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The American who was mortally wounded by arrows while he was trying to spread Christianity with a remote tribe knew that he could pay the ultimate price, according to his diary.
John Allen Chau, a 20-year-old Alabama missionary, was killed last week when he kayaked on the heavily protected North Sentinel Island after paying a local fisherman to bring him here, according to the Andaman and Nicobar Indian Islands Police.
During his first attempt to talk with the tribe, he was shot and managed to retreat. He detailed the experience in newspaper articles that his mother had shared with media outlets, including the Washington Post.
"If you want me to be killed by an arrow or even killed with an arrow, then so be it," he writes, addressing God. "I think I could be more useful alive … I do not want to die. Would it be wiser to leave and leave someone else to go on? No, I do not think so."
He also wrote to his parents to implore them not to get angry if he was to lose his life.
"You may think I'm crazy about all this, but I think it's worth telling Jesus to these people," he wrote. "Please do not be angry at them or against God if I get killed. … This is not a useless thing. The eternal life of this tribe is near and I look forward to seeing them around the throne of God who adores in their own language. "
In the newspaper, he described the approach made to the tribe and seeing about six people, who shouted and mocked him.
"I shouted:" I'm calling John, I love you and Jesus loves you, & # 39; he wrote, but when he saw them tie their bows, he fled furiously away from them. A child about 10 years old shot an arrow at him that hit his Bible.
"I was a little scared, but I was mostly disappointed. They did not accept me right away, "he said.
Chau's family issued a statement claiming that she forgave the members of the tribe for killing him.
"The words can not express the sadness we felt about this report," said his family in a statement posted on his Instagram account. "He loved God, life, help those in need and only love Sentinels."
They continued, "We forgive those presumed responsible for his death. We are also asking for the release of his friends from the Andaman Islands. He ventured of his own accord and his local contacts do not need to be persecuted for his own actions. "
Chau reportedly paid the fisherman $ 325 to illegally take him to the waters just off the island on November 15. From there, police said, he boarded a kayak and paddled up to shore, carrying balloons and fish.
The fishermen were arrested for helping Chau reach the island, where the Sentinels live in isolation and are known to attack anyone who approaches them. The Indian government limits the number of visitors to the isolated island. The men were accused of endangering Chau's life by bringing him into the no-go zone, the police said.
After his first interaction with the tribe, he gave pages of his newspaper to the fishermen and left for North Sentinel Island, according to the police. What happened next is not known.
On November 17, fishermen watched from afar as Chau's body was dragged along the shore by members of the tribe. The men left for Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman Islands and Nicobar, where they told what had happened to a friend. The friend informed Chau's family.
The authorities still have to recover Chau's body.
On The Outbound Collective, Chau had written about his adventures abroad, saying that he liked to "explore", whether it was traveling through dense old forests near the Chilliwack River (on the US border with the US). Canada), looking for a presumed waterfall in the jungle of the Andamans, or just wandering around a city to get an idea of the vibrations, I am an explorer in the soul. "
The travel and explorer blog also published an article about his death.
"We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn of John Chau's passing." John has been an active contributor to our community of adventure travelers, sharing many wonderful adventures and photos from around the world. kind and energetic, and he will really be missed, "said the post.
"We had no prior knowledge of John's intention to visit North Sentinel Island and to not tolerate visiting forbidden areas or breaking local laws." Our heart goes out to his family and to all those affected by this tragic event, "the statement concluded.
Sentinels are thought to number only 39 and have never been exposed to modern diseases or technology. The Indian government has made it illegal to upload videos to these videos and is severely restricting the island to preserve the indigenous group.
But from time to time, the images manage to make their way on social media or in news accounts. In 2004, after a horrible tsunami that ravaged southern India, Indonesia and Thailand, aid helicopters flew low over North Sentinel to determine if the tribe was in danger. The planes were greeted by a shower of arrows, which aid workers saw as a positive sign of the security of the population.
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