Proud for one second

• Prize
  Bronze in People/Family
• Photographer
  Jan Janssen

The Batwa spent their whole lives in the forest. More than 20 years after eviction from their ancestral land, these days the Batwa people are still suffering. The church and some non-governmental organisations helped by buying land for settling on, but despite of that, the Batwa people are still squatters and labourers without land for farming of their own. The Batwa are impoverished, and lack of regular income causes very limited acces to education and healthcare. They survive on handouts and begging. The community I visited is called Mukingo Batwa Village, with a number of 35 households. The church of Uganda had build 15 units of householding facilities, and the rest of the families builed their homes with reads and polythene papers. My heart broke when I met these people and the conditions were they have to live in. I visit them 10 days.

"As a true sentimentalist, I express my feelings through my images. I am inspired by genuine interest in my fellow human beings. Through perseverance and drive I create my best work as a photographer. As an artist I am always looking for that one perfect moment when everything comes together. Those moments tell my story. Over the years I have developed my own strong style. Powerful images that radiate passion, with room for your own story as a viewer."