Int’l Mother Tongue Journalist Conference declaration hands over to BD envoy

Staff Reporter :

The declaration of the Second International Mother Tongue Journalist Conference, recently held in Kathmandu, has been officially handed over to the Bangladesh Ambassador to Nepal, Md Shafiqur Rahman.

A delegation comprising leaders of the SAARC Journalist Forum (SJF) and the National Forum for Newar Journalists (NFNJ)—the co-organisers of the event—presented the document during a courtesy visit to the Bangladesh Embassy in Kathmandu.

The delegation included SJF Central President Raju Lama, Secretary General Md Abdur Rahman, NFNJ President Nripendra Lal Shrestha, SJF Bangladesh Chapter representative Rafiqul Islam Azad, and NFNJ leader Prajit Shakya.

The declaration outlined key resolutions and commitments to promote linguistic diversity, strengthen cross-border media collaboration, and protect journalists working in mother tongues across South Asia.

The two-day conference, held on June 13–14 to commemorate 101 years of mother tongue journalism, brought together over 100 journalists, including more than 50 from SAARC nations.
Nepal’s Parliament Speaker Dev Raj Ghimire inaugurated the event as chief guest at the National Nature Conservation Trust in Lalitpur. The closing ceremony was graced by Deputy Prime Minister Prakash Man Singh at the Thimi Banquet in Bhaktapur.