Malala urges PM Imran to protect Afghan refugees, give girls education in camps

Nobel laureate requests world leaders to open borders to Afghan refugees; play their due role in 'humanitarian crisis

LONDON/ BIRMINGHAM:

Malala Yousafzai has written to Prime Minister Imran Khan after the recent Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, urging him to take Afghan refugees into the country and to ensure that girls have access to education.

Speaking of child refugees, in an interview with the BBC, the Nobel peace laureate said, “Their futures are not lost, they can enroll in local schools, they can receive education in refugee camps.” Malala added that the girls should also have access to “security” and “protection”.

The Nobel laureate stated that she had “not yet made contact” with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, but reiterated that “every country has a role and responsibility” to play in the current Afghanistan situation and needs to “open their borders to Afghan refugees".

According to Malala, Afghanistan is currently undergoing an “urgent humanitarian crisis” and the world is “seeing some shocking images on our screens right now”.

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“We are living in a world where we are talking about advancements, equality and gender equality. We cannot see a country going decades and centuries back,” she remarked.

Malala emphasised that a “bold stance” must be taken for “the protection of women and girls, for the protection of minority groups, and for peace and stability in that region”.

She said that a stance for the protection of human rights is necessary not just for peace in Afghanistan but peace globally.

Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani activist was shot in the head by Taliban gunmen in 2012 because she campaigned for girls' education.

Nobel peace laureate Malala Yousafzai has termed the Afghanistan situation "an urgent humanitarian crisis," and requested all countries to play an active role.

Video via @BBCNewsnight pic.twitter.com/Mcwc68IUiP

— The Express Tribune (@etribune) August 17, 2021