Photo/Illutration Alice said she always asked her mother, Justine, about her father, but she would avoid telling her. When she finally learned about the circumstances of her conception, she said, “Inside I was sad but at the same time I was happy to know that truth.” (Provided by Akaaka Art Publishing Inc.)

Mass rape on a scale that defies imagination and countless children born out of brutal sexual assault. A second book by Israeli photographer Jonathan Torgovnik that laid bare this side of the Rwandan genocide almost didn’t see the light of day.

His first work, “Intended Consequences: Rwandan Children Born of Rape,” featured 30 women who were raped during the 1994 genocide and their children.

After a return visit to Rwanda, Torgovnik compiled past and present portraits of 16 of these mother-and-child pairs.

The collection of photos, “Disclosure: Rwandan Children Born of Rape,” was recently published in Japan. Printed in Japanese and English, the book is available for a global audience.

The genocide claimed more than 800,000 lives in the eastern African nation, and an estimated 20,000 children were born as a result of rape, according to the book.

In 2018, Torgovnik revisited Rwanda, 12 years after his initial trip, to interview and photograph some of the mother-and-child pairs. He turned to publishers to get his new project into the public eye, but they all declined citing difficulties in their industry.

Enter Mariko Takeuchi, a 48-year-old photo critic, who offered herself as editor of the photo book and translator of its text.

Her story with “Disclosure” originates from a chance encounter 11 years ago with “Intended Consequences” in France.

The book also contains interviews with the mothers and makes the point that many women became social outcasts in their communities and contracted AIDS as a result of being raped.

One woman said she could not bring herself to love her child no matter how hard she tried. Another had intended to kill her baby but ended up loving it the moment she saw it.

“The accounts given despite a heavy silence and the strength of the mothers were far more compelling than I had ever imagined,” said Takeuchi, who teaches the history of photography at Kyoto University of the Arts and has organized photo exhibitions.

Takeuchi threw herself into getting “Intended Consequences” published in a Japanese edition. The book came out in 2010, made a stir and was reprinted.

Torgovnik at one point almost gave up hope that his new book would ever be published and turned to Takeuchi for advice.

She decided that the project would make more of an impact globally if it was published bilingually and raised about 3.5 million yen ($33,000) on a crowdfunding platform in February.

“Disclosure,” the sequel to “Intended Consequences,” features excerpts of interviews not only with the mothers but also with their children, who now are adults.

One young man told Torgovnik that his life was thrown abruptly into an abyss when he learned about the circumstances of his birth.

One mother said she had been able to shed the memories of the past by telling the truth to her daughter.

“This photo book testifies to the extraordinary strength of those who have survived extreme conditions,” Takeuchi said. “I hope it will reach people around the world and provide someone, one day, with motivation for life.”

“Disclosure: Rwandan Children Born of Rape” carries the imprint of Akaaka Art Publishing Inc. and a price tag of 3,850 yen ($36).

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