What happened when Peruvian labor recruiters arrived in Tuvalu in 1863?

In 1863, labor recruiters from Peru arrived in what is now Tuvalu and kidnapped approximately 400 people, primarily from the islands of Nukulaelae and Funafuti. This act of violence and exploitation—a form of blackbirding—significantly reduced the population of the island group to fewer than 2,500 people.12

The kidnapping of these individuals was a grave violation of human rights and dignity. This traumatic event, along with broader concerns regarding labor recruiting, contributed to the local population's desire for protection and their subsequent enthusiastic reception of London Missionary Society pastors from Samoa later in the 1860s.1