"I have a dream... I must be a politician to save this country."
-Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai's story is one of hope, of courage and most importantly, of never giving in to fear. All of fifteen, she has achieved enough to be counted as one of the world's youngest women's rights champion. She embodies the resounding voice of the girl child amidst the din of fired gunshots. She sparkles with hope, standing out among the rubble strewn valleys of the Taliban reign. Suffice to say, the world has not seen a soul as genuine as hers in a very long time indeed.
Malala's sojourn to defy the Taliban began in 2009, when she was only a seventh grader. Back then, she was offered by the BBC Urdu to write her very own blog under the pseudonym 'Gul Makai'. With constant encouragement from her father, she began filling hand - written notes with vivid, disturbing accounts of school life under the Taliban reign in Pakistan's Swat valley. Her blog constantly mentioned that girls were continually banned and kept out of the derelict schools, while boy's schools were allowed to function. It was a daily struggle to receive an education. By 9th March 2009, the BBC diary too ended and soon thereafter, the Second Battle of Swat began. Following the end of the battle, she began giving numerous interviews and got appointed as the chair of the District Child Assembly Swat. But what really propelled her political career further, is a nomination for the International Children's Peace prize in 2011. A celebrity in Pakistan by now, her relentless activism was soon rewarded with the country's first National Youth Peace Prize.
On 9th October 2012, nearing the end of their patience by delivering constant threats, the Taliban finally gave in to their trademark violence. They fired two gunshots at Malala, lodging bullets in her skull and neck. But as if by some divine intervention, she managed to survive. After numerous operations, by February 2013, she made full recovery and is currently with her family in Birmingham, Great Britain.
All through her battle for an education and the right to speak up, Malala remained a constant source of inspiration to hundreds of girls not only in Pakistan, but also around the world. One of them is me. Her struggle is testimony to the fact that leaders are just ordinary people, with an extraordinary willpower. Someday, I hope not to become her, but someone 'like her'. In whatever I do, I wish to move ahead with courage like hers. But until then, let us all begin the quest to unchain the Malala within each one of us...
Beth Macdonald
Malala talking against Pakistan by Sheharyar_Khan_4
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7834516
-Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai's story is one of hope, of courage and most importantly, of never giving in to fear. All of fifteen, she has achieved enough to be counted as one of the world's youngest women's rights champion. She embodies the resounding voice of the girl child amidst the din of fired gunshots. She sparkles with hope, standing out among the rubble strewn valleys of the Taliban reign. Suffice to say, the world has not seen a soul as genuine as hers in a very long time indeed.
Malala's sojourn to defy the Taliban began in 2009, when she was only a seventh grader. Back then, she was offered by the BBC Urdu to write her very own blog under the pseudonym 'Gul Makai'. With constant encouragement from her father, she began filling hand - written notes with vivid, disturbing accounts of school life under the Taliban reign in Pakistan's Swat valley. Her blog constantly mentioned that girls were continually banned and kept out of the derelict schools, while boy's schools were allowed to function. It was a daily struggle to receive an education. By 9th March 2009, the BBC diary too ended and soon thereafter, the Second Battle of Swat began. Following the end of the battle, she began giving numerous interviews and got appointed as the chair of the District Child Assembly Swat. But what really propelled her political career further, is a nomination for the International Children's Peace prize in 2011. A celebrity in Pakistan by now, her relentless activism was soon rewarded with the country's first National Youth Peace Prize.
On 9th October 2012, nearing the end of their patience by delivering constant threats, the Taliban finally gave in to their trademark violence. They fired two gunshots at Malala, lodging bullets in her skull and neck. But as if by some divine intervention, she managed to survive. After numerous operations, by February 2013, she made full recovery and is currently with her family in Birmingham, Great Britain.
All through her battle for an education and the right to speak up, Malala remained a constant source of inspiration to hundreds of girls not only in Pakistan, but also around the world. One of them is me. Her struggle is testimony to the fact that leaders are just ordinary people, with an extraordinary willpower. Someday, I hope not to become her, but someone 'like her'. In whatever I do, I wish to move ahead with courage like hers. But until then, let us all begin the quest to unchain the Malala within each one of us...
Beth Macdonald
Malala talking against Pakistan by Sheharyar_Khan_4
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7834516
