2003 Photo Contest, General News, 1st prize
Photographer

Jan Dago

Magnum Photos / Alexia Foundation

01 December, 2001

Members of former rival factions, now doing military service together, relax at the Bemguema training camp. A long-running war in Sierra Leone finally came to an end in the first months of 2002 as the UN, British armed forces, and government troops edged clashing factions towards a peace agreement. The UN supervised rebel disarmament, and democratic elections were held in May. The struggle for control of diamond mining and other natural resources had been a source of the conflict.

About the photographer

Jan Dago

Jan Dago was born and grew up in Denmark, where a childhood interest in visual expression began. At first, he made short movies, but the power of the still image gripped him more...

This image is collected in