to interact with the tribal members of the area, and preach Christianity"

ugh

[UpInArms]

72. +1

[dalton99a]

113. 'My name is John. I love you and Jesus loves you... Here is some fish!' he hollered at them

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6416687/American-Christian-missionary-DID-make-contact-remote-tribe-killed-arrow.html
'They shot me with an arrow - directly into my Bible': Missionary's journal reveals tribe also tried to shoot him the day before they killed him and he wrote 'Father, forgive them if they succeed'

John Allen Chau, 26, wrote in his journal that he reached North Sentinel Island - one of the world's most isolated regions in India's Andaman islands that is off-limits to visitors - in his kayak on November 15.

Chau said at one point he was 'just inches' away from the tribesmen - who he described as about 5 feet 5 inches tall and with yellow paste on their faces - and offered them gifts of a football and fish.

But when he reacted with hostility, he threw the gifts in their direction and fled.

'My name is John. I love you and Jesus loves you... Here is some fish!' he said he hollered at them before fleeing.

He narrowly avoided death that day when some of the tribe shot at him with their arrows - and one 'little kid', almost unbelievably, hit the Bible he was holding at his chest.

'Well, I've been shot by the Sentinelese… By a kid probably about 10 or so years old, maybe a teenager, short compared to those who looked like adults,' he wrote.

'The little kid shot me with an arrow - directly into my Bible which I was holding at my chest,' he added.

Recalling his near-death experience in his journal that evening, he wrote: 'Father, forgive him and any of the people on this island who try to kill me... and especially forgive me if they succeed.'

[ck4829]

15. There are old videos of the North Sentinelese, of friendly interactions

Something bad happened there.

[LisaL]

41. Must be really old.

They don't want contacted, in 2006 they killed two fishermen.

[muriel_volestrangler]

20. Illegal to contact them, to preserve their culture and protect them from disease

"The Sentinelese have shown again and again that they want to be left alone, and their wishes should be respected," he said. "The British colonial occupation of the Andaman Islands decimated the tribes living there, wiping out thousands of tribespeople, and only a fraction of the original population now survive. So the Sentinelese fear of outsiders is very understandable."

The two endangered aboriginal Andaman tribes - the Jarawa and the Sentinelese - are hunter-gatherers, and contact with the outside world would put them at risk of contracting disease.

The Sentinelese are particularly vulnerable: their complete isolation means they are likely to have no immunity to even common illnesses such as flu and measles.

"It's not impossible that the Sentinelese have just been infected by deadly pathogens to which they have no immunity, with the potential to wipe out the entire tribe," said Mr Corry.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-46286215

[suffragette]

84. In a world filled with people who want to interact, this man chose to force himself and possibly his

religion on people who have repeatedly indicated they just want to be left to live their lives in their own way.

He was familiar with the area, which means he would also have been familiar with the danger he posed to them and with their views. His arrogance, lack of respect and lack of caring about their wishes and their fragile existence in this world is stunning.

[Chakaconcarne]

25. Sounds like the tribe has a history of doing this.....

but the American went anyway.

[MineralMan]

27. Why is "killed" in quotes?

I'm just curious. It appears that he is dead.

[Grins]

28. Related info...

So what's with this tribe? The government of India protects them because...

"It is illegal to go within five kilometres of the island, in order to protect the Sentinelese from exploitation, violence, and diseases to which they have no immunity. ...people from neighbouring islands visit the island to dive for lobster close to the shore and to hunt pigs on the island, depriving the tribe of essential foodstuffs.

The related Jarawa tribe stopped resisting contact with outsiders in 1998. They are now plagued by intruders on their land stealing the animals they hunt, bringing in alcohol and sexually exploiting Jarawa women."

It wasn't just because this guy was a (probably un-vaccinated) Christian zealot.

[ck4829]

30. As I posted above, there is an old video of a group playing a game with the North Sentinelese

And I recall a story where someone came ashore and was able to attempt talking to them but left after a couple of hours as the North Sentinelese all started flashing their gums at the guy.

Something happened to them to make them even more isolated. Someone did something to them and doesn't want to come clean I think.

[JI7]

96. do you have a link to this ? and how old is that video ?

