World Press Photo Africa winner: ‘This is a victory for all Sudanese’

Sudanese photojournalist Faiz Abubakr, who was named as the winner in the ‘singles’ category for Africa, at the regional stage of the prestigious 2022 World Press Photo Contest last week, says that he considers his unexpected win – a dramatic picture taken during the Sudan Uprising – as a victory for all Sudanese people.

In an interview with Radio Dabanga on Sunday, Abubakr said that the strength of the image which he submitted to the competition “represented in the rebellion’s physical arousal,” capturing the moment that a woman protestor hurled a flaming tear gas canister back as the riot police.

He explained that as he was close to the events of the revolution, it enabled him to document the moment well. “I was impressed by the picture after returning home and sorting it,” he said. “I tried to share it with the world to show the strength of Sudanese women and their prominent role in the Sudanese revolution”.

‘I tried to share it with the world to show the strength of Sudanese women and their prominent role in the Sudanese revolution…’

Abubakr said that he did not expect to win first place for Africa in the regional phase of the international competition. He described the moment he heard of his victory as “an indescribable feeling”. He considers it “a great achievement in the course of his life. This is a victory for all Sudanese people and it represents a great motivation for Sudanese photojournalists.”

Abubakr told Radio Dabanga of his fear that every time he covers a demonstration, he is not sure whether he will get home safely, as he expects to be detained at any moment by the security services. He points out that right up to the present day, there are great risks facing journalists and activists during protests, especially in light of the systematic targeting by the security services of the press and journalists.

World Press Photo Contest

The World Press Photo Contest, based in Amsterdam in the Netherlands, recognises and celebrates the best photojournalism and documentary photography of the previous year. This year the winners were chosen out of 64,823 photographs and open format entries, by 4,066 photographers from 130 countries.

The 65th Contest followed a new regional strategy, independent specialised regional and global juries decided on the 2022 regional winners, for each of the four categories; Singles, Stories, Long-Term Projects, and Open Format.

Previously, an image by Japanese Agence France-Presse (AFP) photographer Yasuyoshi Chiba (see below) of a young man, illuminated by mobile phones, reciting protest poetry while demonstrators chant slogans calling for civilian rule during a blackout in Khartoum on June 19 2019, was named as World Press Photo of the Year 2020.

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