Syeda Razia Faiz (18 April 1936 – 15 November 2013) was a Bangladeshi politician. She served as a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan in the 1960s. In 1979, she became the first and only woman to be elected as a member of the Jatiya Sangsad out of 300 members.[1][2]
Meanwhile, her sister Syeda Sakina Islam, was among the 30 nominated/selected members of the reserved women seats (a quota for the winning party which holds the parliamentary majority) of the same national parliament.[3]
Career
Faiz (pictured middle row, first from left) on a diplomatic delegation, with Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai
Faiz was elected to Pakistan National Assembly in the 1960s under President Ayub Khan,[4] representing the country on a number of delegations overseas.[3] During the Bangladesh Liberation War she was also part of the Pakistani delegation to the United Nations.[4] She was placed under house arrest in Bangladesh after its independence.[4]
In 1979, Faiz was elected from the former constituency of Abdus Sabur Khan to Bangladesh's Parliament.[4] She was the first female elected member of parliament in Bangladesh.[3] In 1989, she was appointed as the minister for women and social welfare[1] Later, she served as the vice president of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party until her death.[5]
Personal life and death
Faiz was married to Mohammad Abul Faiz, a chairman of Petrobangla. They had a daughter, Fawzia Alam, and two sons, Osman Ershad Faiz and Aman Ashraf Faiz.[1] She died on 15 November 2013.[5]
References
^ abcd"Razia Faiz dead". The Financial Express. Dhaka. 17 November 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2016.
