Pictures of the Week: March 16, 2012

More excellent photo-journalism from The Denver Post

“Children watch the wax figure of Anne Frank and their hideout reconstruction at Madame Tussauds on March 9, 2012 in Berlin, Germany.

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich reaches over a railing to shake supporters’ hands after his scheduled address to reporters Wednesday, March 14, 2012, in Chicago. The 55-year-old Democrat is due to report to a prison in Colorado on Thursday to begin serving a 14-year sentence, making him the second Illinois governor in a row to go to prison for corruption.

A girl lights candles in front of a temporary shopping complex in the earthquake and tsunami-devastated city of Kesennuma, Iwate prefecture, northeastern Japan, Sunday, March 11 2012, to mark the first anniversary of the massive disaster that devastated Japan’s northeast one year ago.”

1

Children watch the wax figure of Anne Frank and their hideout reconstruction at Madame Tussauds on March 9, 2012 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images) #

2

Ultra Orthodox Jews attend the funeral of Rabbi Moshe Yehoshua Hager, leader of the hassidic sect Vizhnitz in Israel, in Bnei Brak , Ultra Orthodox Jewish town near Tel Aviv, Israel, Wednesday, March 14, 2012. Rabbi Moshe Yehoshua Hager was 95.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty) #

3

A Kalahari Bush woman dances in her traditional hut on February 18, 2012 in Molapo, in the centre of the Kalahari Game Reserve. After winning a long court battle with Botswana’s government, new water wells mean the Bushmen of the Kalahari can now return to their ancestral lands — but with many already adopting the ways of modernity, their legendary desert civilisation may be a thing of the past. AFP PHOTO / STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN #

4 Palestinians inspect a fire at a building on March 14, 2012, after an Israeli air strike on Gaza City. Israel and militants in Gaza began observing an Egyptian-brokered truce on March 13, after four days of violence, which officials on both sides warned could flare up again. AFP PHOTO/MOHAMMED ABED #

SEE MORE HERE

Unicef Photo of the Year 2010

The winners of this year’s Unicef Photo of the Year contest have been announced in Berlin. The prize is awarded to outstanding photos that best depict the personality and living conditions of children

First prize: Ed Kashi, Agency VII, US
Title: Vietnam: The legacy of war
The Vietnam war ended in 1975. The US withdrew their troops and north and south Vietnam were reunited. But for the Vietnamese people the legacy of American warfare continues. US forces used the herbicide Agent Orange to destroy foliage that the north Vietnamese were using as cover. Agent Orange contains dioxins that are known to cause cancer and damage genes. The effects of the toxic substance can be seen among Vietnamese people to this day, such as cancer, immune disorders and severe deformities. According to official estimates, 1.2 million children, including nine-year-old Nguyen Thi Ly, are disabled. In rural areas, the percentage of disabled children is significantly higher than in urban areas

Second prize: Majid Saeedi, Getty Images
Title: Afghanistan: The devastating consequences of civil wars
Approximately 4 million refugees have returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan and Iran and are now trying to settle down again in their home country. Among these refugees was the family of eight-year-old Akram. His family had looked for shelter in the Pakistani city of Peshawar and Akram tried to make money by collecting scraps on a rubbish dump in the city. While rummaging through the rubbish, he accidentally touched a non-insulated cable, which caused severe burns. Both his hands and arms had to be amputated. Akram’s family have now returned to Kabul and he received arm prostheses thanks to the help of the International Red Cross Photograph: Majid Saeedi/Getty Images/UNICEF

Photo of the Year 2010

Third prize: GMB Akash, Panos Pictures
Title: The oldest profession in the world destroys the lives of young girls
Bangladesh-based photographer GMB Akash shows the plight of child prostitutes in Bangladesh, some of whom are extremely young. Young girls in the brothels of the Faridpur region have to take a steroid daily to “plump up”, so they appear older and presumably more attractive. It is the same drug that is also used to fatten cattle. It was originally intended for use by people suffering from arthritis, asthma or allergies. Yasmin, 20, has a puffy face because of the steroid. She has lived in this brothel since she was a child – just like her mother, who worked here as a prostitute for 30 years Photograph: GMB Akash/Panos Pictures/UNICEF Photo of the Year 2010