Malala - The Worldwide Symbol of Peace

Fearless, courageous and extremely brave ...that's what made Malala Yusuf Zai known throughout the world as a symbol of peace. The girl from Swat has shown the world that people of Pakistan are peace lovers and are terror-hit than terrorist; they are book lovers who are being deprived of their love by Taliban and their ultimate dream is to live in peace and prosperity. So what if Malala couldn't get a Nobel Prize for Peace for her efforts, the work she has been doing and her message is bigger than any prize the world can offer. With her pen, she has proved that it is mightier than any weapon the Taliban have. Her mission is not limited to Pakistan now, she is a global entity and her work has been appreciated and recognized by many international organizations. She has a long life ahead of her and when world leaders like Yasser Arafat and Nelson Mandela can get a Nobel Peace Prize in old age, so can Malala. Her nomination at such an early age is an achievement for Pakistan and she must be commended for that.

However, many so-called liberals in Pakistan feel that Malala's rise to stardom is not just because of her efforts but because she is a tool in the hands of the West. These people will stop at nothing to label this girl from Swat - aka the Switzerland of Pakistan - a traitor because she was different from the day she opened her eyes. She wanted to go to school rather than play with other kids, and that's what she was doing when Taliban took over the valley and enforced their own law. Girls were barred from going to school and Malala, like many others, was made to sit at home. But this girl wanted to make a difference and that's exactly what she did by writing a diary for an international news agency and the diary became so popular that it was printed and reprinted both locally and internationally. Her words - as Gul Makai - reached those at he helm and the true picture of Swat became clear to all.

It was her writings that forced the government to take action in Swat and after a successful Army operation, normalcy returned to the beautiful Valley and Malala finally managed to go to school but her happiness was short-lived. The enemy of the state shot her point blank while she was on her way back from school and it was feared that Malala would be no more. But as destiny had more things in store for her, Malala recovered from that wound after going through operations in Pakistan and England and came out a winner.

It is saddening to see that people can stoop so low on social media and on other platforms in order to convince the world that Malala is the villain here and the Taliban are not. That she is the agent of the West and the Taliban were right in what she did. That her decision to study and write for what she thought was right was wrong, and Taliban's way is the right way. They believe that Malala will not return to Pakistan but the brave daughter of the country wants to return and join politics, and play an important part in the betterment of the country. She has repeatedly said that she bears no ill against the very Talib who shot her yet the Taliban believe that they will not rest until Malala is dead.

Even if we believe that the Taliban are right, that Malala is an agent of the West, that she is anti-Islam and a tool through which Pakistan can be made to look bad in the world. Then who is right? The Taliban who bomb religious places, kill soldiers, stop girls from going to school and deliver threats to all those who stand against them. If they are right then I believe they are the ones who should be given awards rather than Malala because Malala has done nothing compared to them. All she has done is make her fellow countrymen (and women) realize the importance of education, make them fearless and instill in them the element of bravery, something even a bullet can't take away from them.