2024-03-07 15:11:31
“When all the shamans die, the sky will fall to the earth. The forest will disappear and darkness will come.” The head of the Amazon Janomam tribe is increasingly worried about such a future and confided in photographer Raphael Alves. This year, the documentary about the life of the Janomam is among the best works in the prestigious world photography competition – the Sony World Photography Awards. We present examples of some of them.
Several similar stories about the difficult fates of the original inhabitants of various territories appeared in one of the most prestigious photography competitions in the world.
No one escapes the fall of the sky, the shaman is sure
Illegal miners are leaving the original territory of the Janomam. The Brazilian government banned them from illegal gold mining. | Photo: Raphael Alves, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
“Whites ignore shamanism. They are resourceful, but they can’t hold the sky above. Not only the Janomam will die, but everyone. No one will escape the fall of the sky,” says the shaman and chief of the Amazonian Janomam tribe. In his documentary series, photographer Raphael Alves bears witness to the suffering of this people.
Miners have built dozens of airstrips on the territory of the Janomam, they have taken fertile land from the original inhabitants, game has escaped and the rivers are contaminated with mercury. Famine and malaria broke out in the area. According to available information, hundreds of children died. The Brazilian government declared a state of emergency in the area, sent food aid there and made it their mission to put an end to illegal mining. “We take the task of ending illegal gold mining very seriously,” promised current President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.
A mysterious ritual against armed men
Shamans from the Guaraní tribe gathered under the light of the full moon for a protective ritual to ward off armed men. | Photo: Philippe Renaud, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
One of the images by photographer Philippe Renaud depicts the shamans of the Guaraní tribe, who gathered under the full moon for a sacred ritual that should expel armed men from the area. Renaud also tells about the sufferings of the indigenous people of South America. His documentary describes the life of the Guaraní, striving to reclaim their sacred land, which has been taken by large agricultural companies. Where once there was a forest, there are now monocultures of soybeans and corn.
“The Guaraní people are not only fighting for survival, but also for the protection of the environment and against the use of chemical pesticides. In a landscape where the primeval forest has disappeared and replaced by fields, they appear as guardians of the land. Unfortunately, they sometimes pay for it with their own lives,” explains photographer Renaud.
Cobalt: When pure energy brings suffering
Sony World Photography Awards 2024 (ukázky z kategorie Documentary Projects) | Foto: Davide Monteleone, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
Photographer Davide Monteleone highlights what the soaring demand for minerals, needed to meet renewable energy targets, is bringing to the people of the Congo. “In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, I documented the state and impact of cobalt mining, which is essential for the transition to green energy,” says the photographer, describing the devastating working conditions, poor health care and poverty to which men, women and children are exposed in the mining area.
“This series emphasizes that the future lies not only in the depths of the earth, but also in our collective commitment to create a sustainable and just world,” Monteleone states.
The grief of Inuit women: they were deprived of the possibility of having children
Psychologist Naja Lyberthová is one of the Inuit women who had to undergo unwanted gynecological surgery as girls. | Photo: Juliette Pavy, Sony World Photography Awards 2024
Between 1966 and 1975, Greenlandic Inuit women were victims of an involuntary birth control program known as the Spiralkampagnen (Spiral Campaign), a documentary set of photographs by Juliette Pavy points out.
“Nearly 4,500 IUDs have been implanted into Inuit women and girls, some as young as 12, under the direction of Danish authorities, many of whom claim the procedure was performed without their consent. The campaign was first revealed by a Danish podcast in spring 2022 and documents now they prove that the authorities implemented this policy with the aim of reducing the growth of the Inuit population,” says the photographer, adding that an official investigation is now underway, which should end at the end of 2024.
The Sony World Photography Awards competition is one of the largest and most prestigious in the world. It is often compared to the photographic equivalent of the film Oscars.