Gøril Trondsen Booth

 

 

"Lining up for Food"

Food distribution by Norwegian Refugee Council and World food program.

Government soldiers are responsible for security.
Gulu District, Northern Uganda 2004
 

John LeKay:  Please tell me when you first visited Africa and what was that experience like?

Gøril Trondsen Booth:  My first journey to Africa was in 1995. Actually it was my final project in my last year of photography school that took me to Uganda.  All students were supposed to choose  an individual long term project, what to do was up to you to arrange, so in my mind it was no doubt, I wanted to get involved in aid work and social issues. I always looked at my camera as a tool that hopefully will enable me to contribute - to make a difference, for the good. Sounds like a much used cliché, but I do believe in it, you have to. Anyway, I ended up going with Save the Children for ten weeks to Uganda. And I strongly believe that it has changed my life and for sure directed my career.

 

Winston Churchill once called Uganda "The pearl of Africa", and yes for sure - you just get struck by the beauty of this country. The fertile south with sugar canes and bananas, national parks and the buxom women in big colorful dresses. The dry semi-desert north-east with the nomadic tribes and their exotic traditions, the way they dance, the way they dress - or not dress, the shepherds, the traditional warriors and the extreme proudness among these people. But the very best part is the Ugandans themselves - with their hospitality and their sense of humor - you get a lot of good laughs in this country.  And of course - it's just packed with visual moments for you to capture with your camera.

 

But then again you can't avoid but mention the sad sides of Uganda, like many countries in Africa.  HIV/Aids is one of them; even though Uganda has managed to get the rate down from being the most affected country to pretty low compared to other African countries, but now they see an increasing tendency of HIV/Aids in the war effected North. And that is of course the other very very sad part; the civil war in Northern-Uganda has gone on for over 19 years. It's an especially cruel war that is strongly targeting children.

 

"Water - a blessing" Karamoja, where you can't take water for granted.
Karamoja, North-East Uganda 1995.

 

 

GTB:  But to get back to your question - I didn't cover the war on my first trip to Africa - I don't think that would have been a very good idea as a first assignment. But both the conflict and the beauty has drawn me back to Uganda two times after my first journey. Uganda lays close to my heart.
 

JL:  Can you give me an example of their sense of humor, their sense of pride and dignity and how did they behave towards you as a westerner and with a camera?

GTB:  How do I describe humor? I guess humor is one of the best icebreakers for communication. And on top of that it's a way to communicate even without language. It is the body language, the smiles, the facial expressions that make you feel that you have something in common with this person. And in Africa it comes easily. I guess it depends on your own humor as well - so maybe at the bottom line - they understand my humor and they laugh at my bad jokes - that's why I like them!  Isn't that the way it works or what?
 

"Young Shepherd"

Karamoja, North-East Uganda 1995.

 

 

GTB:  When it comes to pride, my first fascination with the nomadic Karamojongs in the north-east Uganda was their tall, graceful and proud attitude - actually a little frightening at the same time. They look like worriers, and that's basically what a big percent of the men are.

The whole tradition is built around their livestock and with that there have been fights for graze land and raids for cattle between the different tribes in the area, also including Sudan and Kenya, followed. 

 

"Proud"

Food is distributed in the camp. People have been dependent on help in the form of food and

protection for years. It is an unbearable situation for the refugees with the loss of integrity. Even though
some still manage to keep their head held high. Gulu district, Northern Uganda 2004

 

 

"Fetching Water"

Karamoja, North-East Uganda 1995.

 

 

The tribal fights and cattle-raiding goes back in time; the difference now is that the spears they used in the 1960's changed to guns in the 80's.  So of course the amount of people killed has sadly increased. The Karamojongs have also been discriminated by the rest of the country and former governments. The natural environment in this part of the country is very harsh; hard to survive for both people and animals. The small children are often suffering from malnutrition. I guess you can say these people are survivors in spite of all and I believe that is what makes them strong and tough, and they definitely have a reason to be proud.
 

When it comes to travel as a westerner with a camera, it can turn out both ways; but mostly the people are open for my visit. Some people are very skeptical in the beginning and you can't blame them for that. Just imagine yourself if a foreigner suddenly was standing on your doorstep asking to take pictures of your sick wife, how would you react? I believe it's very important to remember who is visiting who.

 

"Farming"

Poverty in the harsh semi-desert landscape of Karamoja
North-East Uganda 1995.

 

GTB:  I can't take for granted or believe it's my right to come in and take pictures because I have used money to go to Africa, I have to ask them - as much as I have to ask people in my own country to enter their house and life. And of course, the issues I'm often covering when I go to Africa are very sad and very personal for the people I'm making contact with. So it's also very important for me to have time. Time in a way is everything. Time gives me a chance to get to know people, let them know something about me and why I'm there - it is simply to show respect for people I take pictures of. And then hopefully they will accept me and my mission. But of course - there are people that just don't want to have their picture taken - then you just have to respect it and move on, or maybe spend some more time and explain it again.

