The Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum International Photography Award (HIPA) has concluded the April edition of the Instagram Photo Contest themed ‘Solidarity’. Five winners were announced for the competition, which received submissions under the hashtag #HIPAContest_Solidarity. The contest winners hailed from; Indonesia and Iraq. April’s ‘People’s Choice Award’ winner will receive a brand new NIKON D7500 SLR, courtesy of Nikon Middle East and Africa.

HIPA Secretary General, His Excellency Ali bin Thalith said, “The whole world is facing a difficult challenge, and in these circumstances, people need someone who reassures them and makes them feel hopeful and comfortable. Many nations have experienced different types of challenges and have managed to overcome them in a spirit of cooperation, solidarity and determination to succeed. We enjoyed seeing examples embodying solidarity with great visual styles. Congratulations as always to our winners, and we look forward to even more of our community getting involved in next month’s competition.”

Winner of the ‘People’s Choice Award’ was DESRIAN ERISTHA @yangpenting_foto from Indonesia and he said, “The photo was taken in March 2016, during a flood in Padang, West Sumatra. The army, police and volunteers were working to evacuate the affected citizens. It was not easy, as the photo required me to wade into waters about a meter deep. The photo shows a man from West Sumatra who expresses solidarity with and helps the affected people. This is not my first win, but happiness overwhelms me because this competition is world-renowned, and winning it will support my career and get new friends from photographers in other countries, as well as support my goal of photographing ‘West Sumatra’ to the world.”

The Iraqi winner, Mortadha Imad Al Chaab @mortadaphotos said, “The photo was taken in Baghdad in 2019 during anti-government protests by a group of solidarity youth. I have won many social media competitions before, but the taste of this win is different and will help me in developing my photography skills and achieving my ambition to achieve the best levels of visual performance."

Full list of winners: