Re: Malala’s father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
Malala Yousufzai became a hero for all girls long before she was targeted and shot by Taliban terrorists. She stood up and spoke for the rights of girls to get education when Taliban had first started moving into Swat valley way back in early 2008. I first saw her in a BBC documentary produced by Shahmeen Obaid Chinoy. In that documentary, as a nine years old, Malala had spoken against the closure of girl’s schools and showed her distress about being deprived of education. No one will deny that education is the only way a nation can survive, and Pakistan is a young country with a younger population. It needs its young people to get educated. Malala was only trying to advocate that message. Did she deserve a bullet for that? No she did not! The people who attacked her, proudly claimed responsibility of their evil deed, and they did not stop there. They further said that if Malala survives they will target her again. And then they had the audacity to manipulate religion in a seven pages long statement to justify their brutal action. Just like the majority of Pakistanis, we stand by Malala and thousands of girls and women who everyday strive to get their basic rights to gain education not only to better their lives but, in fact better their nation as a whole.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
I heard recently that Al Azhar University in Cairo was founded by a female over a 1000 years ago. I heard that the wife of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) Aisha was a great educator and progressive women. Instead of going backwards we muslims need to move forward.
**PESHAWAR:Angry girls protested Wednesday against the renaming of their school after shot teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, saying the move would make them a target for militants.
**Around 150 students boycotted classes at what is now the Government Malala College for Girls in Saidu Sharif, in the northwestern Swat Valley, tearing up and stoning pictures of the 15-year-old, accusing her of abandoning Pakistan by going to Britain for treatment.
The Pakistan government has renamed numerous schools in honour of Malala, who was shot in the head by the Taliban in October for championing girls’ education in Swat and is now recovering in a British hospital.
The students at what was previously known as the Government College for Girls said they had repeatedly asked the principal to remove the plate with the new name, fearing it would invite the attention of militants.
“We came out when the principal finally refused to accept our demand,” student Shaista Ahmed said. “We feel the college would be the potential target of militants.
“I joined others who chanted slogans against Malala and pelted stones on her picture because she had left the country to settle abroad. We are poor, we cannot afford it and we will suffer because she has fled to Britain.”
Local government official Niaz Ali Khan told AFP the protesting students were “very angry and aggressive” and tore up a portrait of Malala which the authorities had erected on a college wall after the Taliban attack.
“The students ended their protest after we promised to convey their demand to the authorities,” he said.
Student Mah Noor, 19, said: “Malala herself is in Britain but other girls will remain in Swat. She will not come back to Pakistan, then what is the need to rename the college after her?”
Malala first rose to prominence aged just 11 with a blog for the BBC Urdu service in 2009 in which she described life in Swat during the bloody rule of the Taliban.
Taliban hitmen shot her on her school bus in Mingora, the main town in Swat, for the “crime” of campaigning for girls’ rights to go to school, but she survived after surgery in Pakistan.
She was sent to Britain for further treatment and her courage has won the hearts of millions around the world, prompting the United Nations to observe a “global day of action” for her last month.
Malala’s father Ziauddin Yousafzai, a former teacher and headmaster, has been appointed UN adviser on education.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
There is a segment of people who are attacking Pakistanis for the past 7-8 years (using WOT, drones and Shariah as justification). This was a routine attack. The reaction to this event was severe as they used Islam to justify their brutality. I personally I didnt like that, I dont know about the rest of you.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
Malala's father is now posted in Birmingham's Pakistani consulate as education attache as a grade 19 officer. He gets a house and a car. Qualified people spend upwards of 15 years to graduate from grade 17 to 19, and he gets it overnight.
No wonder Pakistan is so close to being a failed state.....because our criteria for appointments is not based on qualification or deservedness. Its merely based on what scores political points. All prayers for Malala, but this is just nepotism in a twisted way.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
Peace
Malala's cause was education at one stage, her father has never hidden from the fact that he is an open opponent of theirs ... He never wished his daughter to be a scholar nor a teacher ... He wanted his daughter to be a politician ... With all this campaign speak and Malala becoming a leader in the campaign for girls education ... She should at least complete her own education first.
If education was the only important thing on their mind they would have appealed to the Taliban for that right through honouring the Taliban leadership, and requesting it from them ... Presenting them with Islamic arguments for it ... Instead they chose to open their doors initially to Western media and in turn the Western powers ... when it comes to the point where people like Gordon Brown and CENTCOM ... Speak in honour of her ... It is no longer us being suspicious of her rather ... The attention she gets from such people is what raise an eyebrow or three.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
Peace
Malala's cause was education at one stage, her father has never hidden from the fact that he is an open opponent of theirs ... He never wished his daughter to be a scholar nor a teacher ... He wanted his daughter to be a politician ... With all this campaign speak and Malala becoming a leader in the campaign for girls education ... She should at least complete her own education first.
