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Asma Assad, First Lady of Syria , could bring the much needed stability to the Middle East region
Equestrian 19 April 2010
Born in London's Acton Town, 34 year old Asma Assad is the daughter of a wealthy Harley Street heart specialist from Syria's Sunni Muslim majority. She went to a Church of England school and has a computer science degree from King's College, London and he worked as an economic analyst in the City. In December 2000, she married Mr Bashar Al Assad, today President of the Syrian Arab Republic. In 2009, ELLE Magazine named Mrs Assad the most stylish woman in world politics.
Mother of three children, Mrs Assad, has taken her First Lady role beyond the official photo ops on official visits and governmental protocole. In 2009, she was praised for extending an invitation to President Obama but also for her crucial role in rebuilding Syria's relationship with Europe, especially with France, where she went on an official visit.
“We want people to be able to engage. The president was the one who encouraged the introduction of technology and the internet back in the 1990s. So we are a couple that understands the significance of having access to the wider world through technology. People in Syria can get every kind of satellite broadcast they want directly into their house, so I don’t think that you can censor people today.” Mrs Assad told BMI Voyager Magazine in 2009. She also added
“Women in politics get a lot of criticism sometimes about how they dress and how they look. We need to shift the agenda back to what women are doing in these positions of authority. That’s why for me image becomes secondary. Yes, it opens a lot of doors, but what’s more important is what you do in the position you’re in or with the authority that you have.”
When she extended an invitation for President Obama to visit Syria in 2009, she said:
"The fact is President Obama is young, and President Assad is also very young as well, so maybe it is time for these young leaders to make a difference in the world. I can see myself hosting them in Damascus in the old town, meeting with people, getting a sense of how we live, who we are and what Syria is about." (The Sun newspaper)