I'm sure you were, these people are from a culture that is only a generation, well maybe two generations, from a very primitive existence. I'd say stone age, but the would be an exaggeration. I'm sure there customs worked fine for them. Other than the polygamy they don't sound so very different from most preindustrial cultures.
I meant to add that the main reason these people are here, and not back home in their hills, is because they fought with us, and when the Commuists took over, they killed many of them, and chased most of the rest out of the country. I figure we own them a little consideration of their cultural differences. None of that excuses this guy's actions (BTW, he was also a Veteran of the US Army and National Guard)