We must believe in the power and strength of our words. Our words can change the world.
It is not time to tell the leaders to realize how important education is – they already know it – their own children are in good schools. Now it is time to call them to take action.
I thought that words and books and pens were more powerful than guns.
I believe in peace. I believe in mercy.
My dream is to empower myself with education, and then it is a weapon.
We realize the importance of light when we see darkness. We realize the importance of our voice when we are silenced. In the same way when we were in Swat, we realized the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns.
We are human beings, and this is the part of our human nature, that we don’t learn the importance of anything until it’s snatched from our hands.
This is the philosophy of nonviolence that I have learned from Gandhi, Bacha Khan and Mother Teresa.
My dream is to see every girl educated, in every country.
My father was convinced the Taliban would hunt him down and kill him, but he again refused security from the police. ‘If you go around with a lot of security the Taliban will use Kalashnikovs or suicide bombers and more people will be killed,’ he said. ‘At least I’ll be killed alone.’
I don’t want awards, I want my daughter. I wouldn’t exchange a single eyelash of my daughter for the whole world.
They thought that the bullets would silence us, but they failed.
There are many problems, but I think there is a solution to all these problems, it’s just one and it’s education. You educate all the girls and boys. You give them the opportunity to learn.
We like to put sacred texts in flowing waters, so I rolled it up, tied it to a piece of wood, placed a dandelion on top, and floated it in the stream which flows into the Swat River. Surely God would find it there.
A city without books, a city without a library is like a graveyard.
I believe in the power of the voice of women.
I have a new dream I must be a politician to save this country. There are so many crises in our country. I want to remove these crises.
You should believe in your talent and potential. Never lose hope.
Why is it that countries which we call strong are so powerful in creating wars but are so weak in bringing peace? Why is it that giving guns is so easy, but giving books is so hard?
I am not against anyone, neither am I here to speak in terms of personal revenge against the Taliban or any other terrorist group. I’m here to speak up for the right of education for every child. I want education for the sons and daughters of the Taliban and all terrorists and extremists.