[IronLionZion]

39. I'm sure he meant well but it's best not to bother uncontacted tribes

they don't need the diseases that the rest of the world has built up antibodies to, it would wipe them out.

And many folks don't want missionary's religion forced upon them. I bet many Christians would not appreciate Muslim, Satanist, or other missionaries trying to convert them in the American Bible belt.

[Voltaire2]

48. He didn't mean well. He went there to deliberately mess with them.

[LisaL]

54. Convert them to Christianity.

[xor]

61. I know I've chased away my share of jehovah's witnesses by running after them naked with a spear

I prefer to be an uncontacted neighbor.

Maybe it's because I'm not religious, but I do not understand the desire for religious folks to spread their religion on others who don't want to hear it. I couldn't ever see myself trying to convince a religious person to not be religious, and only get call out religious nonsense if its something that is interfering with my life or the life of others who don't want anything to do with it.

[IronLionZion]

64. Atheists should try converting Bible thumping fundies

Or the Satanists should try it

[Stainless]

46. Trying for Martyrdom?

If so, the poor dumb fool was successful in his final attempt.

[jpak]

50. St. Sebastian?

[elmac]

53. Maybe the tribe's only contact with the outside world was shortwve radio

and all that's on that is rightwing religious nut jobs, so it was clearly self defense.

[Marrah_Goodman]

55. He should not have been there

Frankly, this is self defense by the islands population. I am saddened by the fact that this guy had been brainwashed to think he had a right and obligation to force his beliefs and germs on others.

[Downtown Hound]

56. LOL. Yup, that's right.

This asshole is so hopped up on white saviorism that he thinks he can violate the law and convert the heathen savages. He brought this entirely on himself.

And for anyone ready to pounce on my lack of compassion, I wonder how many Native American or African tribes would, in hindsight, wish they could go back in time and do exactly what this tribe did the minute some pompous white missionary decided their religion was superior and set out to destroy (convert) theirs. It would have turned out a lot better for them if they had.

[Marrah_Goodman]

58. Bingo

[IronLionZion]

65. He's not white but your other points are valid

It was my first thought too, but I had to check and the guy is Asian.

[Conflict]

86. Wasn't Jesus a person of color?

[FreepFryer]

59. In other (unrelated) news, Jehovahs Witnesses purchase 10,000 black and white Kevlar vests (n/)

[IronLionZion]

67. Sales of bulletproof Mormon garments are way up in Utah nt

[xor]

60. Well, you do dumb stuff and sometimes you suffer the consequences

I feel bad for any family he left behind because of stupid acts.

[Catherine Vincent]

69. Rest in peace

Rest in peace to the guy who thought he could change a group of people that didn't want change.

But just you watch, there will be others that will attempt to go to this island.

[UpInArms]

71. The 27-year-old intended to interact with the tribal members of the area, and preach Christianity.

This kind of says it all ... at least for me ...

[cstanleytech]

75. Well, he got half of what he wanted as there was interaction it just was not

a healthy interaction for him.

[Judi Lynn]

76. John Allen Chau: Who was US man killed in remote islands?

John Allen Chau: Who was US man killed in remote islands?
35 minutes ago



INSTAGRAM/ JOHN CHAU

On Instagram, a user with the name @johnachau describes himself as "a snakebite survivor"


The US man killed by a remote tribe on India's Andaman and Nicobar islands this week reportedly wanted to be an explorer.

John Allen Chau was shot with bows and arrows as he landed on North Sentinel island, which is forbidden to outsiders, say local fishermen.

According to local officials, the 27-year-old was a Christian missionary.

But on social media and in an interview attributed to him, Chau presented himself as an adventurer.

. . .

"So whether it's trekking through dense old growth forests near the Chilliwack River [on the US-Canada border], finding a rumoured waterfall in the jungles of the Andamans, or just wandering around a city to get a feel for the vibes, I'm an explorer at heart."

More:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-46293221

[Cattledog]

79. Got what he deserved.

No tears shed here.

[TexasBushwhacker]

102. Yup. Play stupid games

Win stupid prizes.

