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A man named Tomas Anez Dos Santos worked in a modest clearing deep in the of Peru jungle when he heard sounds drawing near through the thick woodland.

He realized that he had been encircled, and stood still.

“One positioned, aiming using an projectile,” he remembers. “And somehow he detected that I was present and I started to run.”

He had come face to face the Mashco Piro. For decades, Tomas—who lives in the tiny village of Nueva Oceania—served as practically a local to these nomadic tribe, who avoid interaction with outsiders.

A new report from a rights group indicates exist no fewer than 196 described as “isolated tribes” in existence worldwide. This tribe is believed to be the largest. The report claims 50% of these groups may be decimated over the coming ten years unless authorities neglect to implement more to protect them.

The report asserts the biggest dangers stem from timber harvesting, digging or drilling for oil. Isolated tribes are extremely at risk to common illness—as such, it says a threat is posed by interaction with evangelical missionaries and digital content creators in pursuit of clicks.

Recently, the Mashco Piro have been appearing to Nueva Oceania increasingly, according to residents.

Nueva Oceania is a angling community of seven or eight families, located high on the edges of the Tauhamanu River in the heart of the of Peru jungle, half a day from the nearest village by watercraft.

The area is not designated as a protected area for isolated tribes, and timber firms work here.

According to Tomas that, at times, the racket of heavy equipment can be noticed day and night, and the community are seeing their forest damaged and destroyed.

Among the locals, residents report they are divided. They are afraid of the projectiles but they also possess deep regard for their “relatives” who live in the woodland and desire to safeguard them.

“Allow them to live according to their traditions, we must not change their culture. For this reason we keep our distance,” explains Tomas.

Inhabitants in Nueva Oceania are worried about the damage to the Mascho Piro's livelihood, the risk of violence and the likelihood that loggers might subject the Mashco Piro to illnesses they have no defense to.

While we were in the community, the group made their presence felt again. A young mother, a resident with a toddler child, was in the woodland gathering food when she detected them.

“There were cries, sounds from people, many of them. As if there was a large gathering calling out,” she shared with us.

It was the first instance she had met the tribe and she ran. An hour later, her mind was still racing from fear.

“Because operate timber workers and operations destroying the forest they're running away, possibly due to terror and they arrive close to us,” she explained. “It is unclear how they will behave to us. This is what terrifies me.”

Two years ago, a pair of timber workers were confronted by the tribe while angling. One man was struck by an bow to the abdomen. He survived, but the other person was discovered deceased subsequently with several arrow wounds in his frame.

The administration follows a approach of avoiding interaction with isolated people, making it illegal to commence interactions with them.

This approach began in a nearby nation after decades of campaigning by tribal advocacy organizations, who observed that early exposure with remote tribes lead to entire communities being decimated by disease, poverty and starvation.

In the 1980s, when the Nahau people in Peru made initial contact with the world outside, 50% of their population perished within a short period. A decade later, the Muruhanua tribe faced the identical outcome.

“Remote tribes are highly at risk—epidemiologically, any exposure may spread sicknesses, and even the most common illnesses may wipe them out,” states an advocate from a local advocacy organization. “Culturally too, any contact or interference may be very harmful to their existence and health as a society.”

For local residents of {