Khunying Lekha Aphaiwong (, 10 December 1913 – 1983) was a Thai politician. In 1949 she was one of the first two women appointed to the Senate, and also later served in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

. Her husband

Khuang Aphaiwong Khuang Aphaiwong (also spelled Kuang, Abhaiwong and Abhaiwongse; , ; 17 May 1902 – 15 March 1968), also known by his noble title Luang Kowit-aphaiwong (, ), was the founder of the Democrat Party and three times the prime minister of Thaila ...

served three terms as prime minister during the 1940s.

Biography

Aphaiwong was born Jane Lek Kunadilok in 1913, one of twelve children of William Alfred Goone-Tilleke, a Ceylonese-Siamese lawyer. Her mother died when she was very young and she was raised by a nanny and her older sister Yai. After her father died when she was eleven years old, Princess

Valaya Alongkorn Valaya Alongkorn, Princess of Phetchaburi (; ; 16 April 1884 – 15 February 1938), was a princess of Siam (later Thailand), and a member of the Chakri dynasty. She was the daughter of King Chulalongkorn and Savang Vadhana. Her older brother ...

(daughter of King

Chulalongkorn Chulalongkorn (20 September 1853 – 23 October 1910), posthumously honoured as King Chulalongkorn the Great, was the fifth king of Siam from the Chakri dynasty, titled Rama V. Chulalongkorn's reign from 1868 until his death in 1910 was cha ...

) became her guardian. She was educated at St Joseph Convent, Wang Lang School and

Rajini School Rajini School (, , lit. "Queen's School") is a private girls' school in Thailand, and one of the oldest in the country. It was founded in 1904 by Queen Saovabha Phongsri as a replacement for the recently closed Sunanthalai School, which she had p ...

, after which she studied in Ceylon, England and France. During her time in France she met her future husband Khuang Aphaiwong. Returning to Thailand, she began teaching at St Mary Mission School, where she worked until marrying Khuang in 1932. During the cultural mandate years she became a member of the Committee to Establish Correct Names, which established and corrected names for gender roles.Natanaree Posrithong (2015) ''Voices and Roles of Competing Groups of Elite Women in Siam's Political and Social Transitions, 1868-1942'', pp235–238 During this time she changed her name from Lek to Lekha. In 1949 she and La-iad Phibunsongkhram were appointed to the Senate, becoming the first women to sit in the upper house. Parliament was dissolved by the Silent Coup in 1951. In August 1971 she was elected to the

from Bangkok, winning a by-election as a Democrat Party candidate. Parliament was dissolved in November of the same year as a result of the 1971 Thai coup d'état. She later became leader of the People's Sovereignty Party faction within the Democrat Party.David Morell & Chai'anan Samutwanit (1981) ''Political Conflict in Thailand: Reform, Reaction, Revolution'', p109

Honours

* Dame Commander (Second Class) of the Most Noble

Order of the Crown of Thailand The Most Noble Order of the Crown of Thailand (; ) is a Thai order, established in 1869 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) for Thais, the royal family, governmental employees, and foreign dignitaries for their outstanding serv ...

(1962) * Dame Commander (Second Class, lower grade) of the Most Illustrious

Order of Chula Chom Klao The Most Illustrious Order of Chula Chom Klao (; ) was established on 16 November 1873 by King Rama V of The Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) to commemorate the 90th Jubilee of the Chakri Dynasty and bears his name (จุลจอมเกล� ...

(1958)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aphaiwong, Lekha 1913 births Lekha Aphaiwong Lekha Aphaiwong Lekha Aphaiwong Lekha Aphaiwong Lekha Aphaiwong Lekha Aphaiwong 1983 deaths