[dalton99a]

112. +1. He knew from researching their history

[Glimmer of Hope]

82. This thread is sad.

[essme]

87. I agree- it's horribly sad that some moron exposed

an isolated tribe to diseases- because he wanted to "convert them."

I wish they had killed him before he got any closer.

[cstanleytech]

104. The natives were probably already exposed to most of

them already as there have been other contacts.

[Eugene]

83. Survival International statement on killing of American man John Allen Chau by Sentinelese tribe, An

Source: Survival International

Survival International statement on killing of American man John Allen Chau by Sentinelese tribe, Andaman Islands

November 21, 2018

An American man, reportedly a missionary, has been killed by members of the Sentinelese tribe in the Andaman Islands, India. Survival International’s Director Stephen Corry said today:

“This tragedy should never have been allowed to happen. The Indian authorities should have been enforcing the protection of the Sentinelese and their island for the safety of both the tribe, and outsiders.

“Instead, a few months ago the authorities lifted one of the restrictions that had been protecting the Sentinelese tribe’s island from foreign tourists, which sent exactly the wrong message, and may have contributed to this terrible event.

“It’s not impossible that the Sentinelese have just been infected by deadly pathogens to which they have no immunity, with the potential to wipe out the entire tribe.

" The Sentinelese have shown again and again that they want to be left alone, and their wishes should be respected. The British colonial occupation of the Andaman Islands decimated the tribes living there, wiping out thousands of tribespeople, and only a fraction of the original population now survive. So the Sentinelese fear of outsiders is very understandable.

-snip-

Read more: https://www.survivalinternational.org/news/12031

[essme]

88. Thank you

I read that earlier today. I think this should be posted in GD for a thread of it's own.

I am amazed at the idiots that are calling this "murder."

If that tribe gets any diseases from that man's corpse- that is your "murder."

[Judi Lynn]

94. It's great seeing the statement. Thank you for providing it. n/t

[Judi Lynn]

97. The Latest: man killed on remote island was big outdoorsman

Updated 5:52 pm CST, Wednesday, November 21, 2018



Photo: Gautam Singh, AP
FILE – In this Nov. 14, 2005 file photo, clouds hang over the North Sentinel Island, in India's southeastern Andaman and Nicobar Islands. An American is believed to have been killed by an isolated Indian island tribe known to fire at outsiders with bows and arrows, Indian police said Wednesday, Nov. 21, 2018. Police officer Vijay Singh said seven fishermen have been arrested for facilitating the American's visit to North Sentinel Island, where the killing apparently occurred. Visits to the island are heavily restricted by the government.


NEW DELHI (AP) — The Latest on the death of an American adventurer and missionary who was killed by an isolated Indian tribe (all times local):

4:30 a.m.

John Allen Chau spent summers alone in a California cabin as a wilderness emergency responder. He led backpacking expeditions in the Northwest's Cascade Mountains, almost lost his leg to a rattlesnake bite, and coached soccer for poor children in Iraq and South Africa.

But kayaking to a remote Indian island, home to a tribe known for firing arrows at outsiders, proved an adventure too far for the avid outdoorsman and Christian missionary.

Police in India said Wednesday he had been killed, and authorities were working with anthropologists to try to recover his body from North Sentinel, in the Andaman Islands.

More:
https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/The-Latest-Relatives-forgive-tribesmen-who-13412986.php

[Judi Lynn]

98. 'A case of misdirected adventure:' Tribesmen kill American

Ashok Sharma, Associated Press
Updated 5:45 pm CST, Wednesday, November 21, 2018


NEW DELHI (AP) — The first time American John Allen Chau made it to the remote North Sentinel Island in the Indian Ocean, he came bearing gifts that included a football and fish.

He interacted with some of the tribesmen — who survive by hunting, fishing and collecting wild plants and are known for attacking anyone who comes near with bows and arrows and spears — until they became angry and shot an arrow at him.

It struck a book Chau was carrying, and the 26-year-old adventurer and Christian missionary swam back to a boat of fishermen that was waiting at a safe distance.

That night, he wrote about his adventures and left his notes with the fishermen. He returned to the island the next day, on Nov. 16.

