Peda Studio, a Nigerian multimedia company and publishers of the popular ‘Chronicles of the Newborn’ and  Amazing Tek Kids’ comics is poised to release another masterpiece into the comic book market.

Titled ‘Under The Sun’, Peda’s new offering is a story highlighting the plight of persons with albinism in Africa.  Set in Zamia (a fictitious African nation), Under The Sun highlights the danger faced by persons with albinism in a continent where supernatural beliefs and witchcraft thrive. We are going to be seeing the horror through the eyes of two children believed to be gifted with “luck” in a time of war, as they lose their homes, families and friends.

According to series creator, Austine Osas, “Under The Sun is our way of drawing attention to the pain and injustice meted out to persons with albinism based solely on the color of their skin. Persons with albinism are normal people like you and me who want to be treated equally with respect. Nobody deserves to be derided, viewed as an abnormality or killed because of the lack of pigment in their skin, hair and eyes.”

“Under The Sun is our way of drawing attention to the pain and injustice meted out to persons with albinism based solely on the color of their skin. Persons with albinism are normal people like you and me who want to be treated equally with respect. Nobody deserves to be derided, viewed as an abnormality or killed because of the lack of pigment in their skin, hair and eyes.”

– Austine Osas, creator of UNDER THE SUN

Speaking further about the project, he reiterated that the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights says that the body parts are traded in a lucrative market for use in witchcraft. Reported prices range from $2,000 for a limb to $75,000 for a corpse.

With background information provided by the Albino Foundation (Nigeria) and Under The Same Sun Foundation (Canadian NGO that promotes the wellbeing of persons with albinism using advocacy and education), the first issue of Under The Sun will be available on the 15th of December 2018 on pedacomics.com and other platforms (print and digital format).

Here’s the synopsis:

In Zamia, an imaginary country in Central Africa, Albinos have been forced to migrate to the island of Kurume in the middle of Lake Tanganyika due to persistent attacks by people and their witch-doctors who use their body parts for rituals. They live peacefully on Kurume for over a century with government approval and protection, until a deadly civil war broke out after the president was assassinated during a failed military coup.

The rebel group led by General Abdul seizes control of the southern part of Zamia after the coup which led to a civil war. As advised by his witch doctor, Baba Jitujeusi, General Abdul embarks on a manhunt for two albino kids believed to be gifted with ‘luck’ and capable of turning the tide of the war in his favor.

The legitimate Government based in the capital city of Wanza and controlled by the Vice President Badr Amne, also receive intelligence on the kids and their special gift. To forestall their falling into rebel hands, the new President makes rescuing them a top priority.

Saida (an eleven-year-old girl) and Tusajigwe (a ten-year-old boy), are ordinary kids with albinism believed to be gifted with ‘luck’. They lose their homes, families, and friends to the rebels and their only hope of staying alive is to evade capture by both warring factions.

Once again, Under The Sun‘s first issue will be available on the 15th of December 2018 on pedacomics.com and other platforms (print and digital format).