Back at Shell Mera,on this day January 8, 1956, Marj Saint waited for word. The short wave radio crackled. Marj listened as her husband, Nate, told her that "a commission of ten" was on its way from Terminal City. "Looks like they'll be here for the early afternoon service. Pray for us. This is the day! We'll contact you next at four-thirty."
Excitement was intense. Months of efforts were about to bear fruit! The "commission" was a group of Huaorani men. Terminal City was the code name the missionaries had given to a Huaorani village they had spotted from the air. If Nate spoke in code words, it was because he did not want Ecuadorians with guns pre-empting the mission's friendly overtures to the natives. The Huaorani were sturdy forest dwellers who had fiercely resisted all efforts to subdue them, killing many people who ventured into their territory.
Nate had first spotted one of their villages from the air on September 19, 1955. On October 1st, missionaries developed a plan for making contact, when bad weather kept Johnny Keenan from flying Ed back to his home station at Arunjo. Ed, Nate and others gathered at Shell Mera and talked into the wee hours of the morning, huddled over maps. How could they demonstrate that they came in peace and not in hostility?
What they decided to do was fly over the villages and lower gifts to the people. Using a public address system, they repeated friendly phrases that Jim had collected from an Huaorani woman on a nearby hacienda. "Biti miti punimupa: I like you; I want to be your friend." Soon large numbers of Aucas were converging for the gift drops. Finally the day came when the villagers tied a gift to the line in return--a feathered headdress.
Next, a landing spot had to be found. They chose a playa (sand bar) on the Curaray River. Nate ran simulated landings, touching his wheels to the sand to test its firmness. It seemed okay. Finally on January 3rd, Nate and Ed landed. The sand proved softer than hoped, but by letting air out of the tires, a safe landing and takeoff was possible. Nate ferried the other men and supplies to the camp. They erected a prefab tree house and shouted friendly words into the bush. Four days later a Huaorani man and two women appeared. Now, on this day, January 8th, 1956, several Auca were headed to "Palm Beach."
Four thirty rolled around, time for the planned radio contact. Eagerly Marj switched on her radio back at base. Nothing! Had the men been invited to the Huaorani houses? She waited. There was no sound. The minutes passed, and lengthened into hours. Silence.
Johnny Keenan flew over Palm Beach on Monday morning. He reported to Marj that he had spotted Nate's plane, stripped of its fabric. On Wednesday he saw the first of the bodies from the air. Then another. Soon it was evident all five men were dead. A ground force moved in to bury the men. Ed's body had washed away.
A shipwrecked sailor recalled Jim Elliot's words: "When it comes time to die, make sure that all you have to do is die." The five men on the beach had been ready to die and their deaths were not in vain. Through the efforts of the widows, the Huaorani discovered Christian forgiveness. The day came when they explained that they had killed the five out of fear, thinking they were cannibals. The same Huaorani who killed the men became believers in Christ.
Americans brutally attacked in Ecuador, officials say
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An extended trip to Ecuador by two Americans changed from a dream to a nightmare after a brutal attack last week, according the couple's blog and U.S. officials.
State Department spokesman Robert Wood confirmed Tuesday that the U.S. Embassy in Ecuador had been told that two Americans from Bend, Oregon, were attacked in the city of Esmeraldas, on Ecuador's northern coast. But he said he could provide no further information because of privacy laws.
Two State Department officials, however, said that the man was stabbed more than 24 times and that his fiancée was beaten and raped.
CNN does not name the victims of sexual assault and has removed publication of the man's name to help protect the identity of the woman.
The couple was evacuated to the United States on Tuesday for treatment, the officials said.
The couple wrote a blog throughout their trip. In the most recent post on Monday, the woman wrote that her fiance was in intensive care after three surgeries.
"I was informed by the head surgeon there is no certainty he will survive," she wrote.
The earlier postings were happier reflections on their visit to Ecuador, a year-long trip they planned after getting engaged and selling all their belongings.
In the blog, the couple seems unconcerned about safety, posting that they occasionally hitchhiked, visited the homes of strangers and posed for pictures with new friends they made on their travels.
One senior official told CNN that the victims' parents complained to U.S. consular officers in Ecuador that the Embassy did not do enough to warn Americans that many people have been attacked in Esmeraldas.
The State Department's Web site advises caution when traveling to the northern border region of Ecuador, including Esmeraldas.
The travel advisory section notes that "U.S. government personnel are under limitations with respect to traveling alone and over-nighting in these areas due to the spread of organized crime, drug trafficking, small arms trafficking, and incursions by various Colombian terrorist organizations."
The Web site says that since 1998, at least 10 U.S. citizens have been kidnapped and one killed near Ecuador's border with Colombia.
Wood on Tuesday expressed the State Department's "deep sympathy" for the victims and said the department worked with the victims' families to provide assistance.
http://servv89pn0aj.sn.sourcedns.com/~gbpprorg/EthnicCleansingManual.pdf
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