The Akuntsu Need You

Tribe's last six survivors speak of genocide

The Akuntsu are a tiny Amazonian tribe of just six individuals. They are the last known survivors of their people and live in Rondônia state, western Brazil.

In a few decades the Akuntsu will become extinct, and our planet will have lost a unique people, language and culture.

Act now ↓

Today the Akuntsu 
occupy a small patch of forest. It has been
 legally recognised and demarcated by the Brazilian government, but is surrounded by huge cattle ranches and soya
 plantations. These have replaced the once extensive rainforests of Rondônia which were home to many tribes.

They live in one community, in two small malocas (communal houses) made of straw. They are keen hunters—wild pig, 
agoutis and tapir are all prized—and cultivate small gardens where 
they grow manioc and corn. They also gather forest fruits and sometimes 
catch small fish in the creeks.

The Akuntsu make wooden flutes which 
are used in dances and rituals. They wear arm bands and anklets made of
 palm fibre. Shell necklaces have been replaced by necklaces of bright 
plastic which the Akuntsu cut from the
 pesticide containers left as litter by the ranchers. 
They paint their bodies with urucum (annatto dye) for ceremonies.

Konibu, the elder of the two Akuntsu men, is a shaman. He makes snuff from tobacco leaves and inhales this to communicate with the spirit world, and blows it over his family and visitors to ward off bad spirits and cleanse the body.