Photographs
against oblivion
"UNICEF’s Child Photograph of the Year Award"
Winner of
the international "UNICEF’s Child Photograph
of the Year Award" is Matias Costa from Spain. Born
in 1973 in Buenos Aires, he is the first photographer
to receive this prize, which will be awarded by UNICEF
in cooperation with the GEOlino and the Leica Camera plc,
for his portrait of a Rwandan war orphan and street child.
The picture shows the face of an approximately ten-year-old
boy. The scar on his cheek was poorly stitched. The photograph
reflects the tough life of "war children" six
years after the end of the genocide. Winner of the second
prize is the Dutch photographer Geert van Keesteren for
his photograph of AIDS orphans in Sambia. Winner of the
third prize is the Indian photographer Prakash Singh for
his portrait of a street child. On December 1, the winners
of the first and second prizes will personally receive
their awards at the Press Ball in Bonn which is UNICEF‘s
partner city in 2000. Sabine Christiansen, UNICEF goodwill
ambassador, will hand over the first prize, a Leica M6
camera.
1.
Prize Matias Costa, "Country of the lost
children"
The portrait of a street
child in the Rwandan capital city of Kigali as a
metaphor for the continuous violence and war in
Africa. The photographer Matias Costa (Spain) received
the First Prize which is awarded for the first time
by UNICEF Germany.The photo makes the open wounds
in the body and the soul of the boy visible",
justifies the jury.
2.
Prize für Geert van Keesteren, "Aids in Sambia"
Five AIDS orphans nestle onto
their aunt, who cares for the children since the death
of their parents. The photographer Geert van Keesteren
of the Netherlands, was awarded the Second Prize for his
empathetic picture from the Zambian city of Livingstone.
UNICEF points out that on the upcoming event of the World
AIDS Day on 01 December 2004, 13 million children will
have lost their father, mother, or both parents through
the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.
3.
Prize für Prakash Singh, "The rain falls only
on me"
A street child cowers for protection
on a traffic island in the Indian capital of New Delhi.
The Indian photographer Prakash Singh, won the Third Prize
of the international competitionfor the hauntingly vivid
portrait. According to world-wide estimates of UNICEF,
between 100 and 200 million children live on the streets.
