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Remembering Sumy Sadurni: A photographer known for capturing essence of East Africa

By Grace Widyatmadja
Published March 9, 2022 at 1:18 AM PST
A girl poses for a portrait while standing next to a cow in Nakaprit on Feb. 15, 2020. Nakaprit is home to traditional pastorialists who depend on their cattle for survival and with the threat of locust invasions, locals are worried the vegetation will be destroyed and their cows wont be able to feed.
Sumy Sadurni
/
AFP via Getty Images
A girl poses for a portrait while standing next to a cow in Nakaprit on Feb. 15, 2020. Nakaprit is home to traditional pastorialists who depend on their cattle for survival and with the threat of locust invasions, locals are worried the vegetation will be destroyed and their cows wont be able to feed.

On Monday night, photojournalist Sumy Sadurni was killed in a car accident. She is remembered for her powerful coverage of the East Africa region.

On Monday night, photojournalist Sumy Sadurni was killed in a car accident. Sumy Sadurni was a 32-year-old Spanish-Mexican freelance photojournalist based in Kampala, Uganda. She was known for her striking coverage across East Africa capturing the conflict as well as the essence of the region and its people.

Here's a look into some of the work that she leaves behind.

People look for cover when these dusty gushes of wind happen, Karamoja, Uganda, Feb. 2017. Photographer, Sumy Sadurni, travelled to Northern Uganda to capture how the Karamajong tribe live. The nomadic tribe are famous for their elaborate scar patterns, athletic prowess and beautiful woman, but Sumy wanted to focus on how the climate change has affected their lives in a big way.
/ Sumy Sadurni/Future Publishing via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/Future Publishing via Getty Images
People look for cover when these dusty gushes of wind happen, Karamoja, Uganda, Feb. 2017. Photographer, Sumy Sadurni, travelled to Northern Uganda to capture how the Karamajong tribe live. The nomadic tribe are famous for their elaborate scar patterns, athletic prowess and beautiful woman, but Sumy wanted to focus on how the climate change has affected their lives in a big way.
Stella Nyanzi, center, a prominent Ugandan activist and government critic, is arrested by police officers as she organised a protest for more food distribution by the government to people who has been financially struggling by the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Kampala, on May 18, 2020.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Stella Nyanzi, center, a prominent Ugandan activist and government critic, is arrested by police officers as she organised a protest for more food distribution by the government to people who has been financially struggling by the nationwide lockdown imposed to curb the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus in Kampala, on May 18, 2020.
Medical staff are sterilized before entering the isolation unit at a hospital in Bundibugyo, western Uganda, on Aug. 17, 2018, where there is one suspected case of Ebola. The hospital in Bundibugyo town is the main facility in the Bundibugyo district for treatment of potential cases.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Medical staff are sterilized before entering the isolation unit at a hospital in Bundibugyo, western Uganda, on Aug. 17, 2018, where there is one suspected case of Ebola. The hospital in Bundibugyo town is the main facility in the Bundibugyo district for treatment of potential cases.
Ugandan musician-turned-politician Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, center, greets supporters as he sets off on his campaign trail towards eastern Uganda, near Kayunga, on Dec. 1, 2020.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
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Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Ugandan musician-turned-politician Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, center, greets supporters as he sets off on his campaign trail towards eastern Uganda, near Kayunga, on Dec. 1, 2020.
A man looks on as swarms of locusts land and feed on shea trees, which are a big source of food and income for local farmers, in Otuke on Feb. 17, 2020.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
A man looks on as swarms of locusts land and feed on shea trees, which are a big source of food and income for local farmers, in Otuke on Feb. 17, 2020.
A protester is arrested by police during a demonstration on July 11, 2018 in Kampala to protest a controversial tax on the use of social media.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
A protester is arrested by police during a demonstration on July 11, 2018 in Kampala to protest a controversial tax on the use of social media.
Arthur Blick Junior, one of Uganda's most well known racers,jumps with his bike at a motocross rally in Entebbe, on Jan. 30, 2022.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
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Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Arthur Blick Junior, one of Uganda's most well known racers,jumps with his bike at a motocross rally in Entebbe, on Jan. 30, 2022.
Jombi, left, and Mukasa, right, prepare kerosene lamps which will be used to attract the silverfish at night on the Nile river in Bujagali, Uganda, on Nov. 12, 2020. Fishermen in Uganda using more traditional fishing methods have been struggling to financially sustain themselves due to the lack of clients, which was caused by lockdowns imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Jombi, left, and Mukasa, right, prepare kerosene lamps which will be used to attract the silverfish at night on the Nile river in Bujagali, Uganda, on Nov. 12, 2020. Fishermen in Uganda using more traditional fishing methods have been struggling to financially sustain themselves due to the lack of clients, which was caused by lockdowns imposed to curb the spread of COVID-19 coronavirus.
Margaret Labol, 50, who lost 15 family members and her husband, a Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) soldier, during the Lukodi massacre caused by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in 2004, poses for a portrait in front of the memorial for the victims of the massacre in Lukodi, Uganda, Feb. 3, 2021.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Margaret Labol, 50, who lost 15 family members and her husband, a Uganda People's Defence Force (UPDF) soldier, during the Lukodi massacre caused by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) in 2004, poses for a portrait in front of the memorial for the victims of the massacre in Lukodi, Uganda, Feb. 3, 2021.
Supporters of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) parade as they wait for the arrival of the re-elected Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on his way back from his country home in Kampala, on Jan. 21, 2021.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
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Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
Supporters of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) parade as they wait for the arrival of the re-elected Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on his way back from his country home in Kampala, on Jan. 21, 2021.
A Congolese man holds his child after he crossed the border from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to be refugees at Nteko village in western Uganda on Jan. 24, 2018.
/ Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
/
Sumy Sadurni/AFP via Getty Images
A Congolese man holds his child after he crossed the border from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to be refugees at Nteko village in western Uganda on Jan. 24, 2018.

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Grace Widyatmadja
Grace Widyatmadja is a photo editing intern working with NPR's visuals desk and Goats & Soda.
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