Canada must heed Malala’s message
Re Citizen Malala, April 13 Who doesn’t love and respect Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate? She stands as a courageous beacon of what is possible no matter what the adversity. And now she is a Canadian citizen with a strong message for Canada to be proactive as a world leader in girls’ education.
But despite the honours and pomp and ceremony, the March federal budget saw no increase to the international assistance envelope, which means the upcoming fiscal year will see no new money for the very thing Malala urged Parliament to do.
In fact, Canada’s commitment to official development assistance sits at about 0.28 per cent of its gross national income. This is nowhere near the UN target of 0.7 per cent and puts Canada far behind its peers on the world stage — let alone a leader.
Even more concerning, Finance Minister Bill Morneau declared in a post-budget interview that Canada should “do more with less foreign-aid spending.” This statement sets a clear tone about the government’s perspective on the role of international assistance.
So while Canada looks good in making Malala a citizen, when looking at the actual numbers, Canada is quite the two-faced laggard. Anita Mark, Saanichton, B.C. Granting Malala Yousafzai honorary citizenship has re-emphasized that Canada continues to operate synonymously with the values of peace, tolerance and acceptance.
My family and I were personal recipients of Canada’s mercy, as we fled here as refugees from religious persecution that plagued my country back home.
Living in this country, which offers equal opportunity for all — irrespective of race, gender or culture — it may be easy to take these values for granted.
Malala spoke about the importance of equal education. It is important to understand that, in some parts of the world, these “rights” are non-existent.
As an Ahmadi Muslim, I am extremely grateful to the country of Canada that has accepted my family with open arms and hope we continue to be world leaders in matters of tolerance and diversity. Abdullah Ahmad, Hamilton