Ferial Ismail Ashraff (born August 20, 1953) is a

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

n politician. She was the wife of M. H. M. Ashraff, the deceased leader of the

Sri Lanka Muslim Congress The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (; ) is a political party in Sri Lanka. Presently led by Rauff Hakeem, it is currently the largest party representing the Muslim community of Sri Lanka. History The party was formed at a meeting held at Kattankudy ...

and the

National Unity Alliance The National Unity Alliance () is a political alliance in Sri Lanka. Founded in 1999, the alliance ceased to exist in 2010 when its remaining members joined the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. However, Azath Salley subsequently assumed leadership of the ...

.Former SL Minister Mrs. Ferial Ashraff appointed to National Institute of Education
, Lankanewspapers.com, 30 December 2010, retrieved 2011-03-26 She was the Minister of Housing and Common Amenities under President

Chandrika Kumaratunga Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (; ; born 29 June 1945), commonly referred to by her initials CBK, is a Sri Lankan politician who served as the fifth President of Sri Lanka, President of Sri Lanka from 12 November 1994 to 19 November 2005. ...

. She was a representative of

Ampara District Ampara District (; ) is one of the 25 Districts of Sri Lanka, districts of Sri Lanka, the second-level administrative divisions of the country. The district is administered by a District Secretariat headed by a Government Agent (Sri Lanka), Distric ...

for the

United People's Freedom Alliance The United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA; ''Eksath Janathā Nidahas Sandānaya''; ) was a political alliance in Sri Lanka founded by former Sri Lankan president Chandrika Kumaratunga in 2004 and dissolved by former Sri Lankan President Ma ...

in the

Parliament of Sri Lanka The Parliament of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka (Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකා පාර්ලිමේන්තුව ''Śrī Laṇkā Pārlimentuvā'', Tamil: இலங்கை நாடாளுமன்றம் '' ...

. She resides in

Colombo Colombo, ( ; , ; , ), is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. The Colombo metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of 5.6 million, and 752,993 within the municipal limits. It is the ...

. In the 2002 general elections, she became a member of the

from Digamadulla, and was appointed the Minister of Housing and Common Amenities. In 2010, she was appointed to the board of the National Institute of Education. In 2011, she was named Sri Lanka's High Commissioner to

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

Political career

The

, which was founded by M.H.M. Ashraff in 1981, facilitated for the entry of Ferial Ashraff into politics upon the death of her husband for a brief period of time, which led to a power struggle for a new, charismatic leader from the East, a position that both Ferial Ashroff and the SLMC Deputy Leader at the time,

Rauff Hakeem Abdul Rauff Hibbathul Hakeem (born 13 April 1960) is a Sri Lankan politician and current member of parliament, representing the Kandy electorate since 2010. Hakeem is the leader of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC), and a member of the Unite ...

contested for. Upon her failure, she broke away from the group and formulated the National Unity Alliance (NUA), a multiethnic political party that sought to center itself upon more than the Muslim Majority Identity.

References

1953 births Living people Members of the 11th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 12th Parliament of Sri Lanka Members of the 13th Parliament of Sri Lanka Cabinet ministers of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Freedom Party politicians Sri Lanka Muslim Congress politicians United People's Freedom Alliance politicians High commissioners of Sri Lanka to Singapore Women legislators in Sri Lanka Housing ministers of Sri Lanka 21st-century Sri Lankan women politicians Women government ministers of Sri Lanka Sri Lankan women ambassadors {{EasternLK-politician-stub

Political career

Further reading

See also

References