Uncontacted Indians face annihilation
The Awá are one of the last nomadic hunter-gatherer tribes in Brazil. More than 60 Awá have no contact with outsiders.
Although most live in legally recognized reserves, the Awá are hemmed into ever smaller spaces as loggers, settlers and cattle ranchers invade their land and cut down their forest.
The Awá hunt, fish and gather forest produce such as nuts and fruits. Those who are nomadic live in highly mobile, self-sufficient groups of no more than 20-30 people.
As they travel, they keep the embers of their fires lit, relighting the fire as they arrive at their destination.
The Awá were probably settled, growing manioc and corn in gardens. However in the 19th and 20th centuries waves of settlers invaded their land, forcing them to flee to avoid being massacred or enslaved. The Indians became nomadic to survive.
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| Awá men hunting in the forest. © Fiona Watson/Survival |
To protect the Awá from the impacts of the Great Carajás Programme, FUNAI, the Brazilian government’s Indian Affairs Department decided to contact and settle them in the 1970s and 80s.
This had disastrous consequences, and many died from diseases such as malaria and flu. One Awá community that numbered 91 people at the time of contact had just 25 individuals left four years later.
Most Awá who have been contacted – and many who have not – are the survivors of brutal massacres, which have left them mentally and physically scarred.
One such survivor is Karapiru, who survived an attack and spent 10 years living on his own, hiding in the forest and constantly on the move.
Your support is vital if the Awá are to survive. There are many ways you can help.
