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LIFE INSIDE COUNTRIES YOU PROBABLY NEVER KNEW EXISTED
News.com.au, Australia
Dec 9 2014
WHAT does it mean when a nation declares sovereignty, draws lines in
the sand, and sets up a government but lacks the world's recognition?
That's what Narayn Mahon investigated in his series, "Lands in Limbo,"
which went on display at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art in
Wisconsin, USA on December 6.
Between 2006 and 2010, Mahon visited Abkhazia, Northern Cyprus,
Transnistria, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Somaliland, looking for a sense of
"identity and isolation" in places full of patriotism, yet excluded
from the international community.
A resort town in Abkhazia. Picture: argenberg. Source: Flickr
Mahon first became interested in countries with limited or no
international recognition while studying abroad in Poland as an
undergraduate in 2005. He'd visited Ukraine and then, on a train
ride to Moldova, passed through Transnistria -- a state that declared
independence from Moldova in 1990, which is recognised only by three
non-U.N. members. "We got to the border and I was taken off the train.
I was the only non-Moldovan or Ukrainian person on board," he said. "I
got shaken down for whatever cash I had on me from the border guards.
I thought, 'What kind of place is this?' "
The empty coastline of Northern Cyprus. Picture: Ronsaunders47 Source:
Flickr
But Mahon didn't actually visit Transnistria on that trip. The first
state he visited in the winter of 2006, was Nagorno-Karabakh -- a
region that broke away from Azerbaijan in the 1990s. It was cold, he
said, and desolate. Most of the places he saw were scarcely populated
"ghost towns" where he saw the few people living there pulling wood
and cardboard out of abandoned buildings to build fires.
With the exception of Northern Cyprus, which has municipal trash
collection and other government services thanks to support from
nearby Turkey, most of the countries Mahon visited were struggling
like Nagorno -- Karabakh. Still, Mahon said, the countries appeared to
function better than he had anticipated. "Every state had a security
system," he said. "It's not chaos. It's not lawless."
Somaliland is still looking for international recognition. Picture:
YoTuT. Source: Flickr
Getting to these places, however, was a challenge. Most didn't
have airports. And getting visas to visit were complex, roundabout
processes that required special permission from officials in nearby
countries. "Once you're there you have to be careful not to lose your
passport because then you're screwed. There's no U.S. consulate," he
said. "The United States doesn't want you to be there in the first
place. You have to accept those risks and think, 'If something did
happen, how would I get out of here?' "
Once inside the countries, Mahon made an effort to connect with locals
and foreigners from aid organisations to show him around. Mostly,
he felt safe, but he was always suspicious as a foreigner with a
camera: In Abkhazia, he was detained three times in a single day,
and he was detained once in Transnistria while taking pictures at a
military parade.
Transnistria declared its independence from Moldova in 1990. Picture:
Rapidtravelchai. Source: Flickr
While Mahon was curious about the histories and current struggles of
each country, his goal, he said, was not to weigh in on the political
situations there. "I'm not even sure these should be independent
states. I'm not advocating one way or the other. I'm just to help
contribute to broadening peoples' world view and bring something they
might not have known about to their consciousness."
This article originally appeared on Slate and was reproduced with
permission.
http://www.news.com.au/travel/life-inside-countries-you-probably-never-knew-existed/story-e6frfq7r-1227149920258
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
News.com.au, Australia
Dec 9 2014
WHAT does it mean when a nation declares sovereignty, draws lines in
the sand, and sets up a government but lacks the world's recognition?
That's what Narayn Mahon investigated in his series, "Lands in Limbo,"
which went on display at the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art in
Wisconsin, USA on December 6.
Between 2006 and 2010, Mahon visited Abkhazia, Northern Cyprus,
Transnistria, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Somaliland, looking for a sense of
"identity and isolation" in places full of patriotism, yet excluded
from the international community.
A resort town in Abkhazia. Picture: argenberg. Source: Flickr
Mahon first became interested in countries with limited or no
international recognition while studying abroad in Poland as an
undergraduate in 2005. He'd visited Ukraine and then, on a train
ride to Moldova, passed through Transnistria -- a state that declared
independence from Moldova in 1990, which is recognised only by three
non-U.N. members. "We got to the border and I was taken off the train.
I was the only non-Moldovan or Ukrainian person on board," he said. "I
got shaken down for whatever cash I had on me from the border guards.
I thought, 'What kind of place is this?' "
The empty coastline of Northern Cyprus. Picture: Ronsaunders47 Source:
Flickr
But Mahon didn't actually visit Transnistria on that trip. The first
state he visited in the winter of 2006, was Nagorno-Karabakh -- a
region that broke away from Azerbaijan in the 1990s. It was cold, he
said, and desolate. Most of the places he saw were scarcely populated
"ghost towns" where he saw the few people living there pulling wood
and cardboard out of abandoned buildings to build fires.
With the exception of Northern Cyprus, which has municipal trash
collection and other government services thanks to support from
nearby Turkey, most of the countries Mahon visited were struggling
like Nagorno -- Karabakh. Still, Mahon said, the countries appeared to
function better than he had anticipated. "Every state had a security
system," he said. "It's not chaos. It's not lawless."
Somaliland is still looking for international recognition. Picture:
YoTuT. Source: Flickr
Getting to these places, however, was a challenge. Most didn't
have airports. And getting visas to visit were complex, roundabout
processes that required special permission from officials in nearby
countries. "Once you're there you have to be careful not to lose your
passport because then you're screwed. There's no U.S. consulate," he
said. "The United States doesn't want you to be there in the first
place. You have to accept those risks and think, 'If something did
happen, how would I get out of here?' "
Once inside the countries, Mahon made an effort to connect with locals
and foreigners from aid organisations to show him around. Mostly,
he felt safe, but he was always suspicious as a foreigner with a
camera: In Abkhazia, he was detained three times in a single day,
and he was detained once in Transnistria while taking pictures at a
military parade.
Transnistria declared its independence from Moldova in 1990. Picture:
Rapidtravelchai. Source: Flickr
While Mahon was curious about the histories and current struggles of
each country, his goal, he said, was not to weigh in on the political
situations there. "I'm not even sure these should be independent
states. I'm not advocating one way or the other. I'm just to help
contribute to broadening peoples' world view and bring something they
might not have known about to their consciousness."
This article originally appeared on Slate and was reproduced with
permission.
http://www.news.com.au/travel/life-inside-countries-you-probably-never-knew-existed/story-e6frfq7r-1227149920258
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress