'Someone I Admire'-Malala Yousafzai
by Aysun Salieva
Short description
Malala Yousafzai was born on 12 July 1997 in Pakistan.She lived with her parents and two young brothers.In a large part she was educated by her father,Ziauddin.He is a poet,school owner and educational activist.Malala follows her father's steps.She fights for human rights and women education in north-west Pakistan,where the local Talibans forbid girls attend school.
BBC blogger
When she was 11-12 Malala wrote a blog under a pseudonym for BBC.There she described her life under Taliban occupation.
Taliban's attack
On 9 October 2012 Malala was traveling in a school bus when a man asked for her by name and then shot three times.One of the bullets hit Yousafzai in the left part of her forehead.A couple of days Malala was unconscious but then her condition improved enough and she was sent to a hospital in England.
On 12 October 50 Islamic men went on strike against those who wanted to kill her.Talibans officially said that they want to murder Ziauddin and his daughter.There was big international support for Yousafzai family.
School for Syrian refugee girls
On 12 July 2015,Malala's 18 birthday,she opened a school in Lebanon.It offers education for girls aged between 14-18.
Malala turns 18 and opens a school for Syria girls - BBC News
The book 'I am Malala'
Co-writer is a British journalist,Christina Lamb.The book was published in October 2013 in the USA and UK.'The Guardian' newspaper called it 'fearless' but unfortunately Pakistan Private School's Federation said that the book will be banned because it disrespects Islam and could have a negative influence.The audio book,voiced by Neela Vaswani, won 2015 Grammy award for Best Children's album.
Nobel Peace Prize
On 10 October 2014,at the age of 17, Malala won Nobel Peace Prize for fighting for the rights of all children to educate.She is the youngest winner and the first Pakistani to receive a Nobel Prize.
Watch Malala Yousafzai's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech
Sakharov Prize
Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought was established in December 1988 by the European Parliament as a mean to honour individuals or groups of people who have dedicated their lives to protect human rights.Malala won it in 2013.
Other prizes
She has won 40 prizes so far,including:
- "The 25 Most Influential Teens of 2014" of Time magazine
- International prize for equality and non-discrimination
- Rome Prize for Peace and Humanitarian Action
- Mother Teresa Award for Social Justice
- Time magazine Person of the Year shortlist
- Anne Frank Award for Moral Courage