At least two loggers have been killed with bows and arrows – most likely after trespassing on the land of the “uncontacted” Mashco Piro Indians deep in the Peruvian Amazon, according to FENAMAD, an organization that defends the rights of Peru’s indigenous people.
The organization says that tensions between loggers and indigenous peoples are rising and that more urgent protection measures are needed from the government, according to AP. According to FENAMAD, two other loggers involved in the attack are missing and another is injured.
The group, which represents 39 indigenous communities in the Cusco and Madre de Dios regions of southeastern Peru, said the incident apparently occurred on August 29 in the Pariamanu river basin when loggers expanded their passages into the forest and came into contact with the reclusive and highly territorial tribe.
“The Peruvian state has not taken preventive and protective measures to ensure the lives and integrity of the workers who have been gravely affected”, the group said in a statement on Tuesday, adding at the time that authorities had not yet arrived in the area since the incident.
“Tensions are rising every day”
FENAMAD also noted that the attack occurred just 25 kilometers from where other loggers were attacked by the tribe in July, and that the Peruvian government, despite being informed of the risks of escalating violence, chose not to act.
– It’s a heated and tense situation. Undoubtedly, every day there are more tensions between Indigenous peoples in isolation and the different activities that are within the territory that they ancestrally pass through, said Cesar Ipenza, a lawyer specializing in environmental law in Peru.
Conflicts between loggers and indigenous tribes are nothing new in the country. In 2022, for example, there was a fatal incident in which two men were shot with arrows while fishing, killing one of them.
Just in January, the Peruvian government eased restrictions on logging – even in areas close to where uncontacted tribes live. Scientists have warned that the measures will lead to an increase in illegal logging and mining.
