to be speaking again after a long time.

Being here with such honourable people

is a great moment in my life

and it is an honour for me

because today I am wearing a shawl of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed.

I don’t know where to begin my speech.

I don’t know what people would be expecting me to say

but first of all

Thank you to God

for whom we all are equal

and thank you to every person who has prayed for my fast recovery and new life

I cannot believe how much love people have shown me.

I have received thousands of good-wish cards and gifts

from all over the world

Thank you to all of them.

Thank you to the children

whose innocent words encouraged me.

Thank you to my elders

whose prayers strengthened me.

I would like to thank my nurses,

doctors and the staff of the hospitals

in Pakistan and the UK

and the UAE government

who have helped me to get better and recover my strength.

I fully support Mr Ban Ki-moon

the Secretary-General in his Global Education First Initiative

and the work of UN Special Envoy

Mr Gordon Brown

and the respectful president of General Assembly Vuk Jeremic.

I thank all of them

for the leadership they continue to give.

They continue to inspire all of us to action.

Dear brothers and sisters,

do remember one thing:

Malala Day is not my day.

Today is the day

of every woman,

every boy

and every girl

who have raised their voice for their rights.

There are hundreds of human rights activists

and social workers

who are not only speaking for their rights,

but who are struggling

to achieve their goal of peace, education and equality.

Thousands of people have been killed by the terrorists

and millions have been injured.

I am just one of them.

So here I stand,

So here I stand, one girl among many.

I speak not for myself,

but for those without a voice can be heard.

Those who have fought for their rights.

Their right to live in peace.

Their right to be treated with dignity.

Their right to equality of opportunity.

Their right to be educated.

Dear friends,

on the 9th of October 2012

the Taliban

shot me on the left side of my forehead.

They shot my friends, too.

They thought that the bullets would silence us,

but they failed.

And out of that silence came

thousands of voices.

The terrorists thought

they would change my aims and stop my ambitions.

But nothing changed in my life

except this:

weakness, fear and hopelessness died.

Strength, power and courage was born.

I am the same Malala.

My ambitions are the same.

My hopes are the same.

And my dreams are the same.

Dear sisters and brothers,

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 am here to speak up

for the right of education of every child.

I want education

for the sons and daughters of the Taliban

and all the terrorists and extremists.

I do not even hate the Talib who shot me.

Even if there is a gun in my hand

and he stands in front of me,

I would not shoot him.

This is the compassion

that I have learnt from Muhammad,

the prophet of mercy

and Jesus Christ and Lord Buddha.

This is the legacy of change that I have inherited

from Martin Luther King,

Nelson Mandela

and Muhammad Ali Jinnah.

This is the philosophy of non-violence

that I have learnt from Gandhi Jee,

Bacha Khan and Mother Teresa.

And this is the forgiveness

that I have learnt from my father and from my mother.

This is what my soul is telling me

be peaceful and love everyone.

Dear sisters and brothers,

we realise the importance of light

when we see darkness.

We realise the importance of our voice

when we are silenced.

In the same way,

when we were in Swat, in the north of Pakistan,

we realised

the importance of pens and books when we saw the guns.

The wise saying,

"The pen is mightier than sword" was true.

The extremists were and they are afraid of books and pens.

The power of education,

The power of education frightens them.

They are afraid of women.

The power of the voice of women frightens them.

And that is why

they killed 14 innocent students in the recent attack in Quetta.

and this is why

they killed female teachers and polio workers

in Khyber Pukhtoon Khwa.

That is why they are blasting schools every day.

Because they were

and they are afraid of change,

afraid of the equality that we will bring into our society.

And I remember

that there was a boy in our school

who was asked by a journalist:

"Why are the Taliban against education?"

He answered very simply

by pointing to his book, he said:

"A Talib doesn't know what is written inside this book."

They think

that God is a tiny, little conservative being

who would send girls to the hell

just because of going to school.

The terrorists

are mis-using the name of Islam and Pashtun society

for their own personal benefits.

Pakistan is peace-loving democratic country.

Pashtuns want education for their daughters and sons.

And Islam is a religion of peace, humanity and brotherhood.

Islam says

it's not only each child's right to get education,

rather it is their duty and responsibility.

Honourable Secretary-General,

peace is necessary for education.

In many parts of the world, especially Pakistan and Afghanistan,

terrorism, wars and conflicts

stop children to go to their schools.

We are really tired of these wars.

Women and children

are suffering in many ways

in many parts of the world

In India,

innocent and poor children are victims of child labour.

Many schools have been destroyed in Nigeria.

People in Afghanistan have been affected

by the hurdles of extremism for decades.

Young girls have to do domestic child labour

and are forced to get married at early age.

Poverty,

ignorance,

injustice,

racism

and the deprivation of basic rights

are the main problems faced by both men and women.

Dear fellows,

today

I am focusing on women's rights and girls' education

because they are suffering the most.

There was a time

when women social activists

asked men to stand up for their rights.

But this time,

we will do it by ourselves.

I am not telling men to step away from speaking for women's rights,

rather,

I am focusing on women to be independent to fight for themselves.

So dear sisters and brothers,

now it's time to speak up.

So today,

we call upon the world leaders

to change their strategic policies

in favour of peace and prosperity.

We call upon the world leaders

that all of these deals

must protect women and children's rights.

A deal

that goes against the rights of women

is unacceptable.

We call upon all governments

to ensure free, compulsory education

all over the world for every child.

We call upon all the governments

to fight against terrorism and violence.

To protect children from brutality and harm.

We call upon the developed nations

to support the expansion of education opportunities

for girls in the developing world.

We call upon all communities

to be tolerant,

to reject prejudice based on caste,

creed,

sect,

color,

religion,

or gender

to ensure freedom and equality for women

so they can flourish.

We cannot all succeed

when half of us are held back.

We call upon our sisters around the world

to be brave,

to embrace the strength within themselves

and realise their full potential.

Dear brothers and sisters,

we want schools and education

for every child's bright future.

We will continue our journey

to our destination of peace and education.

No one can stop us.

We will speak up for our rights

and we will bring change to our voice.

We believe

in the power and the strength of our words.

Our words can change the whole world

because

we are all together,

united for the cause of education.

And if we want to achieve our goal,

then let us empower ourselves

with the weapon of knowledge

and let us shield ourselves

with unity and togetherness.

Dear brothers and sisters,

we must not forget

that millions of people are suffering

from poverty, injustice and ignorance.

We must not forget

that millions of children are out of their schools.

We must not forget

that our sisters and brothers

are waiting for a bright peaceful future.

So let us wage

So let us wage a global struggle

against illiteracy, poverty and terrorism

Let us pick up.

Let us pick up our books and pens.

They are our most powerful weapons.

One child,

one teacher,

one book,

and one pen

can change the world.

Education is the only solution.

Education First.

Thank you.

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