In 2017, photographer Jonathan Liechti was in the refugee village of Gurku, Nigeria for a few weeks. The refugee village Gurku was born out of an initiative by Markus Gamache of Lifeline Compassionate Global Initiatives (LCGI). LCGI is a partner of Mission 21, and together they support victims of war in Nigeria and promote peace between Christians and Muslims. The terrorist organization Boko Haram is forcing people to flee and dividing Christians and Muslims. The refugee village Gurku is a special project, because here Christians and Muslims live side by side and work through the horrors of war together.
Photographer Jonathan Liechti captured the people in the refugee village with his camera. This has resulted in sensitive portraits that are moving. We are very pleased that he was awarded second place in the category Portraits at the "Swiss Press Photo Award" for his portrait series entitled "By God's Grace".
