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A man named Tomas Anez Dos Santos toiled in a tiny glade deep in the of Peru Amazon when he noticed movements coming closer through the thick woodland.

He became aware he was hemmed in, and stood still.

“One person was standing, directing with an projectile,” he states. “Unexpectedly he detected I was here and I commenced to flee.”

He found himself confronting members of the Mashco Piro. For a long time, Tomas—dwelling in the small community of Nueva Oceania—served as practically a neighbour to these wandering people, who shun contact with strangers.

An updated report from a rights organization claims remain no fewer than 196 termed “uncontacted groups” left globally. The group is thought to be the largest. It says half of these communities may be eliminated within ten years should administrations neglect to implement more to protect them.

It argues the biggest dangers come from deforestation, mining or drilling for petroleum. Uncontacted groups are highly vulnerable to ordinary sickness—consequently, the study says a risk is posed by interaction with religious missionaries and online personalities looking for attention.

Recently, Mashco Piro people have been venturing to Nueva Oceania more and more, according to locals.

The village is a fishing community of several households, sitting elevated on the shores of the Tauhamanu waterway deep within the Peruvian rainforest, half a day from the most accessible settlement by boat.

The area is not classified as a protected zone for uncontacted groups, and deforestation operations operate here.

Tomas says that, at times, the sound of heavy equipment can be noticed day and night, and the tribe members are witnessing their forest disturbed and destroyed.

In Nueva Oceania, inhabitants state they are conflicted. They fear the projectiles but they also have profound regard for their “kin” dwelling in the woodland and want to safeguard them.

“Let them live as they live, we must not change their traditions. For this reason we preserve our separation,” explains Tomas.

Residents in Nueva Oceania are worried about the destruction to the community's way of life, the risk of conflict and the chance that deforestation crews might expose the tribe to diseases they have no resistance to.

During a visit in the village, the tribe made themselves known again. Letitia Rodriguez Lopez, a resident with a toddler child, was in the forest picking produce when she noticed them.

“We detected shouting, cries from others, numerous of them. As if it was a large gathering shouting,” she told us.

This marked the initial occasion she had encountered the tribe and she ran. An hour later, her mind was continually pounding from fear.

“Because operate loggers and operations cutting down the forest they are fleeing, perhaps due to terror and they end up in proximity to us,” she stated. “We don't know how they will behave with us. This is what scares me.”

Recently, two individuals were assaulted by the tribe while angling. One man was hit by an arrow to the abdomen. He survived, but the other person was found lifeless after several days with several injuries in his frame.

The Peruvian government maintains a policy of avoiding interaction with secluded communities, establishing it as forbidden to initiate encounters with them.

This approach originated in a nearby nation following many years of lobbying by community representatives, who noted that early exposure with isolated people could lead to entire communities being decimated by illness, poverty and starvation.

In the 1980s, when the Nahau tribe in the country made initial contact with the outside world, a significant portion of their people succumbed within a short period. During the 1990s, the Muruhanua tribe faced the similar destiny.

“Isolated indigenous peoples are very vulnerable—in terms of health, any interaction may transmit illnesses, and even the most common illnesses might eliminate them,” explains an advocate from a local advocacy organization. “From a societal perspective, any exposure or intrusion may be extremely detrimental to their way of life and well-being as a community.”

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