Malala - From Hope to Pride
October 10, 2014: I am really happy today. I know the majority of people in Pakistan are also happy because Malala Yousufzai, the champion of girls' education has won the coveted Nobel Peace Prize 2014 along with an Indian child rights activist Shri Kailash Satyarthi.
But it is also a fact that many in Pakistan are not happy at all because they always find a conspiracy if the West supports any good cause or a person. At the time when Taliban terrorists attacked Malala in Mangora KPK in 2012 when she along with other girl students was returning in the school van, many such people in Pakistan thought it was not Taliban terrorists but CIA or RAW agents who attacked her, even though Taliban spokesperson had accepted the responsibility and also resolved to attack her again. Two other girls were also injured due to the firing. These same people then raised objections that why Malala is receiving such huge international attention when two other girls were also injured in the attack. Although those two girls also received medical treatment the main target of the attack was Malala, whom the Taliban thought was a threat to their nefarious designs. Taliban central leader Adnan Rashid even wrote a letter to Malala after her speech at the United Nations and advised her to take admission to an Islamic Madressah. He clarified that the Taliban were not against education, but this type of Western education. “Taliban believed that you were intentionally writing against them and running a smearing campaign to malign their efforts to establish an Islamic system in Swat. Your writings were provocative,” he stated in the letter.
Sometimes I feel sad that our people in Pakistan have become so saddest and narrow-minded that they always find some sort of conspiracy in every good thing that happens to some anti-Taliban elements. I still did not expect such stupidity from the educated masses, who are even sad on the occasion that a Pakistani daughter had received such a big laurel.
This is an unusual occasion in our lives at the turn of history as overall there is overwhelming happiness across the country. But social media websites, Twitter and FaceBook, are also full of such shits against Malala, which is really amazing and unfortunate.
Even some so-called broadminded people write anti-Malala comments and apologetic posts, that I sometimes beat my head. An old friend of mine who happens to be a journalist with a PhD in Mass Communication from a foreign university wrote a comment on one of my posts: "systematically disgracing Pakistan as a country where girls are not allowed to get an education; so why the majority of medical graduates are girls... CIA zindabad. NGObaaz paindabaad!"
This was just a personal example. Here is another example: There is a group on Face Book called "Pakistani Freethinkers" which is run by a group of unknown moderators, one of them is Mr Ghulam Rasool. He congratulates Pakistanis on Malala's winning Nobel with a big "But" and raises questions about why Maulana Edhi was not given this award.
I write this blog not to criticise anyone because it is an occasion of celebrations and I am really happy and rejoice.
Two years back Taliban terrorists attacked Malala in her hometown Mangora in Swat because she had waged a peaceful 'crusade' for girls' education and her crusade against Taliban's attacks on schools especially girls' schools had raised many eyebrows in Pakistan. Taliban were angry because a frail girl was speaking against them and their bombing of schools in the media and the world was listening to her attentively. She not only challenged the Taliban's anti-education activities in Swat valley but during their control and terror's reign in the valley she wrote a student's diary with a pen name Gulmakai for BBC Urdu noting the impressions of a school child on the fearful situation in the valley. After the Army operation in Swat and Malakand in 2008, Malala revealed the fact that she was actually Gulmakai, since then her family started receiving threats from the Taliban.
The Government of Pakistan recognised her services when an international children's advocacy group KindsRights Foundation nominated her for the International Children's Peace Prize, for her courageous writings. Although she did not receive that international award, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan Yousuf Raza Gilani decorated her with National Youth Peace Prize in 2012.
It was actually a turning point in Malala's life. She became a celebrity as the media started paying attention to her. Many channels did packages on her life and activities and a few TV channels invited her to their morning programmes. She also came to Karachi along with her father Ziaur Rehman in early 2012 to attend a morning show by a leading TV channel. They stayed in PILER's hostel at Gulshan-e-Maymar for a couple of days. We had many interactions with Malala and her father Ziaur Rehman and a formal meeting was also arranged on January 4, 2012, with the PILER staff in which she read out a page of her diary. (Watch the video:)
Again they visited Karachi when the Sindh provincial government announced a cash award of Rs. 500,000 and named a government school at Burns Road after Malala's name. During that visit, she had inaugurated the nameplate of that school. We again held many interactions with her and her father. A function was also organised in her honour at PILER. This time about 100 children of the flood affectees' school at the nearby Labour Square Camp attended and listened to her speech. She gave an impressive talk to the children. I am convinced that her father is the main force behind her grooming and above all her successes.
Unfortunately, she was seriously injured in October 2012 in a terrorist attack by the Taliban in Mangora, Swat. It was really a very depressing moment for many of us. I wrote a blog on 10th October 2012 "Malala: An icon of courage and hope" and interestingly exactly two years after that (on 10 October 2014) I am writing another blog on her winning the Nobel Peace Prize 2014.
Today things have changed in Pakistan. Now Taliban are on the run as they are facing the worst kind of situation in Pakistan because Pakistan Army has launched operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan, their stronghold. Hundreds of Taliban terrorists have reportedly been killed and the key terrorists and leaders have either left Pakistan and are hiding in Afghanistan or they are living in other tribal areas in disguising. But still, the threat of terrorism exists in Pakistan as suicide bombing and other terrorist activities are happening in different parts of the country.
Malala should not return to Pakistan at least for the period she completes her education. She has still many threats and the conditions in Pakistan are not favourable for her. A section of the society is not happy as they are mostly Taliban apologists. Swat valley is still not so free from terrorists and safe, even though Army has restored peace and tourism in the valley has resumed.
It is pity that two Pakistani have received Nobel Peace Prize and both were unable to return to their countries. Dr. Abdus Salam received Nobel Price in Physics in 1979, but because he was Qadiani and in 1977 Pakistan's parliament declared Qadianis as "Non-Muslims." Now Malala has received, but she has a life threat from the Taliban.
In the end, I again wish Malala big success in all her endeavours for improving education in developing countries including Pakistan.
