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Piovesan has been scathing about his opponents, particularly international organisations such as Survival International and the WWF, which he accuses of profiting from keeping the tribes in isolation.

"These international organisations gain money because they present themselves as the saviours of the Indians, this is what it's all about. So if the Indians evolve, they [the NGOs] lose their business," he said on a recent radio show. Last week he told the Observer that the reality was that the indigenous people were being kept in a condition of "captivity and slavery incompatible with the true ecology".

Rebecca Spooner, Survival International's Peru campaigner, said building the road would devastate entire peoples: "These uncontacted tribes live either side of the Peru-Brazil border. Building this road through their forest tramples over their rights, imposing so-called 'development' upon them. Congress has the opportunity to step in before it's too late. This road should not be approved."