*If education was the only important thing on their mind they would have appealed to the Taliban for that right through honouring the Taliban leadership, and requesting it from them *... Presenting them with Islamic arguments for it ... Instead they chose to open their doors initially to Western media and in turn the Western powers ... when it comes to the point where people like Gordon Brown and CENTCOM ... Speak in honour of her ... It is no longer us being suspicious of her rather ... The attention she gets from such people is what raise an eyebrow or three.
How do you appeal or reason with animals and what good is giving Islamic arguments to animals who have killed more muslims than anyone else. ?
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
Peace
Malala's cause was education at one stage, her father has never hidden from the fact that he is an open opponent of theirs ... He never wished his daughter to be a scholar nor a teacher ... He wanted his daughter to be a politician ... With all this campaign speak and Malala becoming a leader in the campaign for girls education ... She should at least complete her own education first.
If education was the only important thing on their mind they would have appealed to the Taliban for that right through honouring the Taliban leadership, and requesting it from them ... Presenting them with Islamic arguments for it ... Instead they chose to open their doors initially to Western media and in turn the Western powers ... when it comes to the point where people like Gordon Brown and CENTCOM ... Speak in honour of her ... It is no longer us being suspicious of her rather ... The attention she gets from such people is what raise an eyebrow or three.
There may be things to be skeptical of here, but no one should be asking armed thugs for permission, or honouring them in anyway. Even if she was doing it all for attention, the fact that the Taliban tried to kill her should be the first thing discussed, not conspiracy theories.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
How do you appeal or reason with animals and what good is giving Islamic arguments to animals who have killed more muslims than anyone else. ?
Peace ehsan
I once had a cat ... I didn't threaten her to come to me, I used to tempt her with food and speak to her softly. Yes, the enraged animal will fight, but one needs to ask the question why is the animal enraged in the first place?
Islam is the only tool the Taliban have to gain support. If however, a greater argument of Islam is used then their sympathisers will choose the better argument. By taking a secular approach and asking the West to help ... It only seals the sympathisers to continue supporting the Taliban.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
There may be things to be skeptical of here, but no one should be asking armed thugs for permission, or honouring them in anyway. Even if she was doing it all for attention, the fact that the Taliban tried to kill her should be the first thing discussed, not conspiracy theories.
No ... I disagree ... Everyone can be approached with humanity in mind and it is our Islamic obligation to treat even the biggest thugs with wisdom, dignity and respect ... It means a bit of give and take ... we should acknowledge that the Taliban do not have their own representatives in the media ... So whatever is said about them ... We should tone it down to understand it properly.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
No ... I disagree ... Everyone can be approached with humanity in mind and it is our Islamic obligation to treat even the biggest thugs with wisdom, dignity and respect ... It means a bit of give and take ... we should acknowledge that the Taliban do not have their own representatives in the media ... So whatever is said about them ... We should tone it down to understand it properly.
These people have made it pretty clear what they think of "mainstream" Islam. Furthermore, they are just people who have taken up arms. The laws of that land, the right to educate women, should be up to the government of Pakistan to decide, not men with AK-47s. Unless you think the media is lying about every Taliban attack, I think it's pretty easy to understand what they stand for.
We have to deal with them yes, and part of that involves negotiation, but let's not pretend that we're dealing with a legitimate government. That's the main issue here. We're dealing with terrorists, who do not care for religious logic. Their sympathizers would stop sheltering them if our own government actually cared to deal with the problem. We shouldn't be turning to America, nor should we be honouring the Taliban, we should be putting pressure on our politicians to deal with this problem.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
These people have made it pretty clear what they think of "mainstream" Islam. Furthermore, they are just people who have taken up arms. The laws of that land, the right to educate women, should be up to the government of Pakistan to decide, not men with AK-47s. Unless you think the media is lying about every Taliban attack, I think it's pretty easy to understand what they stand for.
We have to deal with them yes, and part of that involves negotiation, but let's not pretend that we're dealing with a legitimate government. That's the main issue here. We're dealing with terrorists, who do not care for religious logic. Their sympathizers would stop sheltering them if our own government actually cared to deal with the problem. We shouldn't be turning to America, nor should we be honouring the Taliban, we should be putting pressure on our politicians to deal with this problem.
I'm not saying we should use logic with the Taliban ... But we should conclude that it is logical for us to deal with the Taliban with a bit more compassion ... That is the only thing that will stop them killing innocents.
