Two African Photographers Lift Three World Press Photo Awards

Two African photographers lifted three awards in the 2012 World Press Photo Awards! Mohammed al-Law from Egypt gained a third prize singles in the “People in the News” category for his picture of Egypt’s former president Hosni Mubarak being taken to courtroom trial in a hospital bed.

Above: ARRIVING FOR TRIAL 07 September 2012 Former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak is taken to the courtroom for another session of his trial in Cairo, Egypt. PHOTO: Mohammed al-Law/Associated Press

South Africa’s Brent Stirton gained two first prizes. He won first prize for a single shot in the category “Contemporary Issues” for a portrait of a drug addict and sex worker in the Ukrain. And he won first prize for a photo story in the “Nature” category on the plight of rhinos. No stranger to winning, Brent has won several World Press Photo awards in the past as well as a host of other awards including a Visa D’or at the Visa Pour L’ image Festival in France for Magazine photography.

Above: RHINO WARS: 13 July 2011 A four man anti-poaching team permanently guards a Northern White Rhino on Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. The conservancy is an important not-for-profit wildlife conservancy in the Laikipia District of Kenya and the largest sanctuary for black rhinos in East Africa. It is also the home of four of the remaining eight Northern White Rhino, the world’s most endangered animal. Rhino horn is now worth more than gold on the international market. South Africa alone has lost more than 400 rhino to illegal poaching incidents in 2011. The demand for Rhino horn is fueled by a wealthy Asian middle and upper class and used overwhelmingly as medication.PHOTO: Brent Stirton/Reportage by Getty Images

In addition to Africans lifting three prizes, another 8 photographers took Africa as their subject matter – 5 covering the subject of the Arab Spring in Libya and Egypt (Alex Majoli – Italy, Remi Ochlik – France, Yuri Kozyrev – Russia, Eduardo Castaldo – Italy, and Jan Dago – Denmark) and 3 covering other subject matter including a picture of a woman fishing on the Congo river (Johnny Hagland – Norway), a picture of Dakar fashion week (Vincent Boisot – France) and a disturbing shot taken in South Africa of Afrikaaner youth being trained in military techniques (Ilvy Njiokiktjien – The Netherlands).