- We, the Awajun People




As per the last Peruvian census (2007), the Awajún people have a population of 55,328 inhabitants in 281 communities located in various provinces of four different regions in Peru: Amazonas, Cajamarca, Loreto and San Martín. The Wampís territory is located to the east of the Cordillera del Cóndor, on the Peruvian side thereof; its sixty-one communities occupy the middle and upper reaches of the Santiago River in the Province of Condorcanqui and the Morona River in the Province of Datém del Marañón (Loreto) with a population of 10,133 inhabitants.


These peoples belong to the Jíbaro ethno-linguistic family, which inhabits both sides of the Peru-Ecuador border. Other groups pertaining to this family are the Shiwiar and Achuar in Peru and the Shuar and Achuar in Ecuador. There are more than 150,000 inhabitants in total, constituting one of the largest ethno-linguistic families in the Amazon Region.

The Cenepa River Basin is found in the region of Amazonas, Province of Condorcanqui and District of El Cenepa. This basin has formed part of the Awajún territory from time immemorial, and there are a total of forty-two communities and fourteen hamlets. Only one community and one hamlet pertain to the Wampís people. The 2007 census estimated a population of 8,474 inhabitants. The capital of the district is Huampami (220 m.a.s.l.), where the only concentration of non-indigenous population in the basin is found (around ninety non-indigenous inhabitants).

We only want to live in peace










© Photos by Marco Huaco. All rights reserved.