July 24 marks the 100th anniversary of the ‘discovery’ of Machu Picchu, the Inca citadel high in the Peruvian Andes, by U.S. explorer and academic Hiram Bingham.

But while Peru celebrates the legacy of the indigenous Inca people, it is simultaneously planning to grant oil and gas companies access to the lands of uncontacted Indians in the Kugapakori-Nahua-Nanti reserve. Such access would pose an extreme risk to their lives.

Stephen Corry, Director of Survival, said today, ‘Only about 100km separates Machu Picchu from the border of the Kugapakori-Nahua-Nanti reserve, where several uncontacted tribes are known to live. Yet the difference in the government’s attitude is phenomenal.