Ramin Mazur

Ramin Mazur was selected for the 2019 European Press Prize shortlist with ‘The Drums of Democracy‘

Ramin was born on the left bank of river Dniester in the Moldovan Soviet Republic. Since 1991, the territory now known as Transnistria is an unrecognised, self-declared state. Graduating in Journalism from the Moldovan State University in Chisinau, he worked for different print outlets as a photo reporter. The lack of appreciation for photojournalism in local media pushed him to start working on independent projects and series. After participating in the “Human Rights and Photography Magnum Foundation Scholarship” he focused mostly on independent storytelling by capturing how Moldova and nearby countries deal with transition.

Ramin is part of the Are We Europe Collective, which was founded to support emerging creative talent in Europe and promote cross-border storytelling.

Forbidden Stories

Forbidden Stories has won the 2019 European Press Prize Special Award with ‘Forbidden Stories‘

Forbidden Stories is a non-profit project founded by Freedom Voices Network. We are a network of journalists whose mission is to continue and publish the work of other journalists facing threats, prison, or muder.

Our goal is to keep their stories alive and to make sure a maximum number of people have access to uncensored news on such crucial topics as the environment, health, human rights, or corruption.

By protecting and continuing the work of reporters who can no longer investigate, we can send a powerful signal to enemies of the press: even if you succeed in stopping a single messenger, you wil not stop the message.

41 years ago, reporter Don Bolles was killed in a car explosion in Phoenix, USA. His murder left his investigation on land fraud unfinished. 38 journalists from 28 newspapers and television stations from all over the United States decided to work together to complete the work of Don Bolles. This collaboration should inspire us today.