Salma Ataullahjan

Salma Ataullahjan (Pashto: سلما عطااللہ جان ‎) (born April 29, 1952) is a Canadian Senator of Pakistani origin.

Career

She was named to the upper house by Governor General Michaëlle Jean, on the advice of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, on July 9, 2010, and will sit with the Conservative caucus. With this appointment, Ataullahjan became the first Canadian senator of Pakistani Pushtun descent. She had been the Conservative Party's unsuccessful candidate in Mississauga—Brampton South during the 2008 federal election losing to Liberal MP Navdeep Bains.

Ataullahjan is an advocate for the South Asian community; she has served on the executive board of the Canadian branch of The Citizens Foundation, an international organization that since 1995 has built 730 schools for Pakistan’s poorest children and is an executive member of the Canadian Pashtun Cultural Association. She immigrated to Canada in 1980 from Pakistan as a new bride. Prior to her appointment to the Senate she worked in the Toronto area as a realtor. She has a diploma in computer operations and is also an artist. She stated her political heroes were Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Emily Stowe and Terry Fox.