Richard Derecki

Exactly 12 years ago today, a Taliban gunman pointed his gun at my head and shot me for daring to speak up for girls’ right to go to school. I want to thank every person for your solidarity and support, from praying for my recovery to helping me in my work for girls’ access to education, both in my home country of Pakistan and around the world. Most years, I spend October 9th like any other day, with gratitude for having lived another year. But today, I am in New York to address the American Society of International Law (ASIL), a prestigious group of legal experts who have chosen to honour @MalalaFund and its work alongside Afghan activists fighting to protect the right to education for girls in Afghanistan. These women worked tirelessly before the fall of Kabul in 2021, and fearlessly since, to keep girls learning under the most impossible circumstances. It is humbling to stand alongside them and gratifying to see them receive the recognition they deserve. The Taliban continue to point literal and metaphoric weapons at girls and women in Afghanistan every day, from public beatings to ruthless edicts that ban them from learning, working and living freely. The brutality of the Taliban’s oppressive system against women is so extreme that Afghan activists and human rights defenders are calling it gender apartheid. Right now, Afghan women and girls need more than words of sympathy. I call on governments and influential institutions to leverage their power, and through international law, hold the Taliban accountable. I especially call on Muslim leaders and institutions to play a leading role in challenging the Taliban’s misuse of religion and culture. Just as people stood with me and my friends more than a decade ago, I hope people will stand in solidarity with Afghan girls and women now. ❤️ @Hmosadiq @zarqayaftali @deemahiram @metra_mehran @RahelaHSidiqi @SHalaimzai