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foto Fares Al-Dlimi

An Iraqi photographer's picture of two boys wounded in US airstrikes on the country has won "Photo of the Year" at the first Chinese International Press Photo Contest (CHIPP).

Fares Al-Dlimi's shot of the two young victims, hurt on September 25, 2004, by US bombs aimed at suspected militant hideouts in Falluja, was taken as the pair lay head to head inside one of the besieged city's ambulances.

India's Prashant Panjiar, one of the competition's 15 judges said: "The picture is so strong that it can affect viewers emotionally, which truly reflects the cruelty of the war. At the same time, it's beautifully composed."

In the run up to the competition, the organizing committee received more than 21,000 entries from 1,765 photographers in 76 countries and regions, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan and India.

Entries were classified into seven categories of Economic, Scientific and Technical News, Portraits, Daily Life, Arts & Entertainment News, Sports and Nature & Environmental News.

Commenting on the home country's performance in the competition, Xinhua's director of photography Xu said: "We can see that although our Chinese photographers have made huge progress, there is still a long way to go before we catch up with our foreign peers." He added that Chinese photojournalists had been less involved in internationally critical events such as the of Indian Ocean tsunami, Iraqi War and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict than their foreign colleagues, and so had missed key photojournalism events of the last year.

Since the contest was launched last September, it had attracted more than 23,000 works from 76 nations in the past six months, including the United States, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Australia, Iraq and South Korea. The world's major news agencies such as Reuters and AFP have also sent entries. The photos feature environment, culture and social life, but they all share a common theme of peace and development.

Vincent Mentzel from the Netherlands was the first jury member to arrive in the city. A member of the executive board of the World Press Photo Contest, Mentzel gave an overview of Chinese press photos: "It is a trend that many Chinese press photographers are starting to depict the relics and heritages on the verge of extinction, which are very unique and impressive."

Bron: China View.

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