Internet reaches indigenous people - 9th August 2023

The internet’s changing things for indigenous communities in Brazil. But some people worry about these changes.

The Matsés are one of the indigenous groups. They first met the modern world in the 1970s. They continue to live in a traditional way. They hunt and fish. They wear tattoos on their faces. They live in Nova Esperança. It’s 500 kilometres away from any town. Now, they can connect to Elon Musk’s Starlink Satellite Internet.

Cesar Mayuruna says this will help education. People can learn new skills.

Cesar Mayuruna: "We have a dream for the future with this, to be trained as an engineer, civil engineer, geologist, architect. You can be a lawyer. You can be a nurse, work in administration and several areas, chemical engineering, forestry engineering, it will be easier. This is our future dream."

In the past, it was hard for the communities to communicate. They used a two way radio. Sometimes, they travelled by canoes. Now, the town’s paying for the internet.

But, some Matsés don’t want to lose their culture. Indigenous leaders turn off the internet at night. Only teachers, doctors and village leaders can use it.

Bene Mayuruna’s happy for the internet.

Bene Mayuruna: "The internet helps a lot to communicate. But on the other hand, the internet encourages young people not to do traditional activities, not to help their mother. When the mother does activities, like gardening, she calls and they don't go because of the cell phone, because they are watching videos. This is very worrying, isn't it?"

Indigenous people can now use social media apps. They can communicate with the world. But how will this change their culture?