New Delhi, September 20, 2009: "Where there is gun, there will be no peace on the earth".

This is what the viewers have said after watching the heart-rending photo exhibition entitled � A Farewell to Arms organized by the Control Arms Foundation of India (CAFI) at the Convention Centre Foyer, India Habitat Centre here this evening.

The renowned photographer Raghu Rai who was honoured with Padma Shri in 1971, one of the India's highest civilian awards ever given to a photographer, inaugurated the exhibition documenting the human cost in arms proliferation in Jammu & Kashmir, Naxal region and the North East India.

The exhibition which will last upto September 23 features entries from photographers from across the country including the first time display of images clicked by Raghu Rai in Manipur in May 2008. The exhibition showcases the works of Javeed Shah ( Jammu & Kashmir), Adrian Fisk (Naxal Region), Ritu Raj Konwar ( Assam), Ramakant Dey (Tripura), Jitendra Gupta (Madhya Pradesh), Mustafa Quraishi (Naxal egion), RK Bullu Singh (Manipur), Subhamoy Bhattacharjee (Assam), Ratan Luwangcha (Manipur), Bapi Roy Choudhury (Tripura), Ngasepam Liklaileima (Sangai Express, Manipur), Jinendra Maibam (Manipur), North East Sun, Nagaland Post and Morung Express.

Raghu Rai who once said 'A photographer has picked up a fact of life, and that fact will live forever' appreciated the organizer to launch a photo exhibition here in the national capital on human sufferings of the people living in Naxal Region, North East region and Jammu and Kashmir due to armed violence.

"This exhibition will certainly tell to the people the effects of guns and arms to the human civilization", he stated.

Binalashmi Nepram, Secretary General, Control Arms Foundation of India and the organizer of the Exhibition said, "The international arms trade is out of control.

The United Nations estimates that 500,000 people are killed each year due to small arms violence.

Many of the victims are women and children.

In India alone, 12 people die from armed violence every day.

This illustrates the need for an Arms Trade Treaty".

She further said, "This exhibition is an initiative to showcase the effects of armed violence and the need for an Arms Trade Treaty that will put an end to violation of innocent lives".

Javeed Shah, one of the contributors of the exhibition recounted his experiences of photographing in Kashmir, "Shooting wailing mothers, dead youths, scary scenes and crying children � with time I learned to hide myself behind the camera and take things as mere subject in front of my camera.

For years, I have only seen grief that these arms and explosives brought to my valley.

But now, I want to capture the smiling faces of the people of my valley.

And only a farewell to arms can bring that smile back".

Ramakanta Dey, the photographer from Tripura said, "As I am a photographer from a remote part of North East India, It is very hard to me to do any exhibition of my photographs in Delhi or other part of the world.

But today CAFI gives me the scope".

Raghu Rai 's photographs shows Laishram family of Thangmeiband in Imphal with pictures of their four sons died in armed conflict, Manipur Police randomly frisking civilians in the heart of Imphal, women protest against the rape of a school girl in Imphal, Meira Paibis keep a vigil in the streets of Manipur, Manipuri mother of Khurai lying in a state of shock for months after she saw the dead body of her 21 years old son, a labourer killed in early 2008, heavily armed central government security forces patrolling the streets in bullet proof vehicle in broad day light in Imphal, Ksh.

Subadani and Sinam Chandrajini from Malom with picture of their sons who died along with eight others in November 200o in Malom Massacre and police commandos keeping vigil in a busy market in Imphal.

Ngasepam Liklaileima's photograph showing the dead body of a young beautiful woman �Rabina, which looks still alive, lying in the coffin surrounded by mourners, who was killed by stray bullets during an alleged fake encounter at Khwairamband Bazar in July 2009, gave a shock to the viewers.

The last two photographs from Nagaland Post displayed in the exhibition shows an armed militant giving up arms and hugging his son with joy and the militants playing guitars in place of guns.

There are altogether 48 photographs in the exhibition.

Comment