Uncontacted Indians flee as loggers invade

24 February 2006


Loggers operating illegally in the Purús National Park in Peru are
causing large numbers of uncontacted Indians to flee from their
traditional territory. The nomadic Piro Indians have been forced across
the border into Brazil, bringing them into conflict with other isolated
Indians whose territory they are now occupying.
Mahogany illegally cut inside the Purús National Park in Peru has floated down the Envira river into Brazil
Officials from FUNAI, Brazil's department of Indian affairs, report
seeing signs of large-scale logging operations such as sawn planks of
wood marked by Peruvian companies and oil drums, floating down the
Envira River.

   Mahogany illegally cut inside the Purús 
   National Park in Peru has floated down
   the Envira river into Brazil.
They are now extremely concerned that the Piro may
contract diseases to which they have no resistance due to their
isolation, and that they are likely to invade the lands of tribes in Brazil, which could
lead to serious conflict as the groups compete for resources.

During the last four years, officials from FUNAI have noted increasing
signs of the presence of uncontacted Piro Indians in Acre state on the
border with Peru. FUNAI's camp on the Envira river near the border was
encircled for several days by Piro in 1998, and in 2000 Indians came
into the camp when it was empty and took food, cooking utensils and
tools. The Piro clearly wish to be left alone – one fired an arrow at
José Carlos Meirelles, head of FUNAI's post on the Upper Envira river,
several years ago.


FUNAI has found 60 tapiris or shelters built by the Piro Indians
and large quantities of peccary heads and tortoise shells lying around,
and estimates the Indians could number up to 300 people. They believe
they are nomadic as there is no evidence of large malocas or
communal houses, and from the location of the shelters, it is clear the
Indians have to move around a large area to satisfy their hunting
needs.

Although several areas have been protected in south-eastern Peru as
National Parks or Territorial Reserves for the many groups of isolated
Indians living there, they are not adequately protected, and are being
continually invaded by logging companies operating illegally.


José Meirelles, who is currently acting head of FUNAI's uncontacted
Indians unit and has lived in the area for 18 years, warns that ‘the
logging operations in Peru are not small scale' and fears conflict will
soon erupt.  ‘As soon as the Piro begin to move into the lands of
indigenous peoples in Brazil, there will be a territorial dispute, and
there will be war. People will end up killing each other. Only the
vultures will find the corpses.' According to him what was once ‘an
untouched sanctuary and refuge for uncontacted peoples' is now being
destroyed with alarming speed.

The three uncontacted Indian groups on the Brazilian side of the border
are not nomadic and live in large malocas and plant crops in gardens.
Three areas have been recognised as belonging to them. They too have
suffered from periodic invasion of their land by settlers, who in June
2000 shot at a group of uncontacted Indians in the Alto Tarauaca river,
killing one of them.


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