violence are, it really is the images that snatch our breath away, that render the unimaginable tangible. And it is this power that is at the heart of photojournalism. Oatway would not have been in Alexandra that morning were it not his job to cover the racism and national or tribal chauvinism exhibited by some South Africans towards their fellow Africans. His job is to photograph what happens. Journalism schools teach you to not interfere in a situation, for better or for worse.
Terrible drama: Yet when a terrible human drama is unfolding in front of the camera, there is an internal tug of war between doing the job as a professional and thus allowing society a glimpse into an otherwise hidden evil, and the very human urge to intervene.
These are always extremely difficult choices to make, entirely dependent on very specific contexts. There are some photographers who are driven entirely by a desire to promote their careers, and conflicts zones can often serve them well. The fear of the attackers turning on the photographer should he or she interfere is also a very real factor.
There are many historical precedents both for and against the argument to either intervene or bear impartial witness. The 1971 bayoneting of prisoners in a Bangladeshi stadium in 1971 by Horst Faas and Michel Laurent won them a Pulitzer. The AP photographers were not the only ones there that day.
A Bangladeshi photographer Rashid Talukder only made his images public 20 years after the incident, fearing he would be targeted had he done so at the time.
Magnum photographer Rene Burri walked out of the stadium, believing that the photojournalists’ presence would be a catalyst to the executions.
Correct response: Of those three very different responses to an historic incident of terrible violence, which is correct?
In Oatway’s case, what are we to make of the dilemma he found himself in?
He is a man who has chosen photojournalism as his career, and as such must strive to capture images that make an impact on any given story, yet he has previously shown that he is capable of choosing to save a life rather than take what would have been powerful pictures that would further his ambitions.
At the root of these musings must be the question that addresses the nut of the matter: What was Oatway doing there that morning? Was his task to assist people at risk from xenophobia through direct action, or bear witness to what might happen?
The duty of a photojournalist is to bear witness; to show the world what is happening. Some may hope that this will lead to change, others believe that the act of documentation is of itself sufficient.
Would Oatway sleep better had he been able to save Sithole? Surely the answer is yes, but the photographer’s duty was to capture those searing images and hope that society will act.
Originally appeared as: ‘A South African murder through the lens’.
Courtesy: Aljazeera.com