The second China International Press Photo Contest (CHIPP) is to be held in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province, from March to May 2006, the organizers said Friday morning.

The contest, which is organized by the Photojournalism Society of China (CPS) and sponsored by the Shenzhen Association for International Cultural Exchanges and Shenzhen Press Group, follows the same theme as this year's contest, which is "Peace & Development".

The CHIPP jury will be made of 13 members, five from the Chinese mainland, one from Taiwan, and seven from overseas countries, all of whom are experienced photojournalists.

Awards will be given in eight categories, including "spot news", "general news", "sport news", and "economic and technological news". Each category will have a top-prize winner, which will compete for the sole prize of "Photo of the Year".

The first CHIPP, which was held in March 2005, received 21,627 entries from 1,765 photographers and photojournalists from 76 countries and regions.

"Wounded Iraqi Boys" by photographer Fares AL-DLIMI working for Agency France-Press in Iraq's Fallujah scooped last year's "Photo of the Year", swaying the jury with its strong visual impact rendered by a grimace of an Iraqi boy wounded during a U.S. air strike on Iraq.

Yu Ning, head of CPS, said the organization will make efforts to run the international event better and turn CHIPP into a contest with an international reputation.

(Xinhua News Agency December 24, 2005)