Kawahiva

The Kawahiva, formerly called the Rio Pardo Indians, are an uncontacted indigenous tribe who live near the city of Colniza in Mato Grosso, close to the Rio Pardo in the north of Mato Grosso, Brazil. They are usually on the move and have little contact with outsiders. Thus, they are known primarily from physical evidence they have left behind – arrows, baskets, hammocks, and communal houses.

Knowledge of the Kawahiva's modern existence dates to 1999, but it is possible the group dates back to the 1700s. Their survival has been threatened by deforestation, illegal logging, and attempts to kill or enslave them. In 2005, the Brazilian government launched an investigation into possible genocide of the Kawahiva, but ultimately no one was put on trial. The tribe's land has been under local protection since 2001, but the protection has periodically been removed by the courts only to be later reinstated. In 2012, the land was turned into an official reservation. In 2013, the government released video of the Kawahiva filmed in 2011, generating headlines around the world. This led to calls for the Kawahiva's lands to be marked out and protected. In 2016, following a campaign by Survival International, Brazil's Justice Minister signed a decree to protect the Kawahiva's territory but the demarcation stalled for many years. In 2024, Brazil’s Supreme Court ordered FUNAI, the Brazilian government’s Indigenous affairs department to present a timetable for demarcation of the Kawahiva do Rio Pardo territory, and in March 2025, FUNAI confirmed that the demarcation will happen by the end of 2025.