Danger tourists have been urged to stay away from an isolated tribe after a Youtuber allegedly rowed miles to offer them a can of coke.
According to a charity, social media influencers pose a “new threat” to isolated tribes and attempts to contact them constitutes human rights abuse.
A recent incident involved 24-year-old US citizen and social media influencer, Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, who allegedly landed on North Sentinel Island in a bid to make contact with the Sentinelese tribe. During his visit, Mykhailo reportedly left a can of Coke and a coconut on the shore as an offering to the tribe, before being taken into custody.
The Sentinelese are uncontacted indigenous people who inhabit North Sentinel Island and fiercely reject all contact with outsiders. In 2018, John Allen Chau was killed on the island after attempting to make contact with the tribe.
Callum Russel, an Asia research and advocacy officer at Survival International, a human rights organisation advocating for tribal people’s survival, condemned attempts to contact tribes as a “major human rights abuse”. Callum stated: “There is no justification for doing so whatsoever. It is not only pathetic and idiotic, it is also genocidal.
“The Sentelese’s neighbouring tribe were wiped out by disease. This is not just about the danger to the tourist, but the danger to the indigenous people who live there. It is a major human rights abuse, you shouldn’t justify TikToker’s going to make contact with these tribes.”
The Sentinelese remain the most isolated indigenous people globally, continuing to resist all contact with outsiders. Over the last few years, the phenomenon of “danger tourism” has been gaining momentum, with thrill-seekers venturing into regions their governments have labelled as hazardous.
Callum expressed a stark warning about the new wave of risks indigenous communities are grappling with. He highlighted: “Influencers are a new threat, the main threats are still logging, mining, and development, however there are growing threats of influencers going to these areas.”
He denounced this trend as a serious violation, saying: “We need to realise this is not funny, it is human rights abuse, they are abusing the rights of people, and genuinely putting them at risk of death. It is a growing threat, it has really illustrated the dehumanisation and racism towards Indigenous people today.”
Survival International was “shocked” upon hearing that a US national attempted to make contact with an isolated tribe, describing the event as “deeply disturbing”.
Caroline Pearce, director of Survival International, did not mince her words as she commented: “It beggars belief that someone could be that reckless and idiotic. This person’s actions not only endangered his own life, but they also put the lives of the entire Sentinelese tribe at risk.”
Pearce pointed out the grave implications of such contact: “It’s very well known by now that uncontacted peoples have no immunity to common outside diseases like flu or measles, which could completely wipe them out.
“The Sentinelese have made their wish to avoid outsiders incredibly clear over the years – I’m sure many remember the 2018 incident in which an American missionary, John Allen Chau, was killed by them after landing on their island to try to convert them to Christianity.”
Survival International has highlighted the threat posed by influencers as just one of many challenges faced by Indigenous communities globally. The charity states: “Uncontacted Indigenous peoples around the world are experiencing the invasion of their lands on a shocking scale. Countless uncontacted peoples in the Amazon are being invaded by loggers and gold-miners.
“The uncontacted Shompen of Great Nicobar Island, not far from North Sentinel, will be wiped out if India goes ahead with its plan to transform their island into ‘the Hong Kong of India’. The common factor in all these cases is governments’ refusal to abide by international law and recognize and protect uncontacted peoples’ territories.”
At Reach and across our entities we and our partners use information collected through cookies and other identifiers from your device to improve experience on our site, analyse how it is used and to show personalised advertising. You can opt out of the sale or sharing of your data, at any time clicking the “Do Not Sell or Share my Data” button at the bottom of the webpage. Please note that your preferences are browser specific. Use of our website and any of our services represents your acceptance of the use of cookies and consent to the practices described in our Privacy Notice and Cookie Notice.