Malala Yousafzai, Nobel Peace Prize winner Thirty months after she first due to accept honorary Canadian citizenship has finally addressed Parliament upon becoming just the sixth person ever to receive the distinction.
Ms. Yousafzai, a citizen of Pakistan, was originally scheduled to be granted the honour by former prime minister Stephen Harper on the day a gunman stormed Parliament Hill on October 22, 2014.
Today, the education activist who survived a Taliban assassination attempt and subsequently became an international icon for women's and children's rights, called on Canada to lead a global effort to prioritize education for girls and refugees. Towards this end, Ms. Yousafzai asked the government of Canada to make girls’ education a central theme of its G7 presidency in 2018.
"I stand with girls, as someone who knows how it feels to have your right of education taken away and your dreams threatened," said Ms. Yousafzai. "I know where I stand. If you stand with me, I ask you to seize every opportunity for girls’ education over the next year.
"The world needs leadership based on serving humanity – not based on how many weapons you have. Canada can take that lead."
Ms. Yousafzai added that she had been nervously excited to meet Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, who attended an honorary Canadian citizenship ceremony for Ms. Yousafzai prior to her speech in Parliament.
Ms. Yousafzai, 19, survived a Taliban assassination attempt in 2012 as she was leaving school in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. She was targeted for her campaign against efforts to deny women a formal education. She now lives in London, UK, where she received medical treatment following the incident.
Honorary Canadian Citizenship is a purely symbolic honour. The recipient does not take the Oath of Citizenship and does not receive any rights, privileges, or duties typically held by a Canadian citizen.
