Posted on 01/03/2005 11:04:53 PM PST by LibWhacker
An Indian helicopter dropping food and water over the remote Andaman and Nicobar Islands has been attacked by tribesmen using bows and arrows.
There were fears that the endangered tribal groups had been wiped out when massive waves struck their islands.
But the authorities say the attack is a sign that they have survived.
More than 6,000 people there are confirmed as either dead or missing, but thousands of others are still unaccounted for.
The Indian coastguard helicopter was flying low over Sentinel Island to drop aid when it came under attack.
Dozens of tribesmen fired bows and arrows at the helicopter, a traditional warning that outsiders aren't welcome.
A senior police officer said the crew weren't hurt and the authorities are taking it as a sign that the tribes haven't been wiped out by the earthquake and sea surges as many had feared.
The Andaman and Nicobar archipelago is home to several primitive tribes, some so isolated that they are still stuck in the stone age.
Officials believe they survived the devastation by using age-old early warning systems.
They might have run to high ground for safety after noticing changes in the behaviour of birds and marine wildlife.
Scientists are examining the possibility to see whether it can be used to predict earth tremors in future.
Fine. Then we'll just drop the relief somewhere else if they're going to shoot at the choppers...IOW - the heck with 'em.
Maybe they thought it was a UN chopper.
Hardcore Luddites.
OK three guys go hunting, and separate but agree to fire 3 times in the air if one gets lost.
sure enough, one guy gets lost.
fires in the air. no response.
fires second time. no response.
fires third time. still no response.
sez: "Gee, I hope somebody comes soon, I'm almost out of arrows"
great article though.
lol that is hilarious. It's like something out of a movie.
LOL
Little is known about the Andaman’s Sentilnelese - thought to number around 100 - who live on the North Sentinel Island, 64 km south-west of Port Blair. They are thought to be Burmese nomads, who were swept away to the Andamans by the sea, and started living there. They have their own language, which has no script, and is unintelligible even to other tribes in the islands. Hunting and fishing for wild boars, sea turtle and a variety of fish and molluscs are their primary occupations and they use bows and iron-tipped arrows. The men wear a waist belt of bark, and other than that both men and women wear nothing except some leaf ornaments around the head, neck and arms. Among the most isolated communities in the world, they have no interaction with other tribes except receiving occasional gifts, and they defend their island from outsiders using bows and arrows.
"But the authorities say the attack is a sign that they have survived"
Boy, nothing gets past "the authorities."
Cargo cult gone wrong
Sounds like an excellent location for the new UN building.
They can help the locals and get cleaned up by a Tsunami every 50 years or so.
And if Kofi and crew are caught dipping in the cookie jar...... the locals will demonstrate their head hunting/shrinking skills.
It's bad enough when they shoot arrows at you. When they fire bows, you're really in trouble!
Agree. They won't be any loss.
Oh, oh. A Brady bill is coming soon to this tribe.
First of all,the Indian CoastGuard helo was not on an aid mission.It was flying over the more remote & smaller islands in the Andaman chain to look for signs of the rare tribal groups living there.There were grave fears in India that many have been wiped out.But the firing of arrows & subsequent sightings of other groups has been taken with a big sigh of relief-infact the Coast Guard was gleefully annoucing that arrows were fired at them(usual tribal way to know that things are A-OK)!!!!.Moreover it is unlikely that these tribals need much aid ,if any,since their interaction with the outside world is very limited & the Indian goverment doesn't really want to change that for both socio-cultural,ecological & most importantly strategic reasons.
I know, that is so silly. I guess if they had all died, they'd be accepting help more graciously!
Is there anyplace on Earth where shooting at visitors is considered a traditional sign of welcome?
"Is there anyplace on Earth where shooting at visitors is considered a traditional sign of welcome?"
East L.A.?
We need these guys along our border with Mexico.
The Gods Must be Crazy!
(Were those arrows supplied by the French?)
Doubt if they need any gubbmint help, anyways. To them, sh!t happens.
where shooting at visitors is considered a traditional sign of welcome?
Philadelphia?
Is that kinda like running out of bullets and throwing the gun? Or maybe they were holding on to the wrong part? Hmmm....
If the overall situation over there weren't so serious this would be hilarious.
... an important tip to all you aspiring outsiders.
I want the autograph of this reporter's journalism professor.
Drudge is leading with this story now because it is hysterical...
Maybe they're just hungry.
...oh...well, in that case...
Texas at night, so I've heard.
Wrong. No man is an island; all people are in life together. "This is my commandment, that you love one another, as I have loved you. Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends, if you do the things that I command you." John 15:12-14
I always believed that those aid helicopters should have machine guns mounted on them - just in case like the present one.
That's truly absurd. Machine-gunning a tribesman armed with a bow? For shooting an arrow at a flying helicopter. Yeah.
Indian coastguard choppers aren't known to be armed with external weapons.They are mainly used for interception & search/rescue.That could change when the new Advanced light helicopter enters service.
& besides the helos went to the region expecting & more importantly hoping for such a reaction to know that people were still alive.
LoL - bows and arrows being an integral core element of the PEWS - Prehistoric Early Warning System.
__________________________________________
Officials believe they survived the devastation by using age-old early warning systems.
I dodn`t know they had liberals on that island. Shoot the help.
Tell that guy that he's either part of the solution or part of the precipitate.
Shoot the help, this is like the immediate reaction of the UN. "The US is stingy"
ROTFL!!!
About 800-something years ago ason Kyomori Taira noted that it is gratitude that distinguishes the man from the beast. (See "Taira monogatari" book for the quote). These tribesmen do not pass the test.
Give em a taste of a 50 caliber machine gun........I've no sympathy for foolishness at this point.
Iron-tipped arrows? This begs a few questions. Where do they get the iron from? How did they discover the smelting of iron? Do they use iron for any other purpose?
Maybe they are scared of the giant flying metal bird? They may just be reacting to xeno-phobic tendancies. Like what you see when you say "burrito" on many threads on this site.
Oh I see, they're moslems!
Well, you see they were hungry.
This tribe is a bunch of paleolithic hunter/gatherers. Along comes the biggest f'ing bird they have *ever* seen . . . if they can catch it, and it is edible, why, they will feast like kings!
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