Malala strikes a chord in Kildare

Secondary school students in Co Kildare have written a personal letter to Pakistani schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban for championing the cause of female education.

Class 3A in St Mary’s College in Naas have been assured by Amnesty Ireland that their letter will be delivered to Malala, who was recently discharged from a Birmingham hospital where she was treated after being shot in the head and neck by the Taliban over her campaigning for better education for girls in her native country.

The letter was written by the class in CSPE (civil, social and political education) as part of a human rights project.

The class heard a talk from Amnesty International school speaker Dan O’Neill last week and Amnesty saidthe letter will be passed on.

Amnesty Ireland has already received a number of letters for Malala from primary schools elsewhere in Ireland, including in Sutton and Rush.

The CSPE teacher in St Mary’s in Naas, Carol McCarthy, from Piltown in Co Kilkenny, said Malala’s plight had brought home to the 25-strong class the importance of education.

“We came across the documentary from a few years ago on Malala, not long after she had been shot,” said Ms McCarthy.

“What struck home was she was their age.”

Malala had blogged about girls’ education in Pakistan and had continued her advocacy despite coming to the attention of the Taliban.

On Oct 9, she was in a school van in the Swat Valley when Taliban gunmen stormed the vehicle, identified her and shot her, along with two other girls.