karamajong children receive schooling - moroto, uganda
a departure here on philsgood photo a day. below is a series of images from my recent trip to the karamoja region of uganda. the karamajong are nomadic pastoralists, meaning they keep cattle and are constantly on the move looking for food and water for their livestock. raiding cattle has always been a way of life for the karamajong, a practice that turned increasingly deadly with the introduction of firearms. a guns for development program has netted some 30,000 weapons, certainly helping peace in the region.
cattle are now kept in protected kraals, large pens fenced with thorns situated next to ugandan army detaches. the army protects the cattle from raiders overnight and at 9am each morning they allow the herders, mostly children, in to milk their livestock and move out to graze.
a peacebuilding program called ABEK (alternative basic education for karamoja) provides education for the children at the kraals. children begin arriving well before sun-up, receive an hour of instruction and then are allowed into the krall to take care of their cows. the soldiers are trained in peacebuilding to promote positive relationships between the army and the children.
cattle in the kraal
children arriving for ABEK
a soldier hands out chalk to the children for lessons
a UPDF soldier holding a puppy speaks with children
children sing and dance following their classes
a UPDF soldier queues up the students following their lessons
freedom! the children are finally let go to milk and tend to their cattle
a karamajong boy milks his cow into a plastic pitcher
milking straight into the hand...
...and tasting the results!
moving off to find food and water for the day
i should mention that these images were shot on assignment for save the children in uganda.
ReplyDeleteI love the photo of the teachers in front of the group of students (great sky) and the little boy peaking out from under the cow's udder.
ReplyDeleteAnd, did you use flash on the first image of the karal to make the white thistles pop so much?
ReplyDeleteyeah, it was still pretty dark then so i needed the flash just to see the animals. especially with the sky acting as a bit of a back light.
ReplyDeletei zoomed the flash in to a tight spotlight so it would only catch the inner ring of the thorns.
Great work Phil! I think this is definitely the strongest work of yours I've seen from Africa!
ReplyDeleteAlways helps to have compelling subject matter I know :-)
Beautiful work, PBo. I'm glad and jealous that you are working on such things- i hope you're learning a lot!
ReplyDeleteSmurray
Waw, beautiful photos, great angles and compositions!! I love dynamism, the freedom and joy of the kids running away from the school back in the Kraal - thanks for helping in showing off the many good sides of Karamoja! Looking forward to seeing the others and making more together next week in Kidepo and Karamoja :)
ReplyDeleteGreetz from Luc.
Awesome, Phil.
ReplyDeleteFantastic shots, Phil. You really tell a story with your pics and it is obvious how much respect you have for your subjects. Great work.
ReplyDeletewow! those pics brought tears to my eyes. they are incredibly photographed and tell a powerful story. as a teacher it i feel a little humbled to think about what education really means. is it ok if i share these pics with my students? thanks! hope you guys are well.
ReplyDeleteAs always, Phil, beautiful! The image of the kids running (after being released from class and on their way to the kraals) was my fav! Not because of the beauty of the photo (another would have topped my list for that) but because of the absolute JOY and energy you captured.
ReplyDelete