Images from conflict zones

Abstract

For some years this journal has been one among many voices that have advocated for safe medical care in situations of conflict: the medical needs of the injured should be a protected priority no matter what the situation during battle. This issue is at the heart of Health Care in Danger, a campaign by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that is the focus of Perspectives, an exhibition by award-winning photographer Tom Stoddart at London's South Bank. A Red Cross/Red Crescent Movement-wide initiative running until 2015, Health Care in Danger highlights the devastating effects of conflict on health-care workers and patients, as well as medical facilities and vehicles. “I wanted to support this ICRC campaign that highlights the difficulties of health workers in conflict areas, and the problems in giving aid to people caught up in wars. These health workers should always be left to do their work”, Stoddart told The Lancet. Perspectives features 78 black-and-white photographs that range widely across time and place: there are pictures of floods in Mozambique, the UK Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp, and civilians during the siege of Sarajevo in the 1990s. Stoddart, who specialises in global humanitarian issues and has worked in more than 50 countries, explains that “While 2012 is a time of great celebration for the UK, including the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and the London Olympic Games, I wanted people to pause for a moment and remember the hardships, past and present, that occur in many places.” Key historical images from Stoddart's portfolio include an attack on a march during the election campaign of former South African President Nelson Mandela that resulted in the deaths of 19 people; the fall of the Berlin Wall; and the turbulent UK miners' strike of the 1980s. He has also captured many wartime images from places as diverse as Sarajevo and Sudan. “My most recent assignment was in South Sudan, watching thousands of people fleeing from border areas into refugee camps to avoid rebel fighting”, Stoddart told The Lancet. Yet with the recent deaths of journalists on the battlefield (including photographer Tim Hetherington in Libya and veteran reporter Marie Colvin in Syria), Stoddart is trying to cut back on being in the thick of the action. Perspectives displays some images that were “staged” specifically to highlight the dangers of lack of health care during war, including a woman whose baby had died because she could not reach a health-care facility; a cholera tent in a refugee camp where drugs had been stolen and health-care workers murdered; and a man who died from his injuries because a military checkpoint would not allow those carrying him to pass through. Other images explore real-life events, for which Stoddart is well known, including humanitarian crises such as the cholera epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the ravages of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. One harrowing picture shows a woman in Africa whose family is blighted by famine. “Watching your child starve must be the most harrowing thing imaginable”, Stoddart says. These photographs powerfully show the need for safe access to health care for those affected by conflict worldwide, but what also strikes me is the way Stoddart portrays his subjects. “I always try to take pictures showing the optimism, dignity, and strength of human beings”, he says. “One of my pictures is of a very beautiful woman in the siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian war. She reminded me of the actress Sophia Lauren, and she was simply walking down a street, sending a message to the surrounding snipers that she was not scared of them.” Perspectives Tom Stoddart in participation with the International Committee of the Red Cross. Open-air display at More London Riverside, London, UK, until Sept 11, 2012 http://78perspectives.com/tom-stoddart Perspectives Tom Stoddart in participation with the International Committee of the Red Cross. Open-air display at More London Riverside, London, UK, until Sept 11, 2012 http://78perspectives.com/tom-stoddart Health Care in Danger http://www.icrc.org/eng/what-we-do/safeguarding-health-care Health Care in Danger http://www.icrc.org/eng/what-we-do/safeguarding-health-care