Rahman Bunairee, 2010 winner
Bunairee put his and his family’s life on the line to report on the deadly struggle between Pakistani troops and militants in Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP) regions of Pakistan for VOA’s Deewa Service.
In July of 2009, militants took exception to Bunairee’s reporting and bombed his family’s home in the Pakistani district of Buner. After hiding in Karachi and then Islamabad, Bunairee fled to the United States where he was granted asylum and continues to work for VOA from its headquarters in Washington D.C.
“After hiding in Karachi and then Islamabad, Bunairee headed to the United States for a one-year appointment to VOA headquarters,” said BBG Governor Blanquita Cullum. “[Bunairee] continues his reporting on the situation in Pakistan border region from the United States.”
Rahman Bunairee is an award-winning journalist, poet and writer. Prior to November 2009, he was based in the Pakistani port city of Karachi. Bunairee also worked for a leading Pakistani Pashto television channel AVT Khyber/Khyber News as a Station Manager and Deputy Director News. Bunairee was a contributor to the Pashto magazine Jaras and various Urdu-language newspapers including Weekly Roshan Pakistan. As a journalist, Bunairee has worked on issues related to international politics, terrorism, the Afghan war, human rights, women and development issues in the region.
Since being based in DC, Bunairee has raised thought-provoking issues in his signature weekly show Washington to Khyber, a special show for the FATA people.