/ 2017 / Press / General News

Libya: A human marketplace

  • Prize
    Silver in Press/General News
  • Photographer
    Narciso Contreras, Sweden
  • Studio
    Freelance

This report narrates the brutal reality of human trafficking in the complex tribal society of the post-Gaddafi Libya,
laying bare an unfolding humanitarian crisis in which illegal
migrants, refugees and asylum seekers are at the mercy of militias
who exploit them for financial gain. Held in detention centres for
illegal migrants, they are subjected to inhuman conditions
including overcrowding, lack of sanitation and vicious beatings.

Framed by sectarian violence, corruption and bureaucracy this
report circumnavigates the official channels and cultivates its own
way contacting militiamen, smugglers and tribespeople, which
enabled it to get a close view to the reality of trafficking in Libya.

The report aims to show how, instead of being a place of transit
for migrants on their way to Europe, Libya has actually become a
trafficking market where people are bought and sold on a daily
basis, providing a glimpse of the complex and horrifying context
anonymous migrants face.

Awards Bayeux-Calvados Award for War Correspondents (finalist), FotoEvidence Book Award (Finalist), Carmignac Photojournalism Award (recipient), Pulitzer price - Breaking News Photography Category, POYi - 3rd prize Spot News Singles Category