WASHINGTON – Pakistan’s teenaged rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban for standing up against the terror outfit and pushing for education for girls, has been ranked sixth by Foreign Policy magazine in its top 100 global thinkers list.
Malala, who was among four Pakistanis who made it to the list this year, was chosen ‘for standing up to the Taliban, and everything they represent’, reports The Express Tribune.
The list was released by American magazine Foreign Policy, which honoured people who spoke for freedom of speech, and for making themselves heard.
The 15-year-old stood up against the Taliban to fight for her and many girls’ right to education.
In October, Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban on her way back home from school. She survived the attack and is currently recuperating at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham.
Apart from Malala, former ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani and his wife, Farahnaz Ispahani were placed on number61 on the list “for pushing tough love for their troubled country”.
Haqqani, who once defended Pakistan’s stance and brokered discussions in order to pacify the US, said in August that the two countries “should stop pretending they are allies and amicably ‘divorce’.”
On number 100 spot on the list is Pakistani blogger Sana Saleem, who made it to the list for “insisting that free speech is not blasphemy”. Saleem’s campaign against government censorship “Bolo Bhi” landed her a place in the list.
Saleem, in order to push for free speech, fought against a proposal by the government to filter and block URLs by installing a firewall. She reached out to executives at international companies, asking them not to participate in building firewall and succeeded in making the government shelve the proposal.
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