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| Sunday, 4 July 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Photographic record of War and peace by Ranga Jayasuriya Photographers are celebrating peace. Ranging from the legendary still
photo of a Sri Lankan sailor assaulting former Indian Prime Minister Of course, it must have been a tedious task for the five photojournalists, covering the most troublesome and contentious period of the post independent Sri Lankan history. Their photos coupled with narrations bring about a greater insight into the national question. The photo collection is an illustrative work of human emotions: grief, delight, hatred, optimism, awe and respect. Anurudhdha Lokuhapuarachchi (Reuters), Gemunu Amarasinghe (AP), Sena Widanagamage (AF), Sriyantha Walpola (BBC net and Hindu) and Dominic Sansoni (Freelancer) in their photo collection, in a way, help bridge the ethnic division. Their images best portray how badly this country suffered during the two decades of war while underscoring potentials for a negotiated settlement. Sriyantha narrates pointing to a torn Sri Lankan flag raised in a vessel apparently carrying refugees returning from India. "This flag may be torn, but it would unit the nation." The photos are about lives. How the war crushed them and how peace redeemed them. An old Tamil woman busy with her baggage at Piramanayan Kulam military checkpoint soon after the freedom of movement was established under the truce agreement; a soldier carrying an injured civilian in unprecedented haste following an LTTE bombing; scattered military helmets and boots at Elephant Pass... The Photographers have been daring in highlighting the controversial. Gemunu Amarasinghe narrates about a parade of Black Tigers in the Wanni: "Only then did I realise the LTTE is a religion for these people". Going through 80 photos, I found a hope. Hope of a better future. Optimism, which is indeed a vital ingredient for the peace process was also in abundance in the photo collection. |
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| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
Rajiv
Gandhi to gruesome images of a Tiger suicide bombing, cautious optimism of
Indian refugees returning home and prisoners of war being reunited with
their families, some 80 photographs now on display at BareFoot Gallery
illustrate, in the most profound manner, the transformation of Sri lankan
polity during the ceasefire.
