Ahmer Khan, independent documentary photographer and a radio journalist based in Indian-administered Kashmir, has won the 2019 Agence France-Presse Kate Webb Prize for his coverage on the ground in occupied Kashmir during Delhi's lockdown of the disputed region.
He was honoured for a series of video and written reports that vividly illustrated the impact on locals in the Muslim-majority area following India's decision to strip occupied Kashmir of its special status in August 2019.
“I would want to dedicate this to my resilient colleagues from the Kashmir journalist corps. I want to express my gratitude to my fellow journalists, editors, friends, family and my mother for their constant support. Your support, love and motivation have kept me on the move,” he wrote on Twitter.
He further said that he would like to give a portion of my prize money to a Kashmiri photojournalist who was forced to do manual labour due to communications blockade in Kashmir.
Ahmer Khan’s work has been published in BBC, AlJazeera, The Guardian, Carnegie Council, The Christian Science Monitor, Getty Images, Foreign Policy, Vice, BuzzFeed, The Diplomat, and many other publications.
He is the correspondent for Radio France International covering south Asia.
The award recognises journalism by locally hired reporters in Asia operating in risky or difficult conditions.
Despite curfews and a heavy security presence, Khan took to the streets with his camera to document the tensions, concerns and frustrations among the residents of Srinagar and other cities in occupied Kashmir.
Ahmer Khan flew in and out of Delhi to file his reports during the shutdown.
The prize will be formally presented at a ceremony in Hong Kong later this year.
