Reference :
V-P-MM-E-00361
Date :
19/02/2019
Caption :
Portrait of a man who stepped on landmines on two occasions. The injuries left deep scars on his body and in his mind.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
He says :“ I was still recovering from my first injury when second came along”.
First injury
Back in 2013, he was heading into the mountains with his wife to gather radish. “I was leading the way and crossed over to the area that had been cordoned off by ropes,” he recalls. Within minutes he stepped on a landmine. “My longgyi (male garment) was soaked in blood as my feet began to bleed. My wife also suffered injuries on her arms and ran a distance in panic,” he adds.
“A boy from a nearby village heard the explosion and came to help us,” says this man. He was taken to the hospital and, to his relief, was told that he did not need an amputation. After taking some time off to let the wounds heal, he got back to normal life.
Second injury
Recovering from the trauma of one injury was ordeal enough but he soon suffered another. In December 2016, he was on his way to the farm when he went a little off-road and accidentally stepped on a landmine again. He lost consciousness and lay there by the road for a while. Even when he came back to his senses there was no one around to help him. With fragments of metal still stuck in his leg, he pulled himself back up and made his way home. The injuries have left deep scars on his body and his mind. Now, every time he steps out, he has to fight fear. “I only walk behind other people and closely follow their footsteps whenever I go to the mountains,” he says.
Resolution :
6000x4000
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
