It was said of the rebels in Sierra Leone, 'If they'd have gotten their hands on God, they'd have killed Him too.' The civil war which raged there from 1991 to 2001 is counted as one of the bloodiest in African history. Tens of thousands of civilians were killed, and hundreds of thousands more raped, mutilated, tortured or enslaved. Victims who had an arm or leg hacked off still dominate the street scene. Directly after the war was over, Pep Bonet went to Sierra Leone. In FAITH IN CHAOS (2002-2003) he documented how the population, physically and psychologically scarred by their extreme experiences, sought to rebuild their lives. 'The determination of these victims of war and poverty leaves us all in the dust,' he says.
Pep Bonet (Spain/Netherlands, b. 1974) alternates between working in The Netherlands and his native Spain. He has done a number of reports on crisis zones in Africa, including Zambia, Ethiopia and Darfur. Bonet has won numerous prizes, including Photographer of the Year, at Perpignan, France.
In the fall of 2005 Bonet is rewarded for his series 'Faith in Chaos' with the Eugene Smith Award.
PEP BONET WINNS EUGENE SMITH AWARD
Spanish born but Dutch trained and based photographer Pep Bonet (1971) has been granted the Eugene Smith Award 2005 for his series 'Faith in Chaos'. Images from this series on the aftermath of the civil war in Sierra Leone, were included in Traces & Omens, main exhibition of this year's Noorderlicht about the effects of Aids on the continent.
The Eugene Smith Award is named after American photographer Eugene Smith (1918-1978). It is granted yearly and is held to be one of the most important awards for concerned, documentary photography.
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Faith in Chaos” by Pep Bonet
Background
“If they could have gotten their hands on God, they would have killed Him too,” Sierra Leoneans say about the rebels. The civil war in Sierra Leone, West Africa, (1991-2001) was labeled “the cruelest in Africa’s recent history”. Characterized by destruction - of property, but more so of human lives and values. Tens of thousands civilians died, hundreds of thousands were raped, burnt, tortured, enslaved, mutilated.
The Sierra Leonean amputees, their limbs cut off by rebels, became this war’s heartrending icons.
“Faith in Chaos” I named my photography project about hope in post-war Sierra Leone. For four years already, I have been capturing the lifes of Sierra Leonean youngsters whilst they are creating chances for themselves in a land where opportunities are very rare. Even before the war, Sierra Leone was the poorest country on earth (UNDP figures). It still is, and now it’s in shambles too.
I first went there a year after the peace agreement was signed, to produce a photo essay on “Faith” for the World Press Photo Masterclass. I hooked up with groups of kids who were the most affected by the war, but who had emerged as the strongest. Young people who were amputated and blinded bouncing back to demand the chances that were stolen from them.
I returned three times for weeks and months on end, and documented the struggle of these youngsters. It’s a story that sheds light on a side of Sierra Leone (and of Africa) that we don’t often get to see. Of stamina, pride and self-confidence. Against all odds: Sierra Leone is part of Africa’s unstablest region, with rebels still roaming the neighbouring countries Liberia and Ivory Coast.
Victims of war and poverty? Yes. But their determination humbles us all.
About the amputees:
“Long or short?” the rebels would ask when they caught you. They meant: Do you want us to saw your leg off at the thigh, or at the knee? In those days, being asked that question was a great relief. You knew there was a chance you would live.
Most amputees were found by patrolling Nigerian peacekeepers, who took them to capital Freetown in the backs of their trucks. Two thousand ended up living in Murray Town Camp.
Twenty two boys got themselves together and trained eachother into the Amputees Soccer Team, now a sportive force the nation has to reckon with. Through soccer, the boys have regained their pride and self-confidence. They learned that with their abused bodies they can be even stronger than before.
BIOGRAPHY:
Pep Bonet (Mallorca, 1974) studied photography in 1997 in Amsterdam. Sincethat time he has participated in several workshop and seminars (e.g. World Press Photo Masterclass 2002) and worked on different assingments and projects as a freelance photographer. Since 2000 he exhibits regularly world wide.
Since 2001 Pep Bonet has won several renowed international awards and prizes, among them: Kodak Young Photographer’s of the year Award 2003 at Visa Pour L’image (with the project Faith in Chaos from Sierra Leone), Zilveren Camera Holland (2003 - first prize in international documentary, third prize in sports category), First prize at the biannual photojournalism award Fotopres 03 (Fundació La Caixa) Spain. In 2004 he was the winner of the Miran Hrovatin International award for the best Journalistic photograph. Fondazione Luchetta, Italy, Trieste.
He has also won the Scherpenzeel award for Photojournalism, with the essay Aids in Ethiopia, as well as being selected AmericanPhoto Editor’s Choice 2004 emerging artist of the year In 2005 Pep won the Eugene Smith Humanistic Grant in Photography. During the last four years his work has focused on Africa and the pursuit of several long term projects, Faith in Chaos about post-war Sierra Leone, and Posithiv+ documenting the issues of hiv/aids in Sub-Saharan Africa. He is currently working on a photographic project in Somalia. He photographs most of Africa on assignment for MSF.
