KUALA LUMPUR, March 19 — Two years ago, Malaysia went into its first lockdown. Overnight everything shut down; offices, shops and even our borders.

Our photographers continued to take pictures of what was happening during the various lockdowns, reopenings and everything in between. 

But which were the pictures that touched them the most? The scenes that stood out for them.

Here Firdaus Latif (with the help of reporter Shahrin Aizat Noorshahrizam) tells us why these three pictures moved him the most: 

Burying loved ones lost to Covid-19

The first picture showed family members taking a picture of a board which marks the grave of a Covid-19 victim so they can find the grave when they next visit. 

This was at Selat Klang Muslim cemetery in Port Klang, Selangor. The cemetery is dedicated to Covid-19 victims and has only been in use since mid-2021 after a nearby cemetery located just a few hundreds metres away became full.

Every evening around six o’clock, press photographers will stand outside the cemetery with the family members. It felt so devastating.

The line of hearses — sometimes 10 and at times up to 20 — would arrive and the dead buried till around eight o’clock.

No family members were allowed to enter the cemetery compound and the workers from the municipal council and district health office who handled the funerals were in Personal Protection Equipment (PPEs).

Have a good day at school

A mother kissing her daughter after dropping her off at school. — Picture by Firdaus Latif

A mother kissing her daughter before sending her off to school is not that unusual except here, both had their masks on.

This was taken on March 1, 2021 on the first day of physical schooling for Standard One and Two.

You can just imagine the mother’s feelings: to send her daughter to school so she can get educated or keep her home to protect her from Covid-19.

However, we need to live with the virus. We need to adapt.

Vaccinated at last

Members of the Mah Meri tribe get their first Covid-19 jab in Pulau Carey. — Picture by Firdaus Latif

This was a mobile vaccination centre at Sungai Bumbun in Pulau Carey and people there including members of the Mah Meri tribe were getting their first Covid-19 vaccine dose.

There was a jovial crowd of women queuing for their turn to take pictures with the placards to commemorate their inoculations.

Despite being excited about posing with the placards, the group of middle-aged women did not have any smartphones or cameras.

So I stepped out and took a picture of their proudest moment receiving their first dose of Covid-19 vaccine despite picking a wrong placard — Lengkap dos kedua (Second dose completed).