Rare photos have captured the Mashco Piro, an uncontacted tribe from the Peruvian Amazon, emerging from their secluded territory. Released by Survival International on Tuesday, the images show numerous tribe members relaxing by a riverbank, sparking concerns about their well-being.
According to FENAMAD, a local Indigenous rights group, increased logging activity is likely pushing the tribe out of their traditional lands. The Mashco Piro may be moving closer to settlements in search of food and safety.
Survival International reports that the photos were taken in late June near the banks of a river in Madre de Dios, a southeastern Peruvian province bordering Brazil.
“These incredible images show that a large number of isolated Mashco Piro live alone a few kilometers from where the loggers are about to start their operations,” said Survival International director Caroline Pearce.
Over 50 Mashco Piro people have appeared near the Yine village of Monte Salvado, and another group of 17 near the village of Puerto Nuevo, according to the NGO, which defends Indigenous rights.
The Mashco Piro, who live between two natural reserves in Madre de Dios, rarely appear and do not communicate much with the Yine or others, according to Survival International.
Several logging companies hold timber concessions inside the territory inhabited by the Mashco Piro. One company, Canales Tahuamanu, has built over 200 kilometers of roads for its logging trucks to extract timber. A representative from Canales Tahuamanu did not respond to a request for comment.
The company is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, which has 53,000 hectares of forests in Madre de Dios for extracting cedar and mahogany.
On June 28, the Peruvian government reported that local residents had seen Mashco Piro on the Las Piedras river, 150 kilometers from the city of Puerto Maldonado, the capital of Madre de Dios.
The Mashco Piro have also been sighted across the border in Brazil, said Rosa Padilha from the Brazilian Catholic bishops’ Indigenous Missionary Council in the state of Acre.
“They flee from loggers on the Peruvian side,” she said. “At this time of the year, they appear on the beaches to take tracajá (Amazon turtle) eggs. That’s when we find their footprints on the sand. They leave behind a lot of turtle shells.”
Padilha added, “They are a people with no peace, restless because they are always on the run.”
