After Captivity: Strength, Hope and Resilience

• Prize
  Gold in Editorial/Photo Essay
• Photographer
  Zoya Shu
• Photo Date
  2019-2024

Currently thousands of Ukrainians are being held in captivity in Russia and in various detention places on territories occupied by Russia, international organizations are denied the access to these people. The problem exists since 2014, but became especially acute after the large scale invasion began in 2022. Pictured are people who survived the captivity. In most cases they bear physical and psychological scars, which take years to heal. Sometimes bodies of prisoners are returned during prisoner swaps. The level of brutality and torture in Russian prisons requires immediate action.