Zahra Hussain, the 17-year-old daughter of former Punjab additional inspector general and Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Dr Ejaz Hussain Shah was declared Senior Winner in “The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition 2018”.
She entered the competition as a student of Lahore Grammar School International.
Zahra was surprised at her win, saying, “I’m still in disbelief because it’s such a huge honour, but once I get past that I think I’ll be incredibly excited.”
Zahra enjoys writing because she believes, “your writing style can be as diverse as you want it to be – it’s a very unique kind of freedom, and I absolutely adore it.”
Her entry, “Hues of Red” is a “portrayal of child marriage and domestic violence in a traditional South Asian society, with an uplifting message of hope for a new generation.”
Meanwhile, the Senior Runner-Up was Ng Woon Neng, 16, from Singapore, Junior Winner was Janine Shum, 13, also from Singapore and Junior Runner-Up was Floria Gu, 13, from Vancouver, Canada.
The winners were selected from a pool of approximately 12,000 entries from across five regions of the Commonwealth.
According to a press release: “This year’s competition reflected the 2018 Commonwealth Theme of ‘Towards a Common Future’ and its four sub-themes of A Fairer Future, A More Sustainable Future, A More Secure Future and A More Prosperous Future which informed the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting held in London in April.”
“The four Winners and Runners-up will be flown to London later in the year to take part in ‘Winners’ Week’: a special programme consisting of cultural and educational activities.”
“The week includes an Awards Ceremony at Buckingham Palace where Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall will present winners and runner-ups with their certificates on behalf of Her Majesty The Queen, and notable authors will read extracts from the winning pieces.”
Ejaz Hussain was a post-doctorate fellow in Terrorism and Counterterrorism Operations at the University of Maryland, 2012-13.