Jananayak B P Koirala Memorial Trust i Govt. Regd. No. 426/057/058 After all, what is politics? It is the management of men. A dictatorship manages them as chattels. Democracy is the management of the people through an institution representing their own will. - B P Koirala Introduction Jananayak B P Koirala Memorial Trust (B P Trust) is a non-profitable and non-partisan organization. It has been established in the memory of late B P Koirala in 2000 AD, who stands as the trailblazer of democracy and development who blazed the democratic trail in the country and made it enter into modernity from medieval period. He was the first democratically elected Prime Minister of Nepal and the founder of Nepali Congr Party. Mr. ess Koirala, the founder of the pa helmsman of Nepalese democratic movement,rty andstruggled, sacrificed and devoted his life for the great cause of the democracy and social justice in Nepal. The establishment of the Trust in his memory can be considered as a remarkable step in appropriate direction. Mr. Koirala established and led Nepali Congress, since 1947, fought against one- century-old autocratic Rana regime. Koirala led popular movement that transformed Nepali society into a democratic one in 1951. Even amidst political upheavals after the change, he successfully led the Nepali Congress that won landslide victory in the first ever-democratic election held in 1959. On his election as the Prime Minister he was congratulated for his success to form a unique inclusive cabinet which stands as a model till today. B P Koirala started his political career in India, where he joined the independence movement led by Mahatma Gandhi as a dedicated cadre of Indian Socialist Party. He believed that democracy is indivisible and Nepal’s democratic future would have only been possible once India would get her independence from British Rule. The family rule of Ranas had a relation with British India. Being a son of brave and ideal father, Krishna Prasad Koirala, who was also a dedicated Gandhian leader and had contributed to Indian Independence Movement, BP was arrested and given a rigorous imprisonment by Ranas and the then King Mahendra for twelve years in Nepal and more than two years in Indian Jail by British India. Altogether, he spent fourteen years of his life in solitary confinement. Sundarijal Jail, where BP Koirala spent 8 years of his total 14 years imprisonment In addition to his friendly association with freedom fighters of Independence Movement of India, such as Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Ram Manohar Lohia, Jaya Prakash Narayan, Jagjivan Ram and others, Koirala also had a close intimacy with World’s Socialist leaders like Willy Brandt (former Chancellor of West Germany), Clement Attlee (former Prime Minister of England) to name a few. Nonetheless, he had also supported democratic movements in Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar (the then Burma) and elsewhere in the world as he considered the indispensibility of democracy. He was the vice-president of Socialist International and as one of the founders of Asian Socialist Conference. Mr. Koirala participated actively in the first bureau meeting of the Conference in Tokyo, Japan 1954. He did his best to organize Kathmandu bureau meeting of the Conference in 1958 that was the first of such international conference in Nepal. As a leader of these institutions, Mr. Koirala had delivered messages of peace, freedom, social justice and ideals of humanity which were wholeheartedly revered by the then world community and is still regarded as an ideal footprints for the democratic socialists in the present day world. As Prime Minster, he maintained the best of relations with the immediate neighbors- India and China. Galvanizing the traditional relations into modern with the people at the center of governance, his government widened the areas of cooperation and developed relationship with the United Kingdom and the USA. He diversified Nepal's diplomatic relations with various countries of the world including Israel, Austria, Singapore and Pakistan. Nepal was the first country in the region to welcome the establishment of Israeli Embassy in Kathmandu in 1960. Such was the speed that in eighteenth months, the Koirala government established diplomatic relations with eighteenth countries. B P Koirala's message to the world community regarding the role of the United Nations to uphold the principles of multi-polar world proved to be farsighted. Addressing the 15th regular session of United Nations General Assembly as the first Prime Minister of Nepal, Mr. Koirala had stressed the representation of China in the world organization as he remarked - "Mr. President, I cannot help out referring to the question of the representation of China, which stands in a class by itself. In our opinion, the United Nations can neither become universal nor can it reflect the political realities existing in the world today until the People's Republic of China is given its rightful place in the