North Sentinel Island : Most Isolated Island in the World - Sentinelese Island

North Sentinel Island : Most Isolated Island in the World - Sentinelese Island
North Sentinel Island is located 50kms west to Andaman Islands, in the bay of Bengal. It is home to the Sentinelese people. They are widely considered the most isolated tribe in the world. The islanders are full of mystery. They are believed to be staying on the island for more than 30,000 years.
Even though the island falls under India’s governance, the Indian government recognizes the island as a sovereign entity. And makes efforts to ensure they are left undisturbed. All kinds of travel have been banned and the government maintains a constant armed patrol to prevent intrusions by outsiders.
No visitors are allowed on the island. They violently defend their island with spears and arrows. They have reputation of even shooting arrows at aircrafts that had attempted to land in their area.
The Sentinelese are expected to have population between 50 to 200. We know very little about them. Where they came from and exactly when they got on the island are complete mysteries to mankind. They live by hunting gathering and fishing. There appears to be no agriculture among them. They wear almost no clothing with the exception of some headbands and ornaments. Music, dancing and celebrations are known to be part of their culture. We don’t know what language they speak. Even we have no idea what the Sentinelese call themselves.
North Sentinel Island first appears in history in 1771. John Ritchie an East Indian company officer, reported seeing lights on the island as he was passing by. The Sentinelese remained undisturbed for nearly a century. In 1867, the Indian merchant ship Ninevah wrecked on the island due to heavy storm. Its 106 crew members landed on the beach. The sentinelese waited for 3 days and finally attacked with bows and arrows.
A national geographic film crew approached the island with boats in order to shoot some footages. The adventure ended before it began, with the director taking an arrow in his leg.
In 1981, an Australian cargo ship and her crew of 28 ran aground on the reef. But this time the sailors were rescued by helicopter. Later visitors to the island say that the sentinelese seemed to have salvaged metal from the ship for their tools and weapons.
A group of Indian anthropologists made the first and last peaceful contact with the sentinelese in 1991. On the very next visit, the sentinelese warned by showing their weapons. The Indian government wisely banned any further researchers from visiting the island.
In 2006, the sentinelese killed two Indian fishermen who were fishing too close to the island. Later the sentinelese attacked the helicopter and the crew who came to recover the bodies. Indian authorities canceled the operation.
And finally the event that brought global attention to the island was the murder of a young American missionary John Chau, who went to North Sentinel Island to convert the Sentinelese to Christianity. The sentinelese killed him soon after he set foot on the island. However, given the special status of the island, nobody was prosecuted and any attempt to retrieve the body was desisted.
They don’t care much for company and they have expressed that clearly without even a common language. The complete isolation of the sentinelese means any contact with the outside would put them at the risk of disease as they are likely to have no immunity to even common illness such as flu and measles. Of the four existing tribes of Andaman, sentinelese tribe is the only one which is culturally intact and healthy. In 1999 and 2006 the Jarawa tribe suffered outbreaks of measles, a disease that has wiped out many tribes worldwide following contact with outsiders. Other Andaman tribes are now addicted to alcohol and marijuana.
The tribes have been living on the islands for centuries without any problem. Their trouble started after they came into contact with outsiders. The tribes of the islands do not need outsiders to protect them, what they need is to be left alone.
#sentinelese, #northsentinel, #facts, #knowledge, #people, #tribes
Music: www.purple-pla...
Please subscribe to CRAZY CUBE