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Ancient tribe in peril amid sexual exploitation: report

Western tourists sail toward newly constructed bungalows at a resort that was washed away in the 2004 tsunami at Koh Raya, part of Thailand's territory in the Andaman islands, on Dec. 12 last year. PHOTO: AFP

An isolated jungle tribe that dates back to the Stone Age could be wiped out on islands off India's eastern coast because they are in danger of losing their habitat and are being "sexually exploited" by outsiders, according to an expert report published on Wednesday.

The Jarawas, who number 300 and live on the Andaman islands, are a group of hunter-gatherers who for more than 60,000 years have lived off the forests and the seas. They only began making contacts with the outside world a decade ago and are hostile to outsiders.

They are believed to have come from Africa and have retained a unique culture unshaped by the modern word. However, encroachment on their land by settlers, reports of police "sexually exploiting" Jarawa girls and a new highway is pushing the tribe to the brink of extinction.

"A few men and children have started wearing discarded clothes. They have started using currency and doing manual work for settlers," says the report by an Indian government-appointed committee of experts on the Jarawa. "What is perhaps most disturbing is the social crisis that has ensued."

The experts say that young Jarawa girls have become pregnant and their non-Jarawa offspring have been killed at birth. Such events are a "crisis in the making" for the tribe, especially as their isolation has made the Jarawan people vulnerable to infectious diseases, most notably HIV/AIDS.

The report makes it clear that the ever-growing number of tourists has exposed the tribe to the seamier side of beach holidays. It cites an instance of a Belgian photojournalist who had "taken voyeuristic photographs of men, women and children available for sale over the Web."

The committee said tourist traffic should be banned from the Jarawas' jungle reserve and the road running through it should be closed. One of four ancient tribes that were found on the islands, the Jarawa have lasted longer than their peers. Disease ravaged the Great Andamanese -- leaving just 53 in existence.

The tsunami battered the islands, ensuring that another tribe, the Onge -- who are down to only 100 -- eke out a fragile existence in a narrow creek.

Many say the people of the Jarawa tribe are entirely naive about the ways of the world and are easily exploited by settlers from mainland India.

"We have to find some way of limiting contact until the Jarawa reach a stage where they can take informed decisions about what they want," said Shekhar Singh, a former secretary of the Island Development Authority, which runs the Andamans.

"We do want these tribes to exist and live in India, but not as museum pieces. I don't think anybody in the world has managed it, but that does not mean we should not try," Singh said.
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