Ain: 'I'm just an ordinary girl speaking up for what I know is right'

Ain appreciates all the support she has received but admits that the vicious comments about her have been hard to take. Photo: Reuters

Even though she’s likely been the most talked about 17-year-old in the past few weeks, Ain Husniza Saiful Nizam insists that she’s “just an ordinary girl” who likes reading comics, art and K-Pop. In fact the eldest of five siblings reckons she might be the “naughty kid”, who is always “exploring”.

Then two weeks ago, she shared her thoughts on a teacher’s joke that she didn’t find funny, and unwittingly opened the can of worms on rape culture in schools. In the ensuing weeks, the fifth-former has mustered all she has to stand her moral ground in upholding what she believes is right, refusing to let the issue of rape jokes be clouded in ambivalence.