Jehangir Hussain :
A B M Rafiqur Rahman, world famous Cameraman of Reuters has won the Ataus Samad Memorial Award 2021.He is the first journalist to win the Ataus Samad Memorial Award. Rafiqur Rahman had earlier bagged Reuters’ ‘Journalist of the Year 2007’ for his extraordinary work during the year.
He was given the award for his brilliant coverage of events in Bangladesh. He is the only journalist from South Asia to win the prestigious Reuters’ award. Rafiqur Rhaman has been working for the international news agency for last 40 years.
He has been a journalist for last 51 years, having worked for now defunct The Bangladesh Times, Bangla daily ‘Banglar Bani and a host of other dailies published from Dhaka.
He is credited for covering political movements, turmoil, devastating cyclones, floods and other catastrophic events. BBC, CNN and other international TV networks took his feed from Reuters.
Over the last two years and a half years Rafiqur Rahman was praised for his coverage of exodus of Rohigyas from Myanmar along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border at least 56 times. Often he had to live along the risky border for weeks together to cover the exodus of the Rohingyas, following persecution in their homeland, Myanmar.
Born in Munshiganj in 1949, he had his education at the famous Collegiate School and Jagannnath University College of Dhaka. He is the only journalist from South Asia to be nominated twice for the Royal Television Society of England, headed by Crown Prince Charles.
He is remembered for his coverage of the 1969 Mass Movement that brought down Pakistan’s first military ruler Field Marshal Ayub Khan. He covered all movements against autocratic rule in Bangladesh. He was a colleague of liberated journalist, the late Ataus samad in now defunct The Bangladesh Times.
In the 1980s, Ataus Samad’s coverage of anti-autocratic rule in Bangladesh for BBC Radio is still fondly remembered by many. Aataus Samad was born in Kishoreganj in 1912 and he died in Dhaka in 2012. His father was a well-known educationist who was posted in different parts of pre-1947 Bengal including in Jalpaiguri.
After attending schools and colleges in Rajshahi, Sylhet and Barisal, he studied at Dhaka University from where he took his B A Honours and later M A in Enlish Literature in 1960. His career as a Reporter began in 1956.
He worked for the Bangla daily, Dainik Sangbad, now defunct Dianik Azad and also defunct The Pakistan Observer, besides a host of other dailies and periodicals. For his objective coverage of events, he was jailed by the late military ruler Lieutent General H M Ershad.
He was the first Correspondent of BSS, National news agency of Bangladesh in New Delhi from 1972 to 1978. He was a part time teacher of journalism at Dhaka University. He was general secretary of East Pakistan Union of Journalists.
In 1993, his collection of columns ‘Ekaler Boyan” was published by the University Press Limited. He is survived by two daughters and a son. His wife Qamrunnahar Renu, a former Librarian of Bangladesh Press Institute died before him.
He was a member of the National Press Club of Bangladesh.
(Jehangir Hussain is a senior journalist. Email: [email protected]).
