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A man named Tomas Anez Dos Santos worked in a modest open space within in the Peruvian Amazon when he detected footsteps coming closer through the lush forest.

He realized that he stood encircled, and froze.

“One was standing, pointing with an projectile,” he remembers. “Unexpectedly he became aware that I was present and I started to flee.”

He had come face to face the Mashco Piro. Over many years, Tomas—who lives in the small settlement of Nueva Oceania—had been virtually a neighbor to these nomadic people, who avoid engagement with outsiders.

An updated study issued by a rights organisation indicates exist at least 196 termed “uncontacted groups” in existence globally. This tribe is believed to be the biggest. It claims a significant portion of these communities might be eliminated over the coming ten years unless authorities fail to take further actions to defend them.

It argues the most significant risks are from timber harvesting, digging or operations for crude. Uncontacted groups are highly susceptible to basic sickness—consequently, it notes a threat is caused by contact with proselytizers and online personalities looking for clicks.

Recently, Mashco Piro people have been coming to Nueva Oceania with greater frequency, as reported by residents.

The village is a fishermen's community of seven or eight households, perched high on the edges of the Tauhamanu waterway deep within the of Peru rainforest, half a day from the closest town by boat.

The territory is not designated as a preserved area for uncontacted groups, and deforestation operations work here.

Tomas reports that, sometimes, the noise of heavy equipment can be noticed day and night, and the Mashco Piro people are seeing their woodland disrupted and devastated.

Within the village, people say they are conflicted. They are afraid of the Mashco Piro's arrows but they also have strong respect for their “relatives” dwelling in the woodland and desire to safeguard them.

“Permit them to live according to their traditions, we are unable to change their culture. This is why we keep our space,” explains Tomas.

Residents in Nueva Oceania are worried about the damage to the Mascho Piro's livelihood, the threat of violence and the chance that loggers might introduce the tribe to illnesses they have no resistance to.

During a visit in the village, the tribe made their presence felt again. Letitia Rodriguez Lopez, a resident with a young daughter, was in the woodland collecting fruit when she detected them.

“We heard shouting, sounds from people, numerous of them. As though it was a large gathering calling out,” she informed us.

It was the first time she had come across the Mashco Piro and she ran. After sixty minutes, her mind was persistently pounding from fear.

“Since there are deforestation crews and companies destroying the forest they are escaping, possibly due to terror and they arrive close to us,” she explained. “It is unclear how they might react to us. That is the thing that terrifies me.”

Recently, a pair of timber workers were assaulted by the Mashco Piro while catching fish. A single person was struck by an arrow to the abdomen. He lived, but the second individual was discovered dead days later with multiple arrow wounds in his frame.

Authorities in Peru has a policy of non-contact with remote tribes, making it prohibited to commence contact with them.

This approach began in Brazil subsequent to prolonged of lobbying by indigenous rights groups, who noted that first interaction with isolated people lead to whole populations being wiped out by illness, hardship and malnutrition.

During the 1980s, when the Nahau tribe in Peru came into contact with the outside world, 50% of their population perished within a matter of years. In the 1990s, the Muruhanua community suffered the similar destiny.

“Secluded communities are extremely at risk—epidemiologically, any interaction might introduce illnesses, and even the simplest ones could eliminate them,” explains Issrail Aquisse from a Peruvian indigenous rights group. “Culturally too, any interaction or intrusion could be highly damaging to their life and health as a society.”

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