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A man named Tomas Anez Dos Santos toiled in a tiny clearing within in the Peruvian Amazon when he detected movements coming closer through the lush forest.

He realized he was encircled, and froze.

“One person positioned, aiming with an bow and arrow,” he states. “Somehow he noticed that I was present and I commenced to flee.”

He found himself confronting the Mashco Piro. Over many years, Tomas—residing in the modest village of Nueva Oceania—had been practically a neighbour to these wandering tribe, who reject engagement with foreigners.

An updated document from a human rights group states remain at least 196 of what it calls “isolated tribes” in existence in the world. The Mashco Piro is believed to be the biggest. The report states a significant portion of these communities may be eliminated within ten years should administrations neglect to implement more actions to defend them.

It claims the most significant risks come from logging, digging or operations for crude. Isolated tribes are extremely susceptible to basic sickness—consequently, the study notes a danger is presented by exposure with religious missionaries and digital content creators looking for clicks.

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

Nueva Oceania is a fishermen's village of seven or eight clans, perched elevated on the banks of the Tauhamanu waterway in the center of the of Peru rainforest, 10 hours from the most accessible village by watercraft.

This region is not recognised as a preserved reserve for isolated tribes, and timber firms work here.

According to Tomas that, at times, the noise of logging machinery can be noticed continuously, and the tribe members are observing their forest disrupted and devastated.

Within the village, people say they are conflicted. They are afraid of the projectiles but they also have deep admiration for their “relatives” who live in the woodland and wish to protect them.

“Allow them to live according to their traditions, we can't alter their way of life. This is why we preserve our distance,” states Tomas.

Residents in Nueva Oceania are worried about the destruction to the tribe's survival, the danger of violence and the likelihood that deforestation crews might subject the tribe to diseases they have no defense to.

While we were in the community, the Mashco Piro made their presence felt again. Letitia Rodriguez Lopez, a woman with a two-year-old child, was in the jungle gathering food when she noticed them.

“There were cries, cries from others, numerous of them. As if there were a whole group calling out,” she told us.

This marked the first time she had encountered the tribe and she ran. After sixty minutes, her head was still throbbing from terror.

“Since there are deforestation crews and companies destroying the woodland they are fleeing, perhaps out of fear and they end up in proximity to us,” she explained. “It is unclear what their response may be to us. That is the thing that terrifies me.”

Two years ago, two individuals were assaulted by the Mashco Piro while catching fish. One was hit by an projectile to the abdomen. He recovered, but the other person was discovered lifeless after several days with nine injuries in his frame.

The Peruvian government has a approach of no engagement with remote tribes, rendering it prohibited to start contact with them.

The policy began in Brazil subsequent to prolonged of lobbying by indigenous rights groups, who observed that initial contact with secluded communities lead to entire groups being wiped out by sickness, destitution and hunger.

Back in the eighties, when the Nahau community in the country made initial contact with the broader society, half of their people perished within a few years. A decade later, the Muruhanua tribe suffered the similar destiny.

“Remote tribes are highly at risk—from a disease perspective, any exposure might introduce sicknesses, and including the simplest ones could wipe them out,” explains Issrail Aquisse from a Peruvian indigenous rights group. “From a societal perspective, any interaction or disruption could be highly damaging to their existence and health as a group.”

For local residents of {