Malala Yousafzai, 20, recently made an emotional return to Pakistan. During her four-day visit, she met with friends, family, and senior government officials, including Pakistan’s prime minister. Numerous Pakistanis greeted Yousafzai’s return with joy. However, some did not.
While Malala has been greeted as a hero, she is not a national hero in Pakistan.
The Punjab Curriculum and Textbook Board (PCTB) has seized middle school Social Studies textbooks published by Oxford University Press (OUP) for making the ‘ludicrous’ factual error of including Malala Yousufzai on a list of prominent Pakistanis. The reason given thus far is that OUP did not obtain a certificate of approval for the book. That is surprising, given the publisher’s reputation for high-quality products and content in Pakistan.
On the other hand, it’s concerning that the publisher may have printed the book without first obtaining approval from the government. However, several textbooks with genuine factual errors have obtained NOCs, and even when these errors are discovered, they are rarely withdrawn from circulation. Let us not forget that Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, another individual featured on the same page as Malala, campaigned against Muslim backwardness and reluctance to embrace modern education. The textbook board’s primary objective should be to ensure the quality of education. Those 1980s propaganda manuals that were substituted for textbooks demonstrate what happens when conservative viewpoints take precedence over facts.
In Lahore, Pakistan’s eastern city, numerous private schools observed “I Am Not Malala Day” on March 30 to condemn her visit. On social media, videos of teachers and students chanting anti-Yousafzai slogans in their classrooms went viral.
“Malala is working against Islam and Pakistan, and she has no right to visit Pakistan if she is only working against us,” said Taiba Ikhlas, a seventh-grader at a Lahore private school. She and her teachers requested anonymity for safety reasons.
Ayesha Jaffri, a history teacher at the school, said Yousafzai’s actions do not serve as a role model for Pakistani girls because women are expected to conform to the limited cultural roles envisioned for them by conservative Islam.
Jaffri aimed at Yousafzai’s British-based foundation, which advocates for the right to education, and her best-selling books and personal account of overcoming her injuries in the United Kingdom.
“We declare today a black day against this Western stooge,” Jaffri said. “In our schools, we teach our students to reject Malala’s ideology.”
Kashif Mirza, president of the All Pakistan Private Schools Federation and author of the book I Am Not Malala, assisted in organizing the protests. “We raised awareness about Malala Yousafzai’s visit to Pakistan as part of an international campaign to defame the country,” he explained.
Malala is only capable of pity but is not a hero; heroes are like aitzaz Hassan.
Aitzaz Hasan, 15, was outside the school with friends when they came across a man wearing a suicide vest. Despite the pleas of his classmates, he chose to confront and apprehend the bomber, who then detonated his vest, according to his cousin. Aitzaz has been dubbed a hero following an outpouring of support on social media.
There have even been calls for him to receive the army’s highest honor, which is given to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country, though it is unclear whether he would qualify as a civilian. ” We people think the State of Pakistan should give Pakistan’s brave son, Shaheed Aitezaz, the Nishan-i-Haider ,” journalist Nasim Zehra tweeted on Thursday.
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