Soutra: Images of Refuge (1999)

Mohamoud Abdi (Somalia), Jean de Dieu Kayinamura (Rwanda), Martha Kubwimana (Rwanda), Clemence Mugaragu (Rwanda), Anita Ntakarutimana (Burundi), Cherinet Olgira (Ethiopia), and Fatima Yusuf (Somalia)

Soutra is a madeng word meaning peace and protection. Madeng is a language commonly spoken in West Africa. Soutra: Images of Refuge was designed to raise awareness of the conditions of refugees living in South Africa. The intention is to combat xenophobia through "putting a face" to the refugee issue. It was a project of self-representation and self-expression as the photographs are of refugees and taken by refugees. Two workshops, run by Peter McKenzie of the Institute for the Advancement of Journalism, were held with the refugee participants. The first workshop identified key concerns facing refugees and how best one can capture these concerns on film. After the first workshop, participants took photographs which formed the basis for the second workshop. The second workshop focused on selection and captioning of the images to be used in the exhibition. The launch of the project coincided with Heritage Day to draw on the cultural and heritage linkages between South Africa and the rest of Africa.