A day after it was discovered that an American man was killed by the protected Sentinelese tribe for trespassing on their territory in the Andamans, a letter written by him to his family and friends has been discovered.
A copy of John Allen Chau’s letter, obtained by British newspaper Daily Mail, explains the purpose of his visit, stating, “You guys might think I'm crazy in all this but I think it's worth it to declare Jesus to these people.”
“Please do not be angry at them or at God if I get killed,” he pleaded.
He went on to state, “Rather please live your lives in obedience to whatever he has called you to and I'll see you again when you pass through the veil. This is not a pointless thing - the eternal lives of this tribe is at hand and I can't wait to see them around the throne of God worshiping in their own language as Revelations 7:9-10 states.”
Signing off, he wrote, “'I love you all and I pray none of you love anything in this world more than Jesus Christ.”
The newspaper has also accessed John’s journal notes in which he makes a note of events between November 14 and 16, shortly before he would be discovered dead. John first went to the restricted North Sentinel island on November 15.
Tribespersons photographed at the North Sentinel island. Photo: Indian Coast Guard
Chau was shot at on November 15 itself, but he swam to the fishing boat that had been waiting for him a little away from the island and delivered his notes. Andaman SP told TNM that he had wanted the fishermen to deliver these notes to a friend in Andaman
When he first came into contact with the Sentinelese, John reportedly shouted to them that he loves them and so does Jesus. "They had two arrows each, unstrung, until they got closer. I hollered "My name is John, I love you and Jesus loves you," he wrote.
Photo courtesy: Indian Coast Guard
He also said when he had tried to offer fish to the tribesmen, 'two armed Sentinelese came rushing out yelling'. John also describes being inches away from the islanders.
John goes into details about how scared he was of the tribe. “I regret I began to panic slightly as I saw them string arrows in their bows. I picked up the fish and threw it toward them. They kept coming. I paddled like I never have in my life back to the boat. I felt some fear but mainly was disappointed. They didn't accept me right away,” he wrote.
Describing an attack by a Sentinelese boy, he said that he had been shot with an arrow. "..a 'little kid shot me with an arrow - directly into my Bible which I was holding. 'If you want me to get actually shot or even killed with an arrow then so be it. I think I could be more useful alive though,” he wrote.
On November 17, the fishermen who went back near the island to pick him up saw some of the tribesmen dragging a body on the beach.