Chwen-Shya Lin | Türkiye
David Yu, a Tzu Chi volunteer and long-time businessman in Türkiye, immerses himself in the depths of suffering, using his camera to document and convey the harsh realities of human suffering. His work aims to awaken those lost in the comfort of their own lives, urging them to extend hands of love and care to rescue those in distress.
As a documenting volunteer, Yu stands behind the camera, recording what he sees and hears in front of it. Yet, when he turns the lens on himself, the scenes before him often bring inner conflicts and challenges. Despite his robust physique, Yu possesses a soft and delicate heart.
Should I Press the Shutter Button?
"The suffering of refugees lies in having neither a home nor a country. All they desire is to escape and find a safe place to live." When speaking about refugees, David Yu, often chokes up and becomes tearful, sharing the untold stories behind his camera.
In the latter half of 2015, Tzu Chi volunteers wanted to document the stories of Syrian children working in Türkiye. But how to film them? Whom to record? Where were the stories? These were challenging questions.
Eventually, they found young Ali, who was attending weekday classes (Monday to Friday) at Tzu Chi’s El Menahil International School and no longer had to work. They decided to use a retrospective narrative to recount Ali's past struggles as a child laborer, hoping to faithfully portray the efforts of refugee children striving to escape their fates.
Before Ali began attending El Menahil School in 2015, he had already worked in a factory for two years. That year, Ali was only eleven years old. His thirteenth birthday gift was to step back into a classroom.
"One day, I wanted to capture the children arriving at school, so I stood at the corner of the school gate, shooting blindly with a long lens," David Yu recalled. Yu admitted that he didn't know the stories behind each child entering the school, nor were his photography skills polished. The best way he could document was through continuous snapshots.
"I saw a child walking into the school. When he noticed I was photographing, I saw him quickly hide the paper bag holding his books behind his back. I thought, 'He must be embarrassed about the bag he was carrying.' This child's gesture made me realize that these suffering children might have struggles in their lives and my camera could harm their self-esteem," Yu said, putting away his camera and becoming more aware of the need to read the room when documenting stories.
That child was young Ali. His unintentional action taught Yu an unforgettable lesson in humanitarian documentation.
Can Interviews Cause Further Harm?
When David Yu began filming, Ali had already transferred to weekday classes at El Menahil.
"I struggled immensely," Yu said, choking up. "To ask refugee children and families to recall their painful pasts of fleeing their homes and child labor is to inflict a second wound. But we have a responsibility to use these stories to evoke more love and awareness of this issue."
"What should I do?"
Yu consulted with Ali's father, Babam Subhi, who had been a teacher since El Menahil’s opening on January 24, 2015. "I told Babam I wanted to film Ali's past work life and asked if he would agree to an interview."
To his surprise, Babam gently replied, "Sure."
They quickly scheduled an interview. Yu recalls that the decision to start recording brought tears to his eyes.
"That day, we arranged to meet at 6 PM in a second-floor classroom. We arrived on time, but I asked Babam to rest downstairs first."
"After setting up the camera and adjusting the lighting, I sat down to gather my thoughts. I was silent for a long time, pondering many questions. I felt a deep sorrow, wondering how I could ask a father about the helplessness of not being able to send his child to school. It felt disrespectful and heartless," Yu said. "As a parent, I imagined how I would feel if my child couldn't attend school."
"We may have a hundred reasons for why we should interview refugees, but without their stories, how can the world understand their true suffering?" Yu's inner conflict was a test of compassion and wisdom. Despite the pain, he pressed on, driven by empathy and a sense of duty.
To learn more about David Yu's moving interviews, stay tuned for next Thursday's feature, "Selfless Giving Amidst Turmoil: David Yu's Journey of Documenting Refugee Struggles."