Regarding the rights of women to be educated ... Well what is their stance on that? And is it really about education or is it about their need to spend funds in a different way? What is their argument? Are we even prepared to listen to it ... Or have these latest events made us immune to any thing the Taliban now say even to the extent of closing our own minds to the possibility that they have some humanity left in them ...
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
I'm not saying we should use logic with the Taliban ... But we should conclude that it is logical for us to deal with the Taliban with a bit more compassion ... That is the only thing that will stop them killing innocents.
Regarding the rights of women to be educated ... Well what is their stance on that? And is it really about education or is it about their need to spend funds in a different way? What is their argument? Are we even prepared to listen to it ... Or have these latest events made us immune to any thing the Taliban now say even to the extent of closing our own minds to the possibility that they have some humanity left in them ...
I have compassion for the people who have to live there, not for the leadership. The US is part of the problem, but making excuses for the Taliban is also part of the problem. There are millions of people in Pakistan who think as you do, who feel that if we listened to the Taliban, they would stop the violence. It is this kind of misguided sympathy that results in a divided military and government. The country should have a unified response to Taliban violence, which would give the government a mandate to act. Instead we have excuses. We saw how the Taliban would run things: Afghanistan. Negotiate with them, but realize that they're terrorists, not misunderstood outcasts who need, or want, our friendship.
As for their position, I think shooting a girl was pretty self explanatory. They also shot some charity workers recently. You think the problem is that we aren't sympathetic enough?
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
I have compassion for the people who have to live there, not for the leadership. The US is part of the problem, but making excuses for the Taliban is also part of the problem. There are millions of people in Pakistan who think as you do, who feel that if we listened to the Taliban, they would stop the violence. It is this kind of misguided sympathy that results in a divided military and government. The country should have a unified response to Taliban violence, which would give the government a mandate to act. Instead we have excuses. We saw how the Taliban would run things: Afghanistan. Negotiate with them, but realize that they're terrorists, not misunderstood outcasts who need, or want, our friendship.
As for their position, I think shooting a girl was pretty self explanatory. They also shot some charity workers recently. You think the problem is that we aren't sympathetic enough?
Yes ... Even if I did think we should listen to the Taliban, which I don't ... I was merely saying that we should optimise the situation in which they listen to us ... But even if I did ... Think that ... So far no one has listened to them and they have not stopped the violence ... They will never be given an opportunity to prove themselves ... And even if they were given that opportunity covert elements will make sure the internal war continues ...
This fight talk benefits only one place and that is the US.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
If education was the only important thing on their mind they would have appealed to the Taliban for that right through honouring the Taliban leadership, and requesting it from them ... Presenting them with Islamic arguments for it ... Instead they chose to open their doors initially to Western media and in turn the Western powers ... when it comes to the point where people like Gordon Brown and CENTCOM ... Speak in honour of her ... It is no longer us being suspicious of her rather ... The attention she gets from such people is what raise an eyebrow or three.
Are TTP the government, that they should have asked them? In any civilized country the government cannot allow parts of its area to be ruled by brutal warlords.
Do you know when the operation was carried out in Swat the area had become a no go area for the army. The army had to sought permission from them to pass through 'their area' otherwise they would imprison them. Do you want that kind of Pakistan, where every 'sardar' has his fiefdom and no central government? If so look at Somalia, and whats happening there. The same future awaits us if the government is unable to establish its writ.
Re: Malala’s father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
I think he might actually do a better job than those appointed in our consulates, specially in UK. The big guy there, Wajid sb is a case in point.
There are much bigger cases of nepotism in Pakistan, for which on one ever says anything. Most of the heads of public organizations now are personal friends of Zardari, some of whom got acquainted with him in jails. You can imagine what they have been up to. They have causedbillions of rupees worth of damageto the country and some have evendented national interest and acted on behalf of India for personal gains.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
TTP is basically an organization which has 'frachised' its name to other organizations which are operating in different areas. Their operating procedures is not different as compared to warlords having their own fiefdoms e.g.
Re: Malala's father Ziauddin Yusufzai named special UN advisor on education!
How to deal with terrorists/TTP, and where to appoint Malalas father are 2 different questions. Just because someone disagrees with the princely treatment Malala and family are getting doesnt mean they support the terrorists.
The fact that Malala got a sweet deal is not a secret any more. Her treatment was perfectly possible in Pakistan, but a politically aligned decision was made to send her to the UK for treatment. Political decision was made to pay for all her expenses, while people in Pakistan dont even have doctors available in hospitals. Political decision was made to send her family there as well, and now her father has been appointed to a Grade 19 job as a diplomat in a flash. The govt is clutching at cheap straws....and from my perspective, Malala's father should have been graceful enough to deny this post....but the fact that they have been accepting everything 'shamelessly' wreaks of something else behind the scenes.