Tan Sri The Malay language has a complex system of styles, titles and honorifics which are used extensively in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and the southern Philippines. Brunei, Malaysia, Singapore and several provinces in Indonesia regul ...

Datin Paduka Seri Datin was an oracular deity also associated with oaths and justice worshipped in pre- Islamic northern Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "I ...

Hajah Zaleha binti Ismail ( Jawi: صالحة بنت اسماعيل) (18 May 1936 – 14 November 2020) was a

Malaysian Malaysian may refer to: * Something from or related to Malaysia, a country in Southeast Asia * Malaysian Malay, a dialect of Malay language spoken mainly in Malaysia * Malaysian people, people who are identified with the country of Malaysia regard ...

politician and among the women's leaders in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. She served as Minister of National Unity and Community Development from 1995 to 1999. Her friendly attitude led many to enjoy it.

Background

She was born in

Kuala Langat The Kuala Langat District is a district of Selangor, Malaysia. It is situated in the southwestern part of Selangor. It covers an area of 858 square kilometres, and had a population of 307,787 at the 2020 Census (exclude foreign). It is bordered ...

, Selangor. She attended the Sungai Pelek Malay School and

University of Malaya The University of Malaya ( ms, Universiti Malaya, UM; abbreviated as UM or informally the Malayan University) is a public research university located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the oldest and highest ranking Malaysian institution of highe ...

– Bachelor of Arts (Economics) in 1961.

Career

At Radio Malaya (1962–1968) she worked as a Plan Assistant, then Manager of the English Service Plan. Additionally, she was a part-time Lecturer and Tutor at

, while in 1968–1978 she became the Encyclopedia Officer in Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka and subsequently the Deputy Head of Textbook Division. Tan Sri Datin Paduka Hajah Zaleha Ismail as well as Vice President of MUBARAK, was a former Malaysian MP and President of the Malaysian Council for Children Welfare, Women's Association of the ASEAN Association of Women, and President of the National Council of Women's Organizations. She was also equally influential regionally and internationally, as she was elected President of the Association of Women's Organizations (ACWO) in 1986 until 1988. Tan Sri Datin Paduka Zaleha continued to serve at ACWO even after she supported the president in various capacities such as vice president, Honorary Treasurer, and general secretary before being re-elected to lead ACWO as president in 1998 to 2000. She was also the Chairperson of the Population and Development Board Country Family in Malaysia. Tan Sri Datin Paduka Hajah Zaleha Ismail was the Chairperson of Global Peace Foundation Malaysia and Spark Capital Development Berhad.

Politics

In 1968 she became a regular member of UMNO and eventually the UMNO Supreme Council of Malaysia. She was involved in politics for 30 years. She started contesting the 1978 general election for the Permatang seat of

Selangor State Legislative Assembly The Selangor State Legislative Assembly ( ms, Dewan Negeri Selangor) is the unicameral state legislature of the Malaysian state of Selangor. The State Assembly is composed of 56 members representing single-member constituencies throughout the sta ...

. She was

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Tanjong Karang (1982–1986) and

Selayang Selayang is a town in Gombak District, Selangor, Malaysia. Location Selayang is located on the main route to Rawang through Jalan Ipoh, and this route is connected to Jalan Kuching as main Rawang-Kuala Lumpur route. It is also an optional ...

(1986–1995) afterward. She continued to be Deputy Transport Minister from 1987 to 1995 when she became a member of parliament for

Gombak The Gombak District is an administrative district located in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The district was created on February 1, 1974, the same day when Kuala Lumpur was declared a Federal Territory. Until 1997, Rawang was the district capi ...

(1995–2004). The peak of her career came as she took on the National Unity & Ministry of Social Development as Minister, from 1995 to 1999. In Malaysia's 1999 general election, she defeated

Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party The Malaysian Islamic Party (PAS; ms, Parti Islam Se-Malaysia; ms, ڤرتي إسلام سمليسيا, label=Jawi alphabet, Jawi, script=arab, italic=unset) is an Islamist political party in Malaysia. As the party focused on Islamic fundamen ...

(PAS), Dr. Hatta Ramli with a majority of 803 votes.

Death

On 14 November 2020, Zaleha Ismail died of several health complications at 8.15 pm at Tawakkal Hospital, Kuala Lumpur. She was 84 years old.

Election results

Honours

She was awarded the Seri Mahkota Selangor Star, Bintang Kesatria Mangku Negara and Datuk Paduka Mahkota Selangor in 1979. Among the recent awards was the Global Peace Award in 2011, "Ibu Harmoni Tokoh" Award 2013 and Datin Paduka Seri

Rosmah Mansor Rosmah binti Mansor ( Jawi: روسمه بنت منصور; born 10 December 1951) is the second wife of former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak. Like her husband, she became implicated in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad scandal. On 1 S ...

for Women leading in Amal.

Honours of Malaysia

* : **

Officer of the

Order of the Defender of the Realm The Most Esteemed Order of the Defender of the Realm ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Pangkuan Negara) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country. The Order Motto are 'Dipeliharakan Allah-Pangkuan Negara' (By the Grace o ...

(KMN) (1979) **

Commander of the

Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia The Most Esteemed Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia ( ms, Darjah Yang Mulia Setia Mahkota Malaysia) is a Malaysian federal award presented for meritorious service to the country and awarded by the sovereign. The order was instituted on ...

(PSM) – Tan Sri (2003) * : ** MY-SEL Order of the Crown of Selangor - SMS - AMS

Companion of the

Order of the Crown of Selangor The Most Illustrious Order of the Crown of Selangor (Bahasa Melayu: ''Darjah Kebesaran Mahkota Selangor Yang Amat Mulia'') is an order awarded by Sultan of Selangor as a reward for general services to the sultan and state of Selangor. It was foun ...

(SMS) **

MY-SEL Order of the Crown of Selangor - Knight Commander - DPMS

Knight Commander of the

(DPMS) – Datin Paduka (1980) ** MY-SEL Order of Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah - Knight Grand Companion - SSSA

Knight Grand Companion of the

Order of Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

(SSSA) – Datin Paduka Seri (2001)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaleha Ismail 1936 births 2020 deaths People from Selangor Malaysian people of Malay descent Malaysian Muslims United Malays National Organisation politicians Members of the Dewan Rakyat Women members of the Dewan Rakyat Government ministers of Malaysia Women government ministers of Malaysia Members of the Selangor State Legislative Assembly Women MLAs in Selangor University of Malaya alumni Commanders of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia Officers of the Order of the Defender of the Realm Knights Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor