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The indigenous tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands are at different stages of acculturation. How acculturation will impact their social, physical and, psychological well-being—only time will tell.

 

For 2024 General elections, media reported stories prefixing with ‘in a first’, when the Shompen and Jawara tribes exercised franchise; especially the Shompen tribe, a particularly vulnerable tribal group (PVTGs) of Great Nicobar. Polling station 411 was named as Shompen Hut. Pictures of the Shompen men appeared posing for selfies at a designated cut-out placed by the Election Commission of India. These men were encountered along their way to Campbell Bay, assisted in their language by an interpreter known as Mathiyas; while others from the election commission taught them how to press the button on the mobile voting machine to vote; but for whom we are unsure.

 

This was fun for the tribal men. This new acculturation attempt left anthropologists and concerned denizens with disturbing questions. As also for the democratic traditions. What does a vote promise an aboriginal man who is out of the modern democratic set up and has no agency to comprehend it?

 

Going by the little history that is known of these tribes; there is little to celebrate this exercise as a democratic victory. In 2014, a similar exercise was conducted where a larger number of Shompen men and young boys were encountered and accosted to play the same game of pressing a button on a voting machine.

 

Growth or loss of identity!

 

These tribes lived for a good 70 thousand years—‘undiscovered’ and undisturbed. The indigenous Andaman Islanders spoke a language that has found no parallel in the world. The understanding of their surroundings and their evolution as a tribe remain undocumented. Similarly, the Shompen on Great Nicobar Island are among the least understood and encountered indigenous tribes of the A&N archipelagos. The Great Andamanese of today are the remnant population that has emerged from 19 survivors scattered across the Andaman Islands who were brought together to form a community in 1956. Their oral tradition is almost dead with the death of the last speaker of Bo language in 2010.

 

The unique identity and knowledge system that sustained them for 70 thousand years was lost when mainstream societies occupied their habitats and territories—within 200 years.

 

Till about 17th century they remained hostile to the outside world. The Danish East India Company started to make a contact with the Nicobar islanders around 1755. The British made a Naval colony in (old) Chatham Island but left it due to outbreak of Malaria in 1796—leaving the tribes alone. In 1858, British started construction of a penal colony in Port Blair, that included the Cellular Jail.

 

In 1858, there were an estimated five thousand aborigines in the Andaman, whose number was reduced to 625 in 1901 and 74 in 1931.

 

About 500 of the young aboriginal men were killed by the British in the Battle of Aberdeen (see box).

 

After the Independence of India, in a census report of 1961, their number was reduced to 19. These 19 came from different tribes like Aka Jeru, Aka Bo, Kede etc. but were clubbed as Great Andamanese. Most tribes became extinct in a short span after contacting the civilized world due to measles, mumps, sexually transmitted diseases and, intoxicants.

 

Several government plans introduced with good intentions have boomeranged for lack of insight and understanding of the tribal way of life. Their population has increased from 19 to 54—but these are descendants of young men and women having married outside community for lack of options. Their number have grown for loss of their distinct identity.

 

Special laws for protection

 

The Great Andamanese tribe were settled in Strait Island. In 1956, the Government of India issued a unique notification-ANPATR- Andaman Nicobar Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Regulation--that gives them rights over their land. Jarawa, Onge, Shompen, Nicobarese, Sentinelese and Great Andamanese are the aboriginal tribes. Of these Onge are from the Little Andaman Island, Ang (formerly known as Jarawa), are on South and Middle Andaman Islands and have survived and multiplied due to their hostility to the civilized world while Nicobarese have always been keen fishers who also practice horticulture. Most of them have turned to Christianity earlier last century due to the efforts of a pastor from Madurai.

 

The Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 is not imposed on these tribes. They can hunt since most tribes are hunter- gatherers.

 

The irony is— that the welfare regimes have for years sought to change their way of life to sedentary agricultural societies by providing free dole. The rice distributed by the government PDS shops has become their staple. The tribal man who owns the land under ANPATR, has to pay money to buy a piece of land on other parts of his/her island. Their children enact hunting with spears, killing wild boars and turtles in their plastic replicas for the cultured audience at the airport inauguration or other festive events.

 

Human muscles carry memory—when not used for a longer period—they lose that memory. Losing unique identity is not cultural alone—it is also physical.  The process of acculturation has been an imposition rather than seeing tribal welfare from the perspective of autonomy and sustainability. Rice is a product they cannot grow, but depend on shops or dole to feed themselves, therefore it is not a sustainable option.

 

Despite protective notifications, they are not given any agency to determine how they want to live. The administration professes ‘eyes on hands off’ policy; voting exercise is not in tune with this policy. It will further enslave them in a system that is alien to them. They need autonomy—not franchise.

 

The Defeat

 

The Battle of Aberdeen took place on 17th May 1859, in which 500 young Andamanese were brutally crushed by the British. Their bows and arrows were no match to the guns and mortars of the British.

 

About 200 mutineers of the Sepoy mutiny were kept in an open jail near Port Blair—one of the mutineers Doodhnath Tripathi ran away and took shelter with Great Andamanese. He lived with them for a year and married a girl from the tribal community. One day he saw the Great Andamanese men preparing for an attack on the British. He developed cold feet and betrayed the tribal community to save himself. The British were prepared; the tribal had to face defeat.   

 

 By Vandana Shukla