The surprising birth of a boy brings hope to an Amazon tribe facing extinction with only three females left

São Paulo – Pugapia and her daughters Aiga and Babawru have lived for many years as surviving members of the Akuntsu, an Indigenous people who were exterminated by government-backed pressures to develop parts of the Amazon rainforest. Growing up without a child to continue the line, many expected the Akuntsu to disappear when the women died.

That changed in December, when Babawru – the youngest of three, in his 40s – she gave birth to a boy. Akyp’s arrival brought not only hope for the Akuntsu line but efforts to protect the equally fragile rainforest.

“This child is not only a symbol of resistance to the Akuntsu, but also a source of hope for the indigenous people,” said Joenia Wapichana, the president of the indigenous protection organization in Brazil, known as Funai. “You represent how the respect, protection and management of this land is very important.”

Protecting Indigenous lands is widely seen as one of the most effective ways to stop deforestation in the Amazon, the world’s largest rainforest and a key regulator of the world’s climate. Researchers warn that continued forest loss could accelerate global warming. A 2022 analysis by MapBiomas, a network of non-governmental groups that track land use, found that indigenous areas in Brazil have lost just 1% of their native vegetation in three decades, compared to 20% on private land across the country.

In the region of Rondonia, where the Akuntsu live, about 40 percent of the indigenous forests have been cut down, and what remains is largely untouched in nature conservation areas and Indigenous lands. Akuntsu land stands out in satellite images as an island of forest surrounded by cattle pastures and fields of soybeans and corn.

Deforestation in Rondonia dates back to a government-backed push to take over the rainforest during Brazil’s military regime in the 1970s. At the same time, an infrastructure program funded in part by the World Bank encouraged migration to the Amazon, including the paving of a highway across the country.

In the 1980s, Rondonia’s population more than doubled, according to census data. Settlers were promised land titles if they cleared the forest for farming and risked losing their claims if Natives were present, which fueled violent attacks by hired gunmen from Native groups including the Akuntsu.

Funai first contacted the Akuntsu in 1995, finding seven survivors. Experts believe they were about 20 years old a decade ago, when they were attacked by ranchers who wanted to take over the land. Funai agents found evidence of the attack, and when they contacted the Akuntsu, the survivors recounted what had happened. Some still have gunshot wounds.

The last Akuntsu man died in 2017. Since then, Babawru lived with his mother, Pugapia, and Aiga, his sister. The women, whose ages are not known for certain, chose to live alone in non-Indigenous land, showing interest.

In 2006, Funai granted territorial protection to the Akuntsu, establishing the Rio Omere Indigenous Land, which they have since shared with the Kanoe people. The two groups, once enemies, began to communicate, often through the mediation of officials. The relationship is complex, with cooperation but also cultural differences and language barriers.

The Associated Press requested an interview with the women through Funai, but the organization did not respond.

Amanda Villa, a biologist with the Observatory of Isolated Peoples, said Akuntsu women rely on Kanoe men to perform tasks considered masculine, such as hunting and clearing fields. The two groups also exchanged spiritual knowledge – the current spiritual leader of Kanoe, for example, learned from the late archbishop of Akuntsu.

But the most important development for the future of the Akuntsu may have happened last year, when Babawru became pregnant by a Kanoe man.

Linguist Carolina Aragon is the only outsider who can communicate with these three women after years of studying and writing their language. He works closely with Funai, translating conversations almost every day via video calls. Aragon also supported Babawru from afar during her pregnancy and was with her during the ultrasound scan that confirmed the pregnancy.

Aragon said Babawru was surprised by the news. “He said, ‘How can I get pregnant?'” Aragon recalls, no matter what Babawru always took precautions to avoid pregnancy.

The Akuntsu women who were still alive had decided not to become mothers. This decision was motivated not only by the absence of other men in their area, but also by the belief that their world was not in order – conditions they felt were not suitable for raising a child.

“You can trace this decision directly to the violent situation they live in,” said Villa, an anthropologist. “They have this tragic understanding.”

The Akuntsu believed that they could not bring new life to the world without Akuntsu men who could not only do but also teach the activities that the group considers male responsibilities, such as hunting and shamanism.

“The breakdown of social relations that followed the genocide has changed their lives and deepened over the years. That makes people think. – and rethink – the future,” said Aragon. “But the future can surprise everyone. A boy was born.”

Aragon said the women are starting a “new chapter,” choosing to accept a child and adapt to their culture with the support of Kanoe and Funai. Villa said the fact that the newborn is a boy creates an opportunity to restore male roles such as the hunter.

Researchers and officials who have been working with the three women for a long time understand that protecting this area depends on the survival of the Akuntsu as a people. They wanted to avoid a repeat of what happened to Tanaru, an Aboriginal man who was found after living alone and without contact for decades.

After the discovery, authorities struggled to secure Tanaru’s location. After He died in 2022non-Indigenous groups began to argue over land. Late last year, the federal government finally protected the area, making it a protected nature conservation unit.

A report published last year by Survival International, an Indigenous rights organization based in London, said that about 65% of the 196 Indigenous groups identified as unaffiliated in the 10 countries they were dealing with. threats of loggingabout 40% from mining and about 20% from agribusiness. It he warned that part of the groups “can be eliminated within 10 years if governments and companies do nothing” to address those threats.

Funai’s Wapichana said Babawru’s child “is the hope that this next generation will really include an Indigenous person, Akuntsu, ensuring the continuity of these people.”

Through years of careful work, Funai gained local protection for the Akuntsu and helped foster relations with the Kanoe. The organization also organized spiritual support from an allied shaman, allowing women to feel safe bringing new life into the world after decades of fear and loss.

Akuntsu form emotional bonds with the forest and the birds. Now, they strengthen those bonds with a new human life in their world.

“What kind of relationship will this boy have with his place?” Aragon said. “I hope it will be much better, because he has everything he needs there.”