Zari Sarfaraz
Begum (b.1923 - d. 2008), the elder sister of the late Mir Afzal Khan former chief minister of NWFP - and the eldest of the three children of Khan Bahadur Sarfaraz Khan, a leading landlord of the Pakhtoon dominated Mardan area of NWFP. She has played an active role in furthering Muslim League cause during the Pakistan Movement while running her own business in the mid 1940s.[1]
Early Life
Her father's early death made it necessary for her discontinue her studies. So being the eldest, she had to sacrifice her personal goals. Unlike any other Pakhtoon family she was made the figurehead of the family. Her mother, Kaukab Sultan, wanted her to oversee all family matters till the time her brothers Mir Afzal Khan and Khan Aziz Sarfaraz Khan both younger to her completed their studies and took over the political dynasty left by their father Khan Sarfaraz Khan.
Enrolled at the Presentation Convent School, Srinagar, Begum Zari Sarfaraz aspired to become a doctor. She instead became one of the leading businesswomen of the country, still successfully running more than one sugar mills owned by her family group. [2]
After partition she was the first female to be elected to the NWFP legislative assembly. Later, she also remained a member of the West Pakistan and the National assemblies.
Later life
During Gen Zia-ul Haq era, she headed the 15-member Commission on Status of Women in 1985 and recommended drastic changes in the existing laws to end discrimination against women. During this time, she also served as the federal minister for women development. She also headed All Pakistan Women Association (Apwa), and was a life member of the Pakistan Red Crescent Society.