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India and Bangladesh – The Wall and Fear by Gaël Turine – In 1993, India began building a dividing wall over a distance of 3 200 kilometers [approximately 2000 miles], separating it from neighboring Bangladesh. Officially it was to protect the country from Islamist terrorists and illegal migrants. Here people are arrested, tortured and killed, making this the most dangerous border in the world. Nearly all victims are Bangladeshi citizens trying to cross illegally to the other side, and for any number of reasons – economic, family, health or environmental – as their country suffers from every possible affliction. Here: Hili, West Bengal, India, on the border with Bangladesh. Between rounds by the Border Security Force, two Bangladeshi women cross the wall between the countries. They enter the country empty-handed and leave laden down with smuggled goods. Indian BSF troops accuse the Bangladeshi border guards of letting them through, thus forcing the BSF troops to take more violent action. (Photo by Gaël Turine/Agence VU)
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