Friday, April 15, 2011

Somaliland: A Land In Limbo

Men change money in central Hargeisa. Somaliland has it's own currency — the Somaliland shilling. It takes stacks of shillings to equal one U.S. dollar, and piles of shillings are seen throughout the city, often transported by wheelbarrow. Theft in Somaliland is rare and there are few reservations about having so much money out in the open.


Mahon traveled to Somaliland in 2008 and 2009 to document its political, cultural, and social landscape. His second trip was on a grant from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, and he teamed up with a writer and fixer to navigate the country. Ironically, Mahon says it was when he was traveling alone in 2008 that he was able to make the most meaningful images. He said he felt more free to move about the country, and had better intimate access into people's lives.


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