Each and every Pakistani is saluting and wishing all the best to Malala Yousufzai. She has appeared as a bright Pakistani who loves education.
She has conveyed to the world that Pakistan has a promising future. She states: “I am ready to sacrifice even my life to propagate education”. But the question is, where are we?
Pakistan ranks the second with the most out-of-school children in the world with only Nigeria ahead of it.
Over 6.5million children are not enrolled in primary education. Almost 38.91pc of primary age girls are not attending schools.
More alarmingly, Pakistan has reduced its spending on education from 2.6pc to 2.3pc of the GNP. Ghost schools are also thriving.
We should really appreciate Malala’s effort on striving for education and her sword being the pen which we must emulate greatly. We should take steps to promote education, especially for girls.
MUBASHAR HASSNAIN
Multan
An icon
Malala Yousafzai, after the brutal attack by the TTP in Swat, has become the focus of the world.
She was targeted but was saved due to the immediate response of the Pak Army that shifted her to the military hospital at Peshawar and later on to the CMH Rawalpindi.
Malala was then shifted abroad to a well-reputed hospital as she was going through psychological trauma.
During this phase, many religious personalities considered her as a “girl working on a western agenda”.
The response from civil society and the media made Malala an education activist and icon.
There’s no doubt that Malala fought for the cause of education, and for many other girls living in the same valley.
She raised her voice against extremists; she encouraged other girls to seek education with the motto of “one pen, one child, one teacher” in her address to the United Nations assembly held in New York.
Is there just one Malala? Is she the only child who has suffered?
I believe that there are hundreds of Malalas who seek justice and their right to education for the betterment of their life and security.
We should not pay homage to Malala only; we must emulate her example and seek out others who are expecting our help. If we really look around, we would find many more defiant Malalas.
This is a good chance to prove internationally that we are united in supporting the hundreds of Malalas living in our society.
JAVED ALI KALHORO
Islamabad
