Officials fear the recent death of an American missionary could stymie tourism to India’s Andaman and Nicobar islands, as they revealed that the Washington state resident violated rules by contacting the indigenous tribe that ultimately killed him.
The Ministry of Home Affairs has been working on boosting visitors to the more than 3,100-square-mile Indian territories by lifting restrictions to 29 islands, allowing travelers to visit them, according to NDTV.
The ease in restrictions included North Sentinel, the remote island where Indian police believe Christian missionary John Allen Chau was shot to death by arrows and buried on the beach.
The 26-year-old Vancouver, Washington, resident sought to spread the word of God to the Sentinelese tribesmen, who angrily lashed out as he tried to make contact.
Chau didn’t need a permit to travel to North Sentinel but he was required to notify a Foreigners Registration Regional officer about his trip — which he didn’t do, a senior Home Ministry official said.
“He did not inform authorities about his arrival too and was staying with his friends and went to the island with some fishermen,” a source told NDTV.
An official noted how infrequently tourists visit the islands that are populated by natives, who are cut off from the modern world and have been known to attack outsiders before.
“We lifted this restriction but no one visits this area,” the official said. “Only the anthropologists visit, who study about these [tribes].”
Officials now hope that Chau’s death “will not impact foreigners visiting” the territories, which are made up of 300 islands.
This year, the islands, known for their white-sand beaches and tropical rainforests, attracted 11,818 foreign tourists as of October. Last year that total was 15,310.
The indigenous Andamanese people — including the Sentinelese of North Sentinel — populate parts of the Andaman islands and laws protect them from foreigners and domestic tourists.
The Sentinelese tribesmen shot arrows at Chau when he arrived at their island via boat. He tried to speak their language and sang worship songs to them, according to a journal entry he made on Nov. 16, which said an arrow struck his waterproof Bible.
Police believe he was fatally struck after making a second attempt at contact the next day. His body is believed to have been buried on the beach and authorities are now working to recover it.
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