The Ethics of First Contact
There is an island in the Indian Ocean called the “North Sentinel Island”. It is a 27 square mile island that is home to an isolated group of people we call the “Sentinelese”. The Sentinelese are a primitive tribe that have repeatedly rejected all types of communication with outsiders and show signs of hostility to those who get too close. Fishermen have been ruthlessly murdered and helicopters are often met with a volley of arrows fired from the ground. In 1867, a group of 106 shipwrecked crewmen fought for their lives to defend a camp until the arrival of a Royal Navy Steamer several days later. Had it not been for their “No Contact” policy, this tribe would have most likely gone extinct hundreds of years ago. The history is clear: without exception, a civilization of superior technology always supersedes a civilization of lesser technology. — This means first contact is always a bad thing for the receiving end.
Christopher Columbus
Lets take a detailed look at the European Colonization of the Americas. When Columbus arrived in the Bahamas, he immediately took note of the Lucayan Natives’ gold jewelry. Columbus described the people as healthy, hospitable, and generous. After the Santa Maria shipwreck, the natives worked tirelessly to assist Columbus’s crew in rescuing supplies from the ship. Columbus saw the kindness as weakness and concluded his first journal with “I could conquer the whole of them with fifty men and govern them as I pleased.”
After Columbus returned to Spain, the Queen outfitted him with 17 ships fully loaded with weapons and men. Armed to the teeth, he returned to the New World and demanded the same Lucayan people surrender their food, gold, and women. Any Lucayans that refused had their ears and noses cut off as a warning to others. When the natives rebelled, Columbus declared it ‘war’. It was more of a slaughter. Those that fled were either taken overseas to be sold as slaves or were fed to dogs. Between the slavery, slaughter, hunting, and disease, an estimated 3–5 million people died as a result of the Columbian occupation.
Columbus was a maritime explorer in the pursuit of profit. When he failed to obtain a fruitful harvest of gold, he resorted to slaves. His superior firepower left little to be unobtained. The subjugation and extermination of the natives lead to the birth of transatlantic slave trade after African slaves became the most prominent commodity exported from the region.
Columbus hadn’t thought for what the “savages” may want. His entire quest was in the interest of wealth. While the Spanish genocide of the American peoples is a black spot in our world history, it’s not the only example of havoc wreaked upon primitive societies. The recent construction of the Belo Monte Dam, a project with no malicious intent, is a good example of industrial expansion threatening the resources of indigenous peoples in Brazil. Understanding and correctly approaching policies in regards to interacting with less advanced civilizations is a concept that humanity has never had to deal with in the past. What sorts of policies can we begin to implement?
The Prime Directive
One solution to this problem is presented in the form of the Prime Directive, or “Starfleet Order 1”. In season 2 episode 25 of Star Trek, the executive summary of the Prime Directive reads: “No identification of self or mission; no interference with the social development of said planet; no references to space, other worlds, or advanced civilizations.” This became the building block of a philosophy explored hugely in the rest of Star Trek, and science fiction as a whole. It reflects an interest of protection of ourselves and others, as well as a respect for the autonomy of other cultures.
The episode had first aired in 1968 and the concept has partially been considered a critique of Western intervention in Vietnam. Embedded in the Prime Directive is the assumption that cultures and societies are better off without outside intervention; even well-intentioned interference will lead to disastrous results. It’s an idea in contrast to the colonization mindset we’ve had for so long. Rather than impose our superior views on others, why not just let others develop their own values and morals?
Categorical Imperative
Another deontological philosophy that can be applied here is the “Categorical Imperative”, which was presented by Immanuel Kant in 1785. Kant’s life work was in the interest of replacing morality with a nonreligious set of standards. “Act only according to that maxim whereby you can, at the same time, will that it should become a universal law.” Or, to boil it down: “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Kant argued that humans share daily struggles. We should look at each other in the same sympathetic light that we look at ourselves and understand that we each have hardships that shouldn’t be added onto.
What if a similar “be kind to thy neighbor” policy were applied to our interstellar neighbors? Could we find it within ourselves to have human-like empathy for an alien culture? If we could, it would certainly be a step in the correct direction.
The Sentinelese
While empathizing with aliens may be a question ahead of our time, empathizing with other humans is not. Nobody understands the human condition, and nobody can create any reasoning for it. What we know about ourselves and each other is limited. We know that we work together to survive but we know nothing about why this is the case. We know nothing about the nature of our place in the universe or the universe’s place in any greater scope of existence.
In the interest of finding those answers we have been prone to make reasons up and millions of lives have fallen at the disagreement between those made up reasons. If we are a small planet in the middle of a highly active universe — much in the same way as the Sentinelese — could it be possible that an alien species is quietly watching us? Could they be debating the ethics of first contact as we speak? What if they had informed us of their existence thousands of years ago? Would the crusades still have occurred? Or would something much worse have taken place?
Furthermore, what self-conflict might we be causing between the Sentinelese people if we were to deliver messages to them? We have no way of knowing. But I do know that if we aren’t able to discuss these issues now, we definitely will struggle to do so when we encounter less-civilized civilizations in the stars.
