Malala is a Pakistani activist who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 17. She comes from a beautiful village in Mingora (Swat Valley) and a nice family of 5 (Malala, her parents and two brothers). Since a very young age, she has fought for gender equality concerning education. She has spoken out for girls’ right to safe, free and quality schools, even after being shot in the head by the Taliban. As she says, she could have chosen to go quiet and then be murdered, but she chose to speak up nonetheless. Not only is she a brave and strong woman, but she’s also very kind-hearted. She has created Malala Fund, which has helped other activists to find solutions to girls’ education barriers in their communities, and has inspired thousands of women, like me, to join her fight for equality. As nicely put on her fund’s page:
“She doesn’t tell her story because it’s unique, but because it’s the story of many girls.”
You have certainly heard that behind a great man is a great woman. In Malala’s case, it was the opposite. As I progressed in her book, it became clear to me that her father is a one-of-a-kind man. ZIAUDDIN YOUSAFZAI was the fundamental piece to Malala’s life puzzle. He played a major role in her development as a person and, thanks to him, she went to school and persevered even in the harshest conditions, when most people would have reasonably given up. As I know Malala owes a lot to her father in character, I am sure Ziauddin has taken a great deal after his parents as well and that’s why I decided to dedicate this blog post to him.
In the first place, Ziauddin’s family originates from an ethnic group called PASHTUNS. They make up the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan and the largest ethnic minority in Pakistan. They have migrated from their homeland to different parts of the world and in the United Kingdom you can find their most populous overseas community, whose presence is felt through their traditional food and music. They speak an Iranian dialect called Pashto and some of their most important principles are hospitality, family honour and protection of female relatives. Pashtuns played a central role in the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan and consequently became notorious due to the rise of the Taliban.
In her book, Malala writes some very interesting facts about her people:
- When the Yousafzai settled in Swat (before peace was brought to the valley), people used to swap villages between families every 5 or 10 years, so that everyone could work on good and bad land.
- Still today, Pashtuns never turn away relatives or friends, which means they will welcome visitors at home and take on the responsibility of helping them for as long as needed, however inconvenient.
- A famous Pashto quote is: The stone of Pashto does not rust in water. That means they neither forget nor forgive. Instead of saying thank you, they will remember the good deeds and reciprocate. The same goes for bad deeds.
- “We Pashtuns are a religion-loving people. Because of the Taliban, the whole world is claiming we are terrorists. This is not the case. We are peace-loving. Our mountains, our trees, our flowers – everything in our valley is about peace.” Moniba, Malala’s friend at a school’s peace march organized by Ziauddin.
Ziauddin’s passion for learning, as well as his awareness of people’s rights, culminated in a deep desire to run his own school. With little money and no more than 3 students, he established the Khushal Public School in Swat Valley, where he provided both boys and girls with equal education. He believed that lack of education was the root of all the problems in Pakistan and FREEDOM would only be achieved with INDEPENDENT THOUGHT and FREE-SPEECH. According to Malala, her father’s faith in her didn’t come out of nowhere. It was her grandmother’s faith in her father and her baba’s gift to him (deep love of knowledge) that made him who he is. As Khushal grew in notoriety, so did the Taliban’s anger towards the school and all it represented.
Ziauddin’s journey has been a long one, with some great achievements and a few failures along the way. I could use adjectives to describe him, but actions speak louder than words and there are no better words to describe his attitude towards life than Malala’s:
- For having delivered a newborn girl, Malala’s parents didn’t get any money from their families, so they couldn’t afford to celebrate her 7th day Woma. Later, when her brothers came along and her baba wanted to pay, Ziauddin refused the help.
- His words to Malala: “You are free as a bird. I will protect your freedom, Malala. Carry on with your dreams.”
- After finding out Malala had grabbed a handful of almonds at the market, he went there and bought her the whole lot. She knew the almonds at home were a reminder of her guilt. Noticing how bad she felt, he told her that great heroes also made mistakes. And reminded her of what Mahatma Gandhi once said: “Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.”
- His strong belief in freedom of speech – Despite finding a parody book offensive to Islam, he said: “Is Islam such a weak religion that it cannot tolerate a book written against it?”
- The care he had for his people – During a flood, he rushed to help a man trapped in a house, leaving his own under water.
