Near-extinct tribe discovered in the Amazon rainforest

The isolated Moxihatetema tribe in the Amazon rainforest must defend their territory against threats from illegal gold miners.

According to Generation Voyage, the Moxihatetema tribe was discovered in the Yanomami reserve near the border of Brazil and Venezuela in 2015. Maintaining a traditional lifestyle for thousands of years, this tribe could disappear if it does not protect its land from the invasion of illegal gold miners.

While investigating illegal gold mining, government forces captured images of the Moxihatetema tribe in Yanomami territory. The area has been protected by the government since 1992 and is home to 22,000 people from several small tribes, at least three of which are isolated from the outside world.

The houses are built in a large circle called a shabono or yano. Photo: Guilherme Gnipper Trevisan/Hutukara.

Each shabono is home to a family, who use the land to make hammocks and store food. It is estimated that around 100 people live in the newly discovered territory. However, the Brazilian government estimates that there are about 5,000 illegal gold miners lurking around this area and intend to kill the Moxihatetema tribe.

History has shown that forest tribes can be dangerous when exposed to humans from the outside world. They are not immune to deadly diseases, nor are they prone to clashes with gold miners.

About 100 people live there. Photo: Guilherme Gnipper Trevisan/Hutukara.

The Moxihatetema tribe is using water contaminated with mercury and gunpowder from illegal gold miners. According to a 2016 report, about 90% of the Amazon’s indigenous population suffers from mercury poisoning due to illegal mining activities in the surrounding rainforest.

In 1993, the Haximu massacre by illegal gold miners killed 16 indigenous people, and the survivors watched as their homes were burned down. Illegal incursions into these areas have increased, while the gap between the isolated tribes and the outside world has narrowed. The Brazilian government is under pressure from activists to protect the future of the Amazon people.

According to VNE