Malala Yousafzai

My message to children around the world is to stand up for your rights.

I am stronger than fear.

Let us make this world a better place for all.

I believe in the power of kindness and compassion.

We are all connected, and we must help each other.

My voice is for those who cannot speak.

I am just a normal girl, but I have a big dream.

Education is the key to unlocking our potential.

I do not even hate the Talib who shot me. Even if there was a gun in my hand and he was standing in front of me, I would not shoot him.

Dear fellows, today I am focusing on women's rights and girls' education because they are suffering the most. There was a time when women social activists asked men to stand up for their rights. But, this time, we will do it by ourselves.

My father also saw the book as offensive to Islam but believes strongly in freedom of speech. 'First, let's read the book and then why not respond with our own book,' he suggested. He ended by asking in a thundering voice my grandfather would have been proud of, 'Is Islam such a weak religion that it cannot tolerate a book written against it? Not my Islam!'

In Pakistan when women say they want independence, people think this means we don't want to obey our fathers, brothers, or husbands. But it does not mean that. It means we want to make decisions for ourselves. We want to be free to go to school or to go to work. Nowhere is it written in the Quran that a woman should be dependent on a man. The word has not come down from the heavens to tell us that every woman should listen to a man.

I believe it's a woman's right to decide what she wants to wear and if a woman can go to the beach and wear nothing, then why can't she also wear everything?

Malala Yousafzai says that the Taliban are misusing religion and “exploiting a twisted interpretation of Islam” to enforce its “gender apartheid” regime in Afghanistan.

Islam says that you cannot stay ignorant, that you have to go and seek knowledge — no matter how hard it is, or how far you have to travel.

We cannot continue to fail them [Afghan sisters].

We live in a world that talks about innovations, about gender equality. We cannot see a country going back decades and centuries.

I used to think I had to wait to be an adult to lead. But I've learned that even a child's voice can be heard around the world.

The world needs leadership based on serving humanity — not based on how many weapons you have.

It seemed to me that everyone knows they will die one day. My feeling was nobody can stop death; it doesn't matter if it comes from a Talib or cancer. So I should do whatever I want to do.