Majlis Kanser Nasional

Wan Azizah Wan Ismail

Yang Berbahagia Datuk Seri Dr. Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (born 3 December 1952) is a Malaysian politician. She is currently the president of Parti Keadilan Rakyat (People's Justice Party) and she was the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh from 1999 to 2008. She was also the Leader of Opposition in Dewan Rakyat from March 2008 until July 31 2008. She resigned her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh on 31 July 2008 to make way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest in a by-election which has to be held within 60 days from the date she resigned.

Early life

Born in 1952, Wan Azizah received her early education in St. Nicholas Convent School, Alor Setar. She was to continue her education at the prestigious Tunku Kurshiah College

in Seremban. She went on to study medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland where she was awarded a gold medal in obstetrics and gynecology and she later graduated as a qualified ophthalmologist.

Dr. Wan Azizah served as a government doctor for 14 years before deciding to focus on volunteer work, when her husband, Anwar Ibrahim was appointed the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia in 1993. As part of her voluntary pursuits, she became a patron of MAKNA (Majlis Kanser Nasional or National Cancer Council) in that period and became the second woman to lead a political party in Malaysia's history (Ganga Nayar founded and became the first president of the Malaysian Workers' Party in 1978 ).

Wan Azizah had a Peranakan (Straits Chinese) grandfather but identifies as a Malay Muslim.

Political career

Party founder

Following the dismissal and arrest of her husband on 20 September 1998, Dr. Wan Azizah earned the respect and admiration of many Malaysians as the leader of the fledgling Reformasi movement. She first led the Social Justice Movement (ADIL), a civil rights NGO, before helping to establish the National Justice Party on 4 April 1999. The establishment of the party saw Dr. Wan Azizah being elected as the first party president .

On 3 August 2003, she brought the party into a merger with the older Malaysian People's Party (or Parti Rakyat Malaysia) which saw the establishment of the People's Justice Party and was elected as the president of the newly merged party.

Member of Parliament

In the first elections competed by the party in 1999, she led the party to win 5 seats in the Parliament and was herself elected as the Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh; the seat formerly held by Anwar Ibrahim; with a majority of 9,077 votes. She successfully retained the seat in the 2004 elections with a reduced majority .

As a political party leader and also a parliamentary representative, Dr. Wan Azizah is involved in many programs and activities domestically and internationally. She has spoken at UN-sponsored programs, and the local and international media. She is also the Vice-Chair of the Malaysian Parliamentary Caucus for Democracy in Myanmar and a member of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus .

March 2008 Elections

Dr. Wan Azizah won her parliament seat of Permatang Pauh in the 2008 12th General Election of Malaysia with a majority of 13,388 . She was supported by all the component parties of Pakatan Rakyat to lead the opposition in the lower house of parliament, House of Representatives.

With the recent public announcement by Anwar Ibrahim regarding his intention to return to active politics despite being legally barred from doing so, Dr Wan Azizah has indicated her readiness to vacate the position of party president if he was elected. Nonetheless, she has also indicated that she intends to defend her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh.

No confidence motion towards government premiership

On July 10, Wan Azizah in her capacity as the Leader of the Opposition submitted an urgent motion of "no-confidence" in Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, on behalf of the Pakatan Rakyat (PR) MPs. The reasons she cited were the narrow victory of Barisan Nasional in the March general election, the sudden fuel price hike, the marginalization of PR-led states and the alleged oppression of BN MPs to voice up, had led to the confidence crisis against the prime minister.

Recent Developments

Wan Azizah was honored on the occasion of the official birthday of the Yang di-Pertua Negeri (State Governor) of Penang on July 12 when she was awarded the Darjah Panglima Pangkuan Negeri (Order of the Defender of the State), a chivalric order of the second rank in the state. The award carries the non-hereditary title of Datuk Seri.

She resigned her parliamentary seat for Permatang Pauh on 31 July 2008 to make way for her husband Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim to contest in a by-election which has to be held within 60 days from the date she resigned. . Her husband succeeded her parliamentary seat after won a big majority on August 26 2008 Permatang Pauh by-election.