Pakistan president pledges $10 million to girls education in the name of Malala Yousafzai, girl shot by Taliban
Pakistani civil society activists carry placards with a photograph of the gunshot victim Malala Yousafzai as they shout anti-Taliban slogans during a protest rally against the assassination attempt on Malala Yousafzai, in Islamabad on October 10, 2012. Pakistani doctors removed a bullet from a 14-year-old child campaigner shot by the Taliban in a horrific attack condemned by national leaders and rights activists.
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari promised today to raise $10 million to educate all Pakistani girls by 2015. The money is specifically going to the "Malala Fund for Girls' Right to Education," created in honor of Malala Yousafzai, the brave 14-year-old who was famously shot and wounded by the Taliban in October. Her "crime" was going to school and advocating for girls education.
Pakistan's President Zardari made the announcement at a "Stand Up For Malala" event at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, the AFP reported. "A young determined daughter of my country was attacked by the forces of darkness," Zardari said at the event. "We are facing two forces in the country; Malala represents the forces of peace and we are fighting with the forces of darkness, hatred and violence."
More from GlobalPost: When the BRICs Crumble
Zardari said he was "deeply moved" when he met Malala at the hospital, where she is still recovering, Reuters reported. He reported her progress as satisfactory. "I have no doubt that our resolve to provide education to all, in particular to the millions of schoolgirls, is the best strategy to defeat the forces of violence," he announced.
However, Reuters reported that Zardari provided no specifics about how the education fund would work or where the money would come from.