Why all Pakistani women should have the education to read                      

Would you like it if you couldn’t read even if you wanted to?

In Pakistan most women and girls can’t read. In fact the literacy rate is 46% while only 26% are literate!

I think that what is happening in these countries is disgusting and morally wrong some people don’t even have a chance to become Christians because they can’t read.

Did you know the female literacy rate is between 8 and 13%? Only 54% of girls are enrolled in primary schools, which drops to 30% for secondary schools. The Taliban has amazingly destroyed more than 400 schools.

Reading is fun, interesting and important.                                 “I want to go to school to learn but I cannot because my parents do not allow me to do so,” said 9- year-old Palwasha, who has visited the biggest city of Pakistan where she saw girls of her own age going to school.

Pakistani religious representatives stated in interviews that girls should not receive the same education as boys, but be prepared to become ‘obedient’ wives and mothers. This makes my blood boil!

I think women and men should have the same rights in education. Now that you have listened to my speech only a complete idiot would still think Pakistani women shouldn’t be able to read.

By Ayla Sariana MacNaughton