organization". B P Koirala called upon the United Nations to turn its attention increasingly towards the solution of the pressing economic problem in various regions. He told the UNGA then, "it is the economic disparity between the rich and the poor people within the nations that is the source of much friction and tension". It is the pride of Jananayak B P Koirala Memorial Trust (BP Trust) to promote the idea of B P Koirala, as a champion of the underdeveloped and developing country's leadership. BP Trust works in cooperation with Nepal Government, particularly the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA), the line ministries with which it has a direct program- link. In course of pursuing its aims and objectives, it has been working in collaboration with similar NGOs, INGOs and other social organizations. Aim To promote and strengthen social democratic values and governance based on equity and justice thereby contributing in the nation building tasks and abide by the ideals of international peace and understanding Objectives Major objectives of the Trust are: • To organize or support to the values and principles of B P Koirala stood for, celebrate B P Koirala's Birth Day, Memorial Day and other historical days such as Rastriya EkataTatha Melmilap Diwas/National Unity and Reconciliation Day, Democracy Day among others • To organize or support to conduct seminars, research, workshops, lectures, symposiums and trainings promoting social democratic values, peace and development • To build network with national and international social and volunteer institutions working in the areas of democracy, peace and development • To conduct or support to organize campaigns such as advocacy in the areas such as social democracy, freedom, peace and civil rights • To promote the cause of social justice projected by B P Koirala • To organize or support to conduct programs of sustainable community development in order to uplift the well-being of socially and economically deprived and backward people particularly women and children, Dalits and marginalized people across the country • To establish or support to run library, research centers, rehabilitation center, health and educational enterprises and to establish memorials of acclaimed democratic leaders who struggled and sacrificed their whole life for democratic values and idealogy in Nepal and abroad • To publish and promote works of B P Koirala, PhD dissertations related to BP and his ideals and principles and souvenirs prepared by individual, university students or various organizations on the life and works of Koirala Rt. Hon. Prime Minister Mr. S. Koirala with veteran democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 2014 Regular Programs This Trust organizes programs on following date on an annual basis: a) Birth Day Ceremony of B P Koirala (Bhadra 24/September 7) b) Memorial Day of B P Koirala (Srawan 6/ July 20) c) Rastriya Ekata Tatha Melmilap Diwas/ National Unity and Reconciliation Day (Poush 16/ December 29) d) B P Koirala Lecture Series (Lectures would be delivered by national and international eminent personalities.) e) Felicitation and honor to one of the veteran literary figure of Nepal with 'B P Koirala Sahitya Samman' (B P Koirala Literary Award) and cash Rs. 1, 00,000 (Nepali Rupees One Lakh) (Bhadra 24/ September 7) f) Collection of Royalties from different organizations (including Sajha Prakashan, Nepal) on behalf of B P Koirala (The Trust is the only legal institution approved by the Government of Nepal) Publications of the Trust Past Activities/Achievements Since its establishment, Trust has been organizing various programs in course of pursuing its aims and objectives. Some of them include: a) On 13-14 June 2014, the Trust organized a Two Day International Conference to celebrate B P Koirala Centenary Year (2014-15) on 'Relevance of Social Democracy'. On the occasion, the Prime Minister and Chairman of BP Trust Mr. Shushil Koirala invited Nobel Peace Prize winner Ms. Aung San Suukyi, a veteran democratic leader of Myanmar (Burma) on the occasion as the chief and distinguished speaker. She delivered speech on the relevance of social democracy in the contemporary world. In the conference, scholars and dignitaries from India, Indonesia and Germany presented the papers and ambassadors and head of commissions based in Kathmandu who had taken part in the conference had substantially participated in discussion. b) On Bhadra 24, 2071 (September 7, 2014) B P Koirala Sahitya Samman (B P Koirala Literary Award) was offered to a senior poet and lyricist Ratna Samsher Thapa for his outstanding contribution to Nepali literature. The award worth cash Rs. 1,00,000 was distributed by Rt. Honorable Prime Minister and Chairman of the Trust Sushil Koirala. On the occasion, Mr. Nutan Thapaliya, a veteran freedom fighter and human right activist, was honored by BP Senani Samman 2071 for the first time. Similarly, twelve scholars who penned their PhD dissertations on the works and life of B P Koirala, were also honored.