- The speech he wrote to Malala: “If you want to do good, but do it in a bad way, that’s still bad. In the same way, if you choose a good method to do something bad it’s still bad”. He also quoted Abraham Lincoln “It is far more honourable to fail than to cheat.”
- The free places at his school he decided to give to scavenger children (at Malala’s request), despite knowing he would lose a considerable number of students and a large amount of money.
- When Malala’s Islamic studies teacher justified Benazir’s assassination saying “It was a very good job she was killed. She was not following Islam properly”, Ziauddin said: “We don’t have any option. We are dependent on these mullahs to learn the Quran. But you just use him to learn the literal meaning of the words, don’t follow his explanations and interpretation. Only learn what God says. His words are divine messages, which you are free and independent to interpret.”
- His belief that Talibanization was the result of their country’s policy of training militants and sending them to Afghanistan, first to fight the Russians, then to fight the Americans. He hated that most people would not speak up against it: “Any organisation which works for peace, I will join. If you want to resolve a conflict, the very first thing is to speak the truth.”
- When asked for advice, he said: “Don’t accept good things from bad people.”
- When he realized that there was no way to run a school other than going into politics: “My only ambition is to educate my children and my nation as much as I am able. But when half of our leaders tell lies and the other half is negotiating with the Taliban, there is nowhere to go. One has to speak out.”
- He believed that if the Taliban came for anyone, it would be for him, not Malala: “O God, please make Malala well. Even if I have to live in the deserts of the Sahara, I need her eyes open; I won’t be able to live without her. O God, let me give the rest of my life to her; I have lived enough. Even if she is injured, just let her survive.”
Malala’s words about her father and upbringing:
- “All children are special to their parents, but to my father I was his universe.”
- “I knew that any of the girls in my class could have achieved what I had achieved if they had had their parents’ support.”
Malala’s view on the Quran’s interpretation:
- “Nowhere is it written in the Quran that a woman should be dependent on a man.”
- “If Christians, Hindus or Jews are really our enemies, as so many say, why are we Muslims fighting with each other? Our people have become misguided. They think their greatest concern is defending Islam and are being led astray by those like the Taliban who deliberately misinterpret the Quran.”
I am Malala was the #1 book on my list of favourites for 2021. In my opinion, it is a must-read for the reasons below:
- It takes you to a part of the world where people have particular habits and beliefs. Throughout Malala’s story, you will come across numerous cultural differences concerning religion, behaviour, clothing and education. But you will also find countless similarities, one of them being the wish we all share for a safe and happy life. Ultimately, we are the same everywhere.
- You are introduced to a lifestyle you had never given much thought to. And as you get familiar with the places and characters, you embrace the people as a whole and empathise with them, suffering with every struggle and getting thrilled with every accomplishment. Acknowledging that we are all naturally biased and opening ourselves up to different life experiences means making our hearts a gentle home for others.
- Standing up for people is the way we evolve as human beings. You don’t realize how great and powerful this is until someone stands up for you. You can do that by taking action or amplifying other voices. Malala’s book is out there to spread the word about girls’ needs in Pakistan.
- As soon as you see others as equals, you realize there’s no need to dominate anyone. Determining and treating people as though they needed to be taught and ruled shows total lack of respect, to say the least. The fear of the unknown has, for ages, affected minorities around the world, some of which are today on the brink of destruction.
- “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it” Winston Churchill. Malala explains that the jihad was very much encouraged by the clerics of the mosques to fight a war that wasn’t theirs. A famous Peshawar poet described what was happening as a war between two elephants, in which Pashtuns were “like the grass crushed by the hooves of two fierce beasts”.
- For some time I wondered what Ziauddin’s responsibility in Malala’s incident was. Her life was spared, but it could have been way different. I believe this is a question every person will eventually come down to. Malala says he once asked her mother: “Pekai, tell me truthfully. What do you think, is it my fault?”. Her answer was: “No, Khaista, you didn’t send Malala out thieving or killing or to commit crimes. It was a noble cause.” To my mind, when Ziauddin set his heart on educating the girls in his local area, he was thinking of Malala. To him, she has always come first. He couldn’t imagine a life where Malala wouldn’t have the same opportunities her brothers would be given. What he did for her was an act of love.
If you haven’t read I am Malala yet, I really hope that my reading bug has caught you by now. This is a 5-star book and I recommend it a thousand times. Salam Alaikum!
1 comment
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