Hadiqa Bashir ‘18 year-old’ Fights to End Child Marriages
Hadiqa Bashir, a young Pakistani women’s rights activist raised her voice against child marriages. The 18-year-old from Swat has been selected by the United Nations for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) along with the other 16 young leaders.
Bashir said that she would not only work for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, but would also work on her mission against child marriages.
credit: Fazal Khaliq – Dawn.com
Ms. Bashir has taken the challenge of ending child marriage in her community where they are considered a norm. Very young girls are regularly offered for marriages in exchange for settling disputes among the families.
Hadiqa shared her experience of selection by the United Nations in the latest class of 17 young leaders for Sustainable Development Goals saying, “About 7,000 young leaders from 172 countries applied for the 2020 class. Luckily, I have been selected from Pakistan by the UN with 16 other young leaders from across the world.”
“It is not just an honor for me, but the whole country,” she added.
Hadiqa had been working against child marriages in the Malakand division since she was 13 years old. Under Sustainable Development Goals, Ms. Bashir will work to ensure quality education, end gender-based violence, end poverty, and empower all women and girls. She indicated that she would work actively to engage the young girls and women in achieving these Sustainable Development Goals.
“As a young leader, my mission of ending child marriages in my region will continue with my new responsibility. An educated woman can do a respectable job and she does not have to rely upon her husband on her own needs”, she added.
In 2015, Hadiqa Bashir had also received the Mohammad Ali Humanitarian Award and Asian Girls Human Rights Ambassador award in 2016.
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