Daily Times

PESHAWAR: A fourteen-year-old Hadiqa Bashir of Swat, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) became the youngest and first girl to receive the ‘Asian Ambassador Award’ in recognition for her efforts in highlighting the issue of child marriages and women rights.

The student of class 9, Hadiqa, collected her award in Taiwanese capital, Taipei from Ambassador Diego L Chou of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Taiwan.

After Malala Yousafzai Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate, Hadiqa became the second youngest from the picturesque valley of Swat to have been selected for the most prestigious ‘Asian Ambassador Award’ in the race of 250 countries.

During her speech at the award ceremony, Hadiqa Bashir thanked all her supporters.

“I am grateful to the Almighty Allah on this occasion who bestowed such an honour on me. I am also thankful to all those who supported me during my struggle against child marriages,” she said.

She reiterated her pledge to work for the rights of women and eliminating the evils of child marriages from the entire region irrespective of colour and creed. “The award will encourage me to steer the boat of women rights in a more efficient and effective way”, she added. Hadiqa said the atrocities of Indian Army in Held Kashmir were not right and retaliated that the issue must be resolved in accordance with the United Nations (UN) resolution. She said that right of self-determination was the birth right of the Kashmiri people like everyone else and international community should talk about it and save the valley from becoming a living hell for its residents.

“Humanity, regional peace, every public and private consideration in the South Asia demands the submission of a just and lawful government in Kashmir according to the wishes of its residence,” Hadiqa said. Hadiqa is women rights’ activist who raised voice against the child marriages and has successfully attempted several times to stop child marriages in the region where she abode.

Before becoming the Asian Ambassador, Hadiqa had received another ‘Asian Ambassador Award’ from Dr Jennifer Clinton, President of Global Ties, USA.

She also received the ‘Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award’ in 2015. While talking to the Daily Times, Hadiqa’s father, Iftikhar Hussain, said that his daughter was handed over the “Torch of Hope”. Iftikhar Hussain runs a private school in district Swat. He said that Hadiqa received the ‘Muhammad Ali international Humanitarian Award’ in 2015 and the new award of ‘Asian Ambassador for Girls’ Rights’ was an unmatched honour for the little girl and the entire family.

Hussain informed that the last four Asian ambassador awards had gone to India.

“This time a girl from Pakistan has clinched the prestigious award. Hadiqa has snatched the award from India on the ground of her continued struggle for the welfare of women,” he said. She had been working hard to raise the issues of women and working on steps to stop child marriage and raise awareness among the society women and men, he added.

“She is student of class 9 and I am proud of her work and being a father, I had always supported her struggle. This time she received international recognition for her struggle,” Hussain said.

Hadiqa Bashir dedicated the award to all those who lost their precious lives in Quetta, Mardan carnage and to the people of Kashmir who were struggling for their independence under the shadow of gun powders for decades.