Fear for the Rainbow

Ilvy Njiokiktjien (26) is a Dutch photographer, whom you might know from winning the prestigious Canon Female Photojournalist Award earlier this year. She won 8000 euro to expand her report on Afrikaner adolescents in South Africa into a multimedia project. I cannot wait for the whole project to see the light of the day. 

In 2011 Njiokiktjien photographed a ‘defence camp’ in South Africa where adult Afrikaners (white African speaking inhabitants of South Africa) were being taught how to defence themselves in case of attack. In a country where the criminal rates are extremely high and murder and car hijacking is a every day business, it is not so strange people feel the need to be able to protect themselves. But there is a very important underlying reason, which is the fear of a civil war between the different ethnicities in the country when Nelson Mandela dies. Because of this fear, an increasing number of parents are sending their children to youth camps. 

Ilvy stayed nine days in a youth camp in the village Carolina, where young Afrikaner boys are being trained for the possible upcoming civil war under the lead of Colonel Jooste. They are being trained how to use guns, but even more importantly they are being taught (or indoctrinated you could say) about the dangers of the ‘rainbow nation’. Colonel Jooste teaches them why they, the Afrikaner, are superior over their black fellow countryman. Before going into the camp these boys told Ilvy that Mandela was their hero, by the time they left they were transformed completely and said they do not believe in the rainbow nation anymore and must fight for the Afrikaner people. The subject is of course extremely interesting, but luckily so is the imagery. The photos are intimate and up close, without judging too much. It leaves enough room for an own interpretation. I think what hits us most about this series is the vulnerability of the teenagers. How will this camp infect the rest of their lives? I wonder what impact Colonel Jooste must have on the course of their lives and the choices they will make.

In the final project sound, video and photography will all play a role. A preview of this can be seen on the website of the Dutch magazine Vrij Nederland, here (scroll down the page a little bit and then make the project fullscreen). Unfortunately the subtitles are in Dutch, but it still gives you a good impression of the project. Next year the whole series can be seen at the Visa pour L’Image Festival.