The last remaining member of a Brazilian tribe that largely vanished decades ago was found dead in a hammock in the Brazilian rainforest, officials said.
Brazilian officials said the man was the only surviving member of his tribe for 26 years. He lived alone in the Amazon as officials kept tabs on him from afar.
Officials said it appeared the man died of natural causes as there were no signs of violence or a struggle.
Survival International said the man’s tribe disappeared due to a “genocide.” Survival International said the man had resisted contact from outsiders after members of his tribe were attacked in the 70s.
“No outsider knew this man’s name, or even very much about his tribe – and with his death the genocide of his people is complete,” said Fiona Watson, Survival’s research and advocacy director. “For this was indeed a genocide – the deliberate wiping out of an entire people by cattle ranchers hungry for land and wealth.
“He symbolized both the appalling violence and cruelty inflicted on Indigenous peoples worldwide in the name of colonization and profit, but also their resistance.”
