After his photography studies at the school of Vevey in Switzerland, Jean-Pierre Laffont, born in Algiers in 1935, returned to Algeria in 1960. Infantry officer of the school of Cherchell, he was assigned to M’Zaourat in the region of Mascara and took command of a section of 48 harkis to ensure “the maintenance of order” in this difficult region. With the help of the Foreign Legion, he built a post and the village school. With his pay he bought notebooks, pencils, books and maps of geography, had a military teacher appointed and organized the regular visits of a doctor and a postman, thus improving village life. For his humanitarian actions, Jean Pierre Laffont received the Cross of Military Valor.
These photographs by Jean-Pierre Laffont are exclusively at Roger-Viollet.
Agence Roger-Viollet
6, rue de Seine
75006 Paris
