(News Feature) Children of war captured through the lens

From the Philippine News Agency (Mar 7): (News Feature) Children of war captured through the lens

Often caught at the crossroads of a vicious war are the most innocent, leaving countless of children exposed and vulnerable to its horrors.

Photographer Jun de Leon, known for capturing the glitz and glamour of celebrity life, sheds light on the war-torn Mindanao through a photo exhibit called “Children at the Crossroads” held at Fisher Mall in Quezon City from Mar. 7 to 8.

Over 50 profound photographs, encapsulating the struggle of Filipino children caught in the decades-long armed conflict in Mindanao, were featured at the walkthrough exhibit.

Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) Undersecretary Luisito G. Montalbo urged the public to vicariously witness the consequences and atrocities of war.

“Hopefully, through his photos, the Filipinos could see the truth behind a war and how much damage it has caused to our fellow countrymen,” said Montalbo at the exhibit’s launch on Monday.

The photos, accompanied with a brief narrative, are based on the Mamasapano tragedy that occurred on the eventful day of Jan. 25, 2015.

The 11-hour-long deadly clash between the Special Action Forces (SAF) and rebels at the Mamasapano town in Maguindanao, resulted in the deaths of 44 SAF members, 17 Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) combatants, and 7 civilians.

One riveting picture shows the family of Badrodin Langgalin, a civilian found among the SAF men killed during the bloody encounter. In the picture, Sara Lawanian Langgalin, now a widow, takes her children, 3-year-old Sadiya and 1-year-old Samira, back home.

The photo’s caption recounted how Badrodin left on his bike at dawn to get cellphone load while Sara heard a rupture of gunshots. She grabbed her children and ran, but she never saw her husband again, not even to bury him.

Another picture illustrates eleven children evacuees huddling under a farm wagon, which is the only cool space they have settled in to escape the pounding heat of the sun and the military operations.

Through the lens of de Leon, we see the faces and costs of this long-running conflict in the South.

“I hope that every person viewing the exhibit will be enthralled by the photos they see. Each picture has a story—each picture has a name, a family, a loved one affected by war,” said Montalbo.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=1&sid=&nid=1&rid=864073