Bushra Gohar ( ps, بشرا ګوهر; ur, بشریٰ گوہر) is a Pakistani Pashtun politician and a senior leader of the
National Democratic Movement (NDM).
She has served as a member of the
National Assembly of Pakistan from 2008 to 2013. She is an activist in the
Pashtun Tahafuz Movement (PTM), a social movement campaigning for Pashtun human rights. She was formerly the senior vice-president of
Awami National Party (ANP).
Biography
Born in
Swabi
Swabi ( ps, صوابۍ; ur, ) is a city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan,[Pashtun
Pashtuns (, , ; ps, پښتانه, ), also known as Pakhtuns or Pathans, are an Iranian ethnic group who are native to the geographic region of Pashtunistan in the present-day countries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. They were historically r ...](_blank)
family, Gohar studied economics at the
University of Peshawar
The University of Peshawar ( ps, د پېښور پوهنتون; hnd, پشور یونیورسٹی; ur, ; abbreviated UoP; known more popularly as Peshawar University) is a public research university located in Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa ...
and moved to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
where she received master's degree in
human resource management from
Wilmington University in 1991 followed by a
postgraduate certificate in
South Asian Studies from the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...
. On return to Pakistan, she worked as a consultant with
UNDP,
USAID
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...
, and
UKAid. In 2000, Gohar became a member of the
National Commission on the Status of Women, a position she retained until 2003.
Her father, Ali Gohar Khan, was a
Colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...
in the
Pakistan Army.
Two of her paternal uncles, Sher Khan and Bahadur Sher, were Generals in the army, while a third one, Shahnawaz, was also a Colonel.
Political career
She was elected to the
National Assembly of Pakistan as a candidate of
Awami National Party on a reserved seat for women from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in
2008 Pakistani general election.
From 2016 to 2018, she served as the senior vice-president of
Awami National Party until the party suspended her membership.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gohar, Bushra
Living people
Awami National Party politicians
Pakistani MNAs 2008–2013
Women members of the National Assembly of Pakistan
People from Swabi District
Pakistani human rights activists
1961 births
University of Peshawar alumni
University of Pennsylvania alumni
Wilmington University alumni
21st-century Pakistani women politicians
National Democratic Movement (Pakistan) politicians