JL:  Can you tell me about your experiences regarding the people in Uganda and how the "long cruel war" you mentioned has impacted their life?

GTB:   Northern Uganda, more exactly North-Western Uganda, and especially Gulu, Kitgum and Lira districts are the land of the Acholipeople. While the Karamojongs in the North-East are nomadic cattle-herders, the Acholies are mostly farmers, or used to be before the war. And as the Karamojongs, they have also been marginalized by the government for decades. I guess it will be too much and too long to go into the background and reasons for this war, but basically I think you can say that this situation has given birth to a strong and exceptionally cruel rebel group. 

 

 

 GTB:  The LRA - The Lord's Resistance Army, has terrorized the people in Northern Uganda for 19 years. Many claim that they don't have much of a cause for their war, other then they want to crush the government and rule the country after the ten commandments.
 
The methods they are using are extremely evil as they are abducting children to be used as soldiers and for the commanders sex-slaves and wives. Thousands of civilians have been killed, women have been raped and villages burned down. Over 90 percent of the people in the three most war affected provinces are living in camps and are in need of food distribution.

 

The most absurd part of this war is that the victims are children, but the abusers and killers are also mostly children, that themselves are victims of LRA's ruthless and bloody strategy. It is estimated that 80 percent of the rebels are former abducted children. Over 25,000 children have been abducted since the war began. So of course - everybody is living in constant fear.
 

I was covering this conflict last year in October and it was overwhelming to walk around the town centers of Kitgum and Gulu at night . It was swarming with kids. It was unbelievable to see. Every night 40,000 children are heading in to the centers of the larger towns to sleep on the stairs of the shops and hospitals, on private verandas and in garages and also in tent camps for night commuters organized by Aid Organizations. They are sent by their parents that see it as the only way to protect their children from being abducted by the rebel army. This is a conflict that has gotten far too little attention internationally.

"Night Commuters"

Every night over 40 000 children swarm in to the town centers to sleep in the light from the shops,

hospitals and in tent camps organized by local and international aid organizations. They are
sent by the parents who believe this is the only way to protect them from being abducted by LRA.

Many children walk up to 7 km each way, every day. Kitgum, Northern Uganda 2004.

 

GTB:  It's sad how fast we people get bored, uninterested and then forget about the wars in Africa and of course especially the ones that go on for years and years. But it just means more and more people are getting killed, more and more children are being violated - and these children are actually the future of Northern Uganda. It should be everybody's responsibility not to let a cruel war like this be forgotten. It's not like nothing is done, but the international community should put more pressure on the Ugandan government to end this war once and for all.    

 

Kapoeta, Southern Sudan 2003.
 

GTB:  And when it comes to Live Aid, Live 8 etc, I believe that they put a very important focus on Africa, especially in front of the G8 meeting in Scotland. And to put focus on Africa's problems are a big challenge, as we talked about earlier. I think they're doing a great job.

 

GTB:  What I personally have witnessed is that the help is reaching, especially through the big established aid organizations in cooperation with local organizations. But of course, there is a lot of corruption and aid-work in itself also means business, jobs and money, so of course it attracts unserious people too. But even if some of the donations get lost, still a lot is reaching, so it is extremely important to continue to contribute. In emergencies it's often talk about life or death.

JL:  Can you tell me where you plan on visiting next with your camera?
 
GTB:  I just returned from another travel to Nepal in mid June and still have a lot of material to work out. I'm also writing articles. But as soon as that's done I will start my next project.  I plan to return to Africa, probably the east region. I'm working on a long term project about refugees with plans of a future exhibition. I'm also working on a book project based on my photography from the last ten years with a dead-line for next year. Next to this I'm working on a few domestic projects.

Many projects and many plans. But as an independent worker you have to keep busy - and busy is good - I love my work. I guess it boils down to that my work is more of a lifestyle than a job - you wake up with it and you go to bed with it. I even have my studio in my back yard - I feel very lucky and privileged to be able to live off my photography, especially because it gives me the opportunity to meet so many interesting and beautiful people. And photography is my tool to tell their story.

 

 

 

Northern Chad 2004

"Exhausted Family"

 

A family of seven, consisting of only women and young girls, have chosen to walk the 50 kilometers from the border to the camp instead of waiting for the provided transportation.  They are tired, hungry and psychologically exhausted after weeks on the run from terror and atrocities. Touloum refugee camp, Northern Chad 2004

 

"Grandma"

  www.photomedia.no/gtb/bio.html