Jonathan Spollen
Leonard Spollen | |
---|---|
Born | Leonard Jonathan Spollen 1984 |
Disappeared | 3 February 2012 (age 28) Lakshman Jhula, Rishikesh |
Status | Missing for 12 years, 7 months and 27 days |
Nationality | Irish |
Height | 6 ft (1.8 m) |
Leonard Jonathan Spollen[1] (born 1984) disappeared on 3 February 2012 while working as a journalist for the International Herald Tribune newspaper; he was formerly Assistant Foreign Editor of The National in Abu Dhabi.[citation needed] He went missing from the northern Indian tourist attraction of Rishikesh, sparking an international campaign to locate him,[2] which included his local TD, Eoghan Murphy, raising the issue in the Irish Parliament.[3] It is believed by several analysts that he may have joined a cloistered and extreme Hindu religious cult. [1] [2] [3] Others speculate that Spollen died in 2012, either as a result of drowning in the River Ganges [4], or after having been attacked by a wild animal.[5]
Biography
Spollen has worked on stories including the Iranian nuclear programme,[4] the Hijab controversy in Ireland[5] and the 2009 Iranian Elections.[6] He read Philosophy and Politics at University College Dublin, before commencing postgraduate studies in 2004 focusing on the Near and Middle East at London's School of Oriental and African Studies.[7]
Disappearance and aftermath
Some commentators have speculated that Spollen may have fallen prey to a supposed condition increasingly described as the India syndrome, which shares similarities with the alleged form of spiritual hysteria known as the Jerusalem syndrome.[2][8] Carney, for example, states that Spollen: "fits the profile of the fervent young enthusiast of yoga, meditation, and Eastern thought who becomes lost—or worse—on a journey of spiritual self-discovery." [6] However, this claim has yet to be substantiated.
One post-colonial writer has expressed scepticism about the existence of a so-called India Syndrome, arguing that it is based on Orientalist notions which present an essentialised image of a spiritual India that is neither coherent nor empirically verifiable. [7] The author, David Hammerbeck, further questions whether Spollen - if indeed having joined a reclusive religious movement - should be seen as a 'victim' of a 'crime' carried out by India, suggesting that Carney's understanding participates in Orientalism: "Though citing relatively few examples, the author’s message is simple and clear: India forms not just a political and cultural entity, but also a spiritual and psychological state of being that is inherently dangerous to Westerners." [8]
Placing this within the history of negative perceptions of non-Western cultures said to be characteristic of much Western analysis as contended by Edward Said, Hammmerbeck further states:
"This point of view parallels Said and other critics’ rather orthodox Orientalism, a clear thesis/antithesis between home and foreign cultures with no possible synthesis. The foreign other, in this case the guru as embodiment of Hindu mysticism, functions as a negative of Western values, consistent with the approach that Said and others propose as being the historical epistemology of Orientalism." [9]
On the fifth anniversary of his disappearance, the BBC News website published a major feature on Spollen, written by his former colleague and now BBC journalist Roland Hughes. [10]
Spollen is still considered a missing person.[9] Indian police and Irish authorities are calling for any information as to his whereabouts,[1] with the former also reportedly investigating Spollen for breaching Indian visa regulations [11], in the event that he has remained in the country. Overstaying a visa carries a maximum penalty under The Foreigners Act, 1946 of five years imprisonment with a fine and subsequent deportation from India. [12]
See also
References
- ^ a b "Please help find Jonathan Spollen". www.findspollen.com.
- ^ a b Bennett-Smith, Meredith (11 October 2012). "Jonathon Spollen, Missing Irishman, May Have Fallen Victim To Mysterious 'India Syndrome'". Huff Post.
- ^ "Topical Issue: The Search Effort for Jonathan Spollen - EoghanMurphy.ie". eoghanmurphy.ie.
- ^ Jonathan Spollen (October 4, 2009). "Iran's warhead date is anyone's guess". thenational.ae.
- ^ Jonathan Spollen (September 20, 2008). "Hijab sparks controversy in Ireland". thenational.ae.
- ^ Jonathan Spollen (June 23, 2009). "Debating Ahmadinejad". thenational.ae.
- ^ Mary Fitzgerald (Apr 28, 2012). "Jonathan Spollen: lost in India". irishtimes.com.
- ^ "India Syndrome - death on the path to enlightenment". Cult Education.
- ^ Jessica Ravitz (7 June 2014). "Lost and found: Missing in Rishikesh, India, the 'Land of Gods'". CNN. Archived from the original on 7 June 2014 – via archive.org.