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From Joburg to hell - a local journalist's view of Haiti
Alon Skuy is a 28 year old photojournalist currently working at the Sunday Times, who recently returned from the disaster stricken Haiti. Skuy studied journalism at Midrand Graduate Institute and completed his photojournalism course at The Market Photo Workshop. Growing up in Bramley - Jo'burg, Skuy has always found a way to document what was happening around him, he started off by writing but soon grew into the visual aspect of things, focusing more on photography. His love for the camera originates from a love for self expression and observing ways in which humanitarian issues are portrayed to the general public.
Skuy went to Haiti to look for that one moment all photojournalists look for to accompany a story, "you try your best," he says, "obviously there are different levels of facts and results but I always try my best to sum up as much as possible in a single image."
Hard work, passion and curiosity has fuelled Skuys career as a photographer, JHB Live had the chance to catch up with him for a one on one interview, which was certainly worthwhile and provided great insight into a day in the life of a photojournalist.
A: I basically went to cover the humanitarian disaster that's unfolding there.
JHBLIVE: Does it start off with a specific brief or are you asked simply take back pictures?
A: It depends, sometimes we are sent specifically to cover like the South African rescue teams in Haiti or the UN and its role in Haiti or the soldiers. I went there with a vision to cover the scale of the catastrophe, the human interest and people suffering in an effort to create awareness about it.
JHBLIVE: All that you've seen is probably what you'd seen in the media (CNN, BBC, etc.). What was your vision of it before going?
A: I expected it to be grueling and to see things that would affect me, as well as unparalleled disaster.
A: You've just got to know why you're going. I was trying to document the disaster and create awareness about the situation. For research purposes you can watch the various channels and visit relevant websites.
JHBLive: What flight were you on?
A: We took a flight to New York and from New York to Dominican Republic, from there we drove to the border for ten hours. We slept at the border in a tent and then we drove through. Four days to get to Haiti.
JHBLIVE: Your first experience when you got off the plane, when you land there?
A: When you're driving to the border, as far as 200 kilometers from the destruction people wear masks because the stench is so bad from all of the deaths. As we were driving to Haiti, we saw people walking round in a zombie-like state, shell-shocked.
JHBLIVE: Who were you with?
A: I was with another photographer Felix from the Beeld. We managed to hook up since we were on the same flight and we were on the mission together.
A: We caught taxis and hitched rides with other journalists. When we got there to the camp at the airport, we shared a place with Rescue South African, an organization which goes to disaster areas and helps to recover bodies and get people out alive.
JHBLIVE: What's going through as you stand on the other side of the disaster?
A: It's so unreal, it's apocalyptic and it's quite overwhelming when you first arrive.
A: Yes, they are devastated and shattered.
JHBLIVE: Was there a defining moment [for you] that projected the scale of what was happening?
A: All I saw from the moment I got there was death and destruction and no aid was coming through. It is survival of the fittest in Haiti; people are looting, killings over food and fighting over food.
JHBLIVE: Was this happening around you?
A: Everywhere. There was a woman who was shot dead for looting and she lay there dead on the floor and people came and checked her pockets, instead of helping.
A: Yes, she was shot in the head and she dropped dead right next to me. It was the saddest thing I'd ever seen. It's so desperate. People have lost families and relatives and they've got nothing, which is why they're looting. The police have been given orders to shoot to kill because there are banks and buildings, which have become vulnerable.
JHBLIVE: Is there a certain code of conduct when it comes to situations like that?
A: Well, be as sensitive as you can to what's going on around you; try not to interfere - that'll make matters worse because you're just there trying to document.
JHBLIVE: In the Haiti situation, as a photographer, how was your space acknowledged?
A: Yes. The one day I went out for the day, I took a bottle of water and I took the water out and the next thing there were about ten people around me and the water was gone. They're not in the camera but in what they need: food and water.
JHBLIVE: You're there you're seeing people in the humanitarian disaster and the media is there covering the dramatic event for the world to see. On a personal level, do you get frustrated that Haitians aren't getting enough aid?
A: So it does get very frustrating. You wonder why people couldn't put a more strategic plan in place to get more fluid aid to these people.
A: Yeah some people estimate five to ten years of people being homeless, they are psychologically damaged from it and most of their family members are gone.
JHBLIVE: Looking back, how would you sum up your whole experience?
A: It was a grueling time; there was so much happening, too much poverty and desperation.
A: I do think about it a lot but it helps to speak to people who are close to you. Also, detaching myself as much as personal level and detach yourself from what was going on in Haiti.
JHBLIVE: So, you managed to detach yourself from the situation are you able to see it as what is was [work]?
A: You have to because if you do breakdown you wouldn't be able to function. You reach a certain threshold and you just see so much pain. Try not to get involved on a when it becomes quite difficult to do that.
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What Others Said
me said
on 11 February 2010Skuy works for The Times not Sunday Times. There is a marked difference. See more of his work here: http://multimedia.timeslive.co.za/photos/in-focus/
Dean Krain said on 11 February 2010I feel inspired by you Mr Skuy. Going out to the last place a person could possibly wish to be, and document a story. You must be a passionate man. Respect
k said on 10 February 2010wow. shew. acute insight into his job and experiences. this upset me - thats good right?