Bharat Koirala
Bharat Koirala | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1942 Nepal |
| Counsellor | Asia 1985 - 1990 |
Bharat Koirala (b. 1942) is a Nepalese Bahá’í who has served as a Continental Counselor for Asia. In his professional career he is a prominent journalist in Nepal.
Biography[edit]
Koirala was born in 1942. In his youth he attended the Jesuit school Xavier's School in Kathmandu and became a news analyst for the Nepalese British Embassies Information Service. In 1965 he began working in journalism for the Gorkhapatra Corporation, publisher of the oldest newspaper in Nepal, and he worked for them until 1984.[1]
In 1968 Koirala visited the United States under the International Visitors Program which was sponsored by the U.S. State Department and in 1972 he completed a post-graduate degree at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication in New Delhi.[1] While in India he was introduced to the Bahá’í Faith by a Persian student, Mahsheed, who he married and had two children with. He became an active Bahá’í through his wife and together they were vital to the establishment of the Bahá’í community of Nepal.[2]
In 1976 Koirala became an editor for the daily newspaper Gorkhapatra and he ultimately became the General Manager of the Gorkhapatra Corporation. In his role he made efforts to ensure press freedom which had been guaranteed by the Nepalese government in a 1980 referendum.[1] In 1985 the Universal House of Justice appointed him to the Continental Board of Counselors for Asia for a five year term,[3][4] and he was the first Nepalese Bahá’í to serve on the body.[2]
After leaving the Gorkhapatra Corporation Koirala has worked with private media institutions including the Nepal Press Institute, the Worldview International Foundation, the Himal Association of Media Services International, and the Nepal Forum of Environmental Journalists. His work included training journalists, developing rural communication via newspapers, and developing community radio across Nepal.[1] In 2002 he was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for journalism.[5]
In 2016 Koirala's wife passed. As of 2018 he lives in Kathmandu and he and his children remain active Bahá’ís.[2]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 https://www.martinchautari.org.np/storage/files/sinhas-vol16-no1-book-reviews-harsha-man-maharjan.pdf
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 https://medium.com/@sarwalanil/a-brief-history-of-bah%C3%A1%C3%AD-faith-in-nepal-1856c2b20ba2
- ↑ Baha'i News (December 1985). National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís of the United States. No 657, Pg(s) 1. View as PDF.
- ↑ 25 October 1990 message from the Universal House of Justice to the Bahá’ís of the World
- ↑ "Outstanding Individuals", Philippine Daily Inquirer Aug. 25, 2002.
