My mind has been a bit numb since the terrorist attacks in Paris over a week ago. I did want to discuss other topics but ended up surrendering to my urge for cathartsis by writing down my feelings and thoughts about this terrible event. What came out, however, did not seem to have much substance and was not very different from a lot of what has been already said in social media and newspaper opinion columns: repudiation of all forms of terrorism; despise for those who coldly plan the attacks and scorn for the extremists who target young Muslims to poison them with hate and the desire to kill innocent people. Similarly, I couldn’t suppress a sense of frustration for the intolerance and the generalisations aired by educated people against Muslims and sadness by the lack of compassion and coherence of those who think the solution to the problem of terrorism is almost to ban all Muslims from the Western side of the world.
Passions run high when these sort of events happen, tensions rise up to dangerous heights between all parts involved, and in the end, all we are left with is exhaustion, frustration, discouragement and yes, numbness. So numbed we are that we find ourselves unable to come up with fresh ideas to solve a problem we keep stumbling upon again and again. We relapse into our ancient, primal and irrational responses and let ourselves be carried away by resentment and apathy. Then, we allow politicians to convince us that military action is the speediest and most efficient solution for terrorism and hence remain passive, letting the armed forces apply the same old strategies, only with newer weapons. Two, five, ten years on, another terrorist attack occurs, making us realise, once again, that nothing has changed and that we still confront the same dangers.
I’m not naive. I know that once a terrorist group is in possesion of war weapons, some form of military involvement is necessary to avoid more deaths and more destruction. As much as I despise violence, I do understand why armed forces exist. Nonetheless, those who advocate for full military intervention are not naive either; they (and we) surely cannot believe that warfare is the ultimate solution to the problem of terrorism. And still, all we hear from politicians and experts on the matter is the action plans, the budget and the strategies to destroy the enemy by means of military force. No one talks about the action plans, the budget and the strategies to make education a priority in the struggle against extremism.
No one talks about the boys that are kept away from education and are therefore raised with almost no opportunities for progress, making them the ideal target of extremism and indoctrination; no one mentions how millions of girls are forced into marriage from a young age and are completely alienated from education, including how to read. No leader has yet stepped forward to propose the creation of a serious, viable plan to make education available and compulsory for all girls and boys in the planet, even though this is reflected in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights from the United Nations.
We have been on the moon, we have explored our galaxy and beyond with telescopes, rovers and spacecraft. We have interconnected the world with the internet and advanced transportation systems and have found the cure for diseases we never imagined we would be able to treat. Isn’t our disbelief in our capacity to erradicate illiteracy in today’s world a bit disproportionate? If we are going to remain apathic and let politicians and the military deal with the problem of ideological and religious extremism, let’s at least be honest with ourselves and accept tragedies as the one that took place in Paris, as part of our lives.
Young Malala Yousafzai, a practicing Muslim from Pakistan, is a light at the end of the tunnel. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize last year, when she was only 17 years old, for her work in promoting education for all, especially girls from underdeveloped nations. The fact that she was granted this award – its youngest ever receipient – is a hopeful sign that we, Westerners, believe in her message and would like to see a more concise and united front to support Malala in her mission, which is simply: Education for all.
I will close the article with a quote from Malala’s speech at the UN General Assembly on 12 July 2013. She was turning 16 that day, after months of recovery from a shot in the head she received from a Taliban militant in her home town Swat when she was going to school. I wish we were all more active in making education accessible for all and I wish we were all as mature as young Malala when we are confronted by tragedy. Let’s not dwell so much on the past and let’s instead try to concentrate on the solutions; the ones that can really make a difference. Is it really so difficult?
“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 for the right of education for every child. I want education for the sons and daughters of the Taliban and all the terrorists and extremists…The extremists are afraid of books and pens. The power of education frightens them. They are afraid of women. The power of the voice of women frightens them.”
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Below, is a link to Malala’s speech before the Nobel Peace Prize Committee after she received the award on 10 December 2014. If you can, please listen to it, it is worth your time.
For a full transcript of Malala’s speech at the UN General Assembly on 12 July 2013, please follow the link below.