The Thessaloniki Documentary Photo exhibitions at the warehouses

Rebuilding Afghanistan

The “Rebuilding Afghanistan” photo exhibit showcases nineteen photographs illustrating the difference Canada is making in the lives of the people of Afghanistan.

The collection presents a compelling visual story of the spirit and resilience of Afghans who have overcome a long legacy of conflict. With the international community’s help, they are working towards building a better future for themselves and their families.

Canada is in Afghanistan at the request of the democratically elected government, to help build a stable, democratic and self-sufficient society. Alongside the UN, NATO and other partners, Canada has committed to help the people of Afghanistan realize their vision for a country that is secure and at peace with itself and its neighbors; economically self-sufficient; prosperous, with the capacity to deliver fundamental services such as water, health care and education; and governed according to the rule of law.

Canada’s approach in Afghanistan brings together resources and expertise from across the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Canadian International Development Agency, National Defence, the Correctional Service of Canada and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Rebuilding Afghanistan after decades of civil war takes time and commitment. The results of our efforts so far are encouraging and show the will of the Afghan people and the international community to succeed. Canada continues to show leadership and stands firmly with the UN, NATO, our international partners and the Government of Afghanistan in our collective commitment to a brighter future for Afghanistan.

Together, we are making a real difference in the lives of Afghans and this collection of photographs provides a glimpse of the positive results we are achieving.

One second of silence, by Sotiris Danezis

They say that silence is the loudest cry; that through silence one can say more than one can with words; that only through silence can one stop describing and start experiencing. Sotiris Danezis’ exhibition of photographs entitled“One Second of Silence”, at the Thessaloniki Museum of Photography, urges us – even if we feel powerless to stop a war – to at least stop being silent when faced with human atrocity and barbarism.

Twenty-five frames (the equivalent of a one-second-long PAL television signal), in which he has captured an instant, a fragment of life, in a world that is trapped in the vortex of war, excluded from the front pages of the news, condemned by the silence of the international community.

With his camera as narrator, and his gaze aimed squarely at the victims and the culprits, Sotiris Danezis transports us to 12 countries: from insular North Korea, the military regime in Burma and the front line of battle in Afghanistan, to post-war Congo, the fortresses of the Maoist rebels in Nepal, and the cocaine jungle in Colombia.

The lens focuses on Ernesto Chavez Garcia, one of the 5.000 underage“ bandilleros” in the prisons of El Salvador. “We are asking society to help us, to give us a job. We are human beings, we’re not the worst that people think of us,” he whispers and makes the sign of his gang with his fingers.

Twilight in the town of Altar, the last major stop-off for illegal migrants crossing into the US from Mexico. A memorial cross reminds us that for 903 people the road to the American dreamwas one of no return.

In an old Belgian goldmine in eastern Congo, men, women, and even young children are digging in the dangerous, dark tunnels, in search of specks of gold in order to provide for their families. Their faces and hands are stained with the color ofmud.

In New York, members of “Iraq Veterans Against the War”, dressed in camouflage and patrolling Central Park, “come under sniper fire” on 5th Avenue and arrest suspects in Times Square, scaring passersby.

At the same time, in Afghanistan, a platoon of US soldiers is ambushed by the Taliban. This is followed by house-to-house combat. A little later, it’s all over. As a soldier of the Afghan army tries to see the face of a slain Taliban, Sergeant Major Aaron Dewitt lights a cigarette. he shot the enemy from a distance of 300 meters.

Every photograph in Sotiris Danezis’ exhibition is a little story, a story that turns our silence, ignorance and indifference into a synonym for crime.