- Princess Sarvath El Hassan
Princess Sarvath El Hassan (née Sarvath Ikramullah) was born in
Kolkata onJuly 24 ,1947 , to a prominentMuslim family of theIndian subcontinent . [http://www.elhassan.org/reg/sarvath/index3.html Princess Sarvath's Official Home Page: Biography, Family and Interests] ]Family
Her father, the late
Bhopal -bornMohammed Ikramullah , was a senior member of theIndian Civil Service in the Government ofIndia prior to Partition. He went on to join the Partition Committee ofMuhammad Ali Jinnah , later becomingPakistan 's firstSecretary of State forForeign Affairs andAmbassador toCanada ,France ,Portugal and theUnited Kingdom . His last post was asChairman of the Commonwealth Economic Committee. Her mother, the late Kolkata-born BegumShaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah , was a writer and one of Pakistan's first two female members of Parliament.Begum Ikramullah also served as Ambassador toMorocco and several times adelegate to theUnited Nations . [http://www.arabicnews.com/ansub/Daily/Day/981210/1998121020.html Arabic News: Princess Sarvath on the Education of Women in the Muslim World] ] [http://www.4dw.net/royalark/Jordan/jordan2.htm Jordan: Al-Hashimi Dynasty - Genealogy] ]The Princess' paternal uncle, Mohammad Hidayatullah, was
Vice-President of India and her maternal uncle,Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy , wasPrime Minister of Pakistan. Some of her other ancestors include members of theChishti Order , as well as the Iranian Sufi philosopher,Shaikh Shabuddin Yahya Suhrawardy. Many of her male and female forebearers, on both sides of her family, werepoet s,writer s andacademic s. She lived in all the countries that her parents were posted to, but mostly received her education in Britain, such as at theUniversity of Cambridge . She first met Prince Hassan inLondon in1958 , when they were both 11 years old. [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989321-2,00.html Time.com: From the Magazine | World - Jordan] ]Marriage and children
Princess Sarvath married Prince Hassan bin Talal of
Jordan , inKarachi onAugust 28 ,1968 . They live in one of the oldest houses inAmman and have four children: [http://www.kinghussein.gov.jo/prince_hassan.html The Hashemites: Biographical Information] ]*Princess Rahma (born
August 13 ,1969 )
*Princess Sumaya (bornMay 14 ,1971 )
*Princess Badiya (bornMarch 28 ,1974 )
*Prince Rashid (bornMay 20 ,1979 )Career and controversy
Princess Sarvath served Jordan for over 30 years, as the wife of the
Crown Prince . She initiated, sponsored and continues to support many projects and activities in Jordan, mainly in the field ofeducation , in addition to issues pertaining towomen and thefamily , social welfare andhealth . For example, much of her work focuses on promoting education about various topics (both locally and internationally), assisting disadvantaged women, encouragingcommunity service and helping people with mental and learning disabilities.According to off-the-record briefings by anonymous palace officials in Amman, a rumour based story was being circulated that Princess Sarvath had drawn up plans for a redecoration of the entire Jordanian Royal Apartment, before King Hussein had even died of cancer. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/276136.stm BBC World: Middle East - Battle of the Wives] ] This allegedly occurring while the King was undergoing chemotherapy in the
United States and Prince Hassan was running the country in his place. [http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3724/is_199902/ai_n8834656 Find Articles: The Spectator - February 13, 1999] ] [http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/jork.htm The New York Times: Late News - January 22, 1999] ] On the contrary, other sources state that the Princess actually gave orders for some state apartments to be spruced up, in preparing to receive a foreign delegation. Furthermore, certain accounts imply that only a kitchen was renovated for the visit ofGermany 's thenPresident ,Roman Herzog , who was traveling with his native cook. [http://www.theroyalforums.com/forums/f83/prince-hassan-princess-sarvath-news-picture-thread-part-1-a-5010-7.html#post193335 The Royal Forums: Washington Times Library - April 19, 1999] ]Some people also believe that the Princess'
South Asian roots, may have (partly) been an obstacle in reference to ascending the throne (along with her husband) and becoming Queen. Others hold the viewpoint, that the succession change had to do with completely different reasons. [http://www.pakistanlink.com/sah/02-26-99.html Pakistan Link: Diminutive King Hussein Leaves a Giant Mark] ]Infobox_hrhstyles
royal name=Princess Sarvath of Jordan
dipstyle=Her Royal Highness
offstyle=Your Royal Highness
altstyle=Ma'am|
Organizations
"(Former) Member of the:"
* Council of UNESCO's International Fund for the Promotion of Culture
* Council of Foundation of the
* International Board of
* International Board of the
"Patron of the:"
* Young Muslim Women’s Association since
* Malath Foundation for Humanistic Care
* Jordanian Charity Association for
* Jordanian
"Chairwoman of the:"
* 'El Hassan Bin Talal Award for Academic Excellence' committee
* National Selection Committee for the
"(Vice) President of the:"
* Jordan Red Crescent Society from
* Arab Society for Learning Difficulties since
* Centre for
"Founded the:"
* Jordanian United World Colleges National Committee and chaired it from
*
Awards
* The
* The Grand Cordon of the Jewelled Order of the Renaissance (
* The Woman of Peace Award, granted by the
* The Abu Bakr Al Sadik Medal from the Arab Red Crescent and Red Cross Societies (
* The degree of
* The
Interests
Princess Sarvath knows how to speak multiple languages, including Arabic, English, French and
References
External links
* [http://www.mfa.gov.jo/events_details.php?id=12559 Foreign Ministry: The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan - Princess Sarvath's appeal for quake victims brings in help]
* [http://www.nchd.org.pk/ws/about_phdf.htm The National Commission for Human Development: The Pakistan Human Development Fund (PHDF) | Patrons]
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