RAWALPINDI, Oct 13: Hundreds of men, women and children from various walks of life on Saturday held a peaceful rally from College Road to the Rawalpindi Press Club to pay tribute to Malala Yousafzai, the peace activist who was shot in Swat last week while returning home.

The rally was organised by Women Leaders Group (WLG) and Citizens Action Committee (CAC) of Aurat Foundation. The protesters, mostly local citizens, were carrying placards and shouting slogans against the wave of terrorism in the country.

They strongly condemned the cowardly act.

The participants demanded of the government to investigate the attack and bring the perpetrators to justice.

They also demanded that the government take serious notice of such attacks on the activists in areas already bleeding from terrorism and extremism, since such attacks were discouraging all efforts for peace and stability in the region.

While addressing the rally, Naeem Mirza, chief operating officer of Aurat Foundation, described Malala as a symbol of girls’ education and peace in Pakistan. He said the attack on Malala had shaken the conscience of the nation, who would make every effort to eliminate ignorance, extremism and poverty.

Another speaker on the occasion said that the heinous crime against an innocent girl had exposed the nefarious designs of the terrorists.

Razia Sultana, secretary of WLG, said Malala’s mission was that of every girl in Pakistan, and vowed not bow before the ‘killers’ of humanity.

The rally prayed for the health and long life of Malala Yousafzai. They said such an incident was a conspiracy to sabotage peace in the country.