More:
https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/American-believed-killed-by-isolated-tribe-on-13410853.php#photo-16540339

[Ferrets are Cool]

103. I've read all the post here...

I am happy there are so few defending this mans illegal actions.

And in response to "some" here...IF he had interacted with the tribe and they had contracted a disease that wiped them all out...some would say it was 'Gods Will". I suppose they would offer thoughts and prayers.

[GulfCoast66]

106. So in essence he was a home invader?

I mean, in every US state, if someone forcefully enters your home against your wishes you can legally shoot and kill them.

I can’t really see much difference.

Sorry he is dead and all. But he broke the law by invaded their home knowing full well he was not welcome. I hope he died thinking he was heading to a better place to help alleviate his suffering. Not that I believe that.

[dalton99a]

115. Satan's stronghold must be invaded

“Lord, is this island Satan’s last stronghold where none have heard or even had the chance to hear your name?” he wrote in a diary of his last days provided to The Washington Post by his mother.

https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/2174585/selfless-idealist-or-foolish-adventurer-who-was-john-allen-chau

[JustFiveMoreMinutes]

116. Lack of Christ equals Satan?

I guess to evangelicals, it's one or the other and nothing else.

Sad.

[Judi Lynn]

107. 'God, I don't want to die': US missionary's plea before remote Indian tribe struck

22 November 2018 — 4:39pm

Delhi: An American missionary trying to meet and convert one of the most isolated hunter-and-gatherer tribes in the world offered them fish and other small gifts before the tribesmen killed him and buried his body on the beach, journals and emails show.

John Allen Chau, 26, of Vancouver in Washington state, an Instagram adventurer who also led missionary trips abroad, travelled to the Andaman Islands (an Indian territory in the Bay of Bengal) this month to make contact with members of the tiny Sentinelese tribe, police said.

The tribe, who have remained alone for centuries, reject contact with the wider world and react with hostility and violence to attempts by outsiders to interact with them. The island is off-limits to visitors under Indian law.

Chau's riveting journal of his last days, shared with The Washington Post by his mother, shows a treacherous journey by dark in a small fishing boat to the area where the small tribe lived in huts. The men - about 165 centimetres tall with yellow paste on their faces, Chau wrote - acted angrily to his presence as he tried to attempt to speak their language and sing "worship songs" to them, he wrote.

More:
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/world/asia/god-i-don-t-want-to-die-us-missionary-s-plea-before-remote-indian-tribe-struck-20181122-p50hou.html

[Progressive Jones]

108. I guess his "god" didn't protect him. nt

[GulfCoast66]

109. Sad all around. This guy may well have killed entire population already

As he may have been carrying something as benign to us as the common cold which may well kill them all. The fishermen who saw the body said they were dragging it with a rope so hopefully they have realized(remember they are as smart as us) that contact can be deadly. I hate the way we do often remove agency from people we see as less sophisticated than we are.

Of course sad for this misguided man and his family.

But there is a bright side! I just peeked at the deplorable website I will not call out by name. By post 200 the nut job libertarians and the nut job religious, well, nuts, were in open warfare with threats of eternal damnnation up against accusations of supporting home invasion, which ironically, I agree with.

We may fight like hell here sometimes, but in 3 years I have never seen a DU member tell another that they are going to burn in hell.(they did not actually use that term. Just accused them of being of this earth). Of course, I guess many of us, myself included, do not believe in hell. I don’t go often because I do not want to give them the clicks, but sometimes it is irresistible.

[Stardust1]

110. Ok

It's misguided, reckless and dangerous to preach religion to a clearly anti-social tribe.

However, it is also extremely tasteless to speak ill of the deceased (unless we're talking about someone like Hitler or Mussolini or something). He did something stupid but as far as we know he was a well-intentioned person.

[GulfCoast66]

114. I respect you sentiment. But do not think he was well intentioned.

He knew he was violating the law and that they did not want him there as they had already tried to kill him the day before.

He had to know his very presence there threatened them with deadly diseases.

But most insulting he felt that he had the right to tell them how to believe in god.

Not saying I am glad he died. It is tragic. But he was no saint and his behavior was horrible.

[dalton99a]

111. Leave them alone.