'I am not Malala Yousafzai, I am safe in my country': Kashmiri activist Yana Mir takes on anti-India elements in viral speech
London: Kashmiri activist Yana Mir has asserted that she will never have to escape from her country as she is safe in her home in Kashmir which is part of India and this is what makes her different from Malala Yousafzai, who had to leave her country Pakistan after being shot by a terrorist for going to school.
"I am not a Malala Yousafzai. I am not a Malala Yousafzai, because I will never have to run away from my home country," Yana Mir declared in the British Parliament building.
"I am free, and I am safe in my country India, in my home in Kashmir which is part of India," added Yana Mir.
TAKBEER!! https://t.co/ua4lS6gpVH
— Yana Mir (@MirYanaSY) February 22, 2024
Yana Mir, who calls herself Kashmir's first female vlogger, is a journalist, too, as she reports news and posts views and updates on her YouTube channel.
Malala was shot in the head by a Taliban gunman in Pakistan's Swat Valley in 2012 after she defied a Taliban ban on girls' education. She moved to the United Kingdom where she received treatment and recovered from her near fatal injuries. Afterwards, she enrolled at the University of Oxford. In 2014, she made history as the youngest-ever recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize at the age of 17.
In her address, Yana Mir said she objects Mala Yousafzai for persistently defaming India by calling it 'oppressed'.
"But I object to you, Malala Yousafzai, defaming my country, my progressing homeland, by calling it 'oppressed'. I object to all such 'toolkit members' on social media and foreign media who never cared to visit Indian Kashmir, but, fabricate stories of 'oppression' from there," said Yana Mir.
"I urge you all to stop polarising Indians on grounds of religion, we won't allow you to break up us", added Yana Mir, "I hope our perpetrators living in the UK in Pakistan will stop maligning my country".
Yana Mir, who is associated with the Jammu and Kashmir Youth Society, delivered a speech at a "Sankalp Divas" event organised by the Jammu and Kashmir Study Centre UK (JKSC) in the British Parliament building.
Videos of Yana Mir's speech have circulated widely, with many praising her for her fervent delivery in the UK. She expressed gratitude to Sajid Yousuf Shah, the BJP media in-charge of Kashmir, and shared the inspiration behind her comparison to Malala Yousafzai.
"Thank you, Sajid, for pushing me to go here, when I was depressed after we lost Dad. I wouldn't have reached here if it wasn't for you. Also, this Malala theory was given to me by my sister. So, a person is nothing, without family support," Yana Mir wrote on X.
Yana Mir's father expired on January 26.
JKSC is a think-tank involved in the study of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Yana Mir was also honoured with the Diversity Ambassador Award for advocating diversity in the J&K region, during the keynote address.
She highlighted development in Jammu and Kashmir following the abrogation of Article 370, underscoring enhancements in security, governmental programs, and allocation of funds.
Previously, Yana Mir had compared Pakistan with an ‘interfering boyfriend,’ for constantly poking its nose in the matters of Jammu and Kashmir and stake claiming in the region.
“The interfering boyfriend needs to stop,” Yana Mir said in a YouTube interview in 2022.
Yana has often urged in her vlogs that "it is time for every Indian to join and defeat a vicious information assault against the Republic (India)."
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