On Thursday, a freelance reporter Ahmer Khan was awarded 2019 Agence France-Presse Kate Webb Prize.
Ahmer Khan was honoured for his on the ground coverage in India-controlled Kashmir during Delhi's lockdown of the region, with his video and written reports vividly illustrating the impact on locals during lockdown.
The award, named after one of AFP's finest correspondents, recognises journalism by locally hired reporters in Asia operating in risky or difficult conditions.
"This is a real honour, and a huge motivation to carry on my work with enthusiasm and determination. I want to dedicate this award to the courageous and resilient journalists from Kashmir who have been reporting in extremely difficult conditions for the past six months. This is a collective award," Khan told AFP.
The Kate Webb Prize is named after a crusading AFP reporter who died in 2007 at the age of 64, after a career covering the world's troublespots.
"Reporting from Kashmir at this time has been extremely challenging for everyone, including the established foreign media," said AFP's Asia-Pacific regional director Philippe Massonnet. "For an independent, local journalist those challenges have been far greater, and it is to Ahmer's enormous credit that he managed to provide accurate, high-quality journalism when it was so sorely needed."
