Yangon Photo Festival 2016 – The winning photos
The Yangon Photo Festival honours the work of both international and Myanmar photo journalists who work to document history at a crucial time of change in their country. The Festival’s 8th edition took place from 12-31 March, 2016 under the theme “Eyewitness: Myanmar by Myanmar Photographers”. Learn more about the festival here.
1st prize: “The Curse of Jade. Photographer: Minzayar
”The land of Jade” portrays Myanmar’s secretive jade mines in the Kachin town of Hpakant. Every day hundreds of thousands of men from different regions of Myanmar come to work in mountains filled with mining waste dumped by mining companies – all in pursuit of a shortcut to wealth. In November 2015 an immense landslide at a dumping site of a government licensed mining company killed 114 workers.
2nd prize: “The Desperate Thirst”. Photographer: Soe Seya Tun
This moving photo essay tells the story of human traffickers. After the Thai government cracked down on smugglers by making it risky to land their human cargo, traffickers have started abandoning boats full of migrants at sea.
3rd prize: “The Convoy”. Photographer: J. Paing
A conflict that broke out in Kokang, a small territory bordering China, in 2015, caused hundreds of casualties. As a result of the conflict, Laukkai, the Kokang capital, became a ghost town. This photo essay tells the tragic story of a Myanmar Redd Cross convoy of migrant workers that was attacked about an hour’s drive from Laukkai.
