Malaysia's former queen, widowed at age 31 four years ago, has spoken out in a rare interview to deny rumours of a secret remarriage, but said she hopes to make a new family one day.
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's former queen, widowed at age 31 four years ago, has spoken out in a rare interview to deny rumours of a secret remarriage, but said she hopes to make a new family one day.
Siti Aishah Abdul Rahman was just 19 when she married Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, who was 45 years her senior and born the same year as her grandmother.
She became Malaysia's youngest-ever queen when he ascended the throne in 1999 under the country's unique revolving monarchy, where the nine state sultans take five-year turns in the largely ceremonial role.
Since the king's death at the age of 75, Siti Aishah has maintained a low profile, and media reports speculated that she had remarried and moved abroad.
"God knows the truth," she said, dismissing the rumours in an interview with The Star daily, while also saying that she could take another husband in the future.
"When (the king) passed away, I was in a state of shock. Since his death I have been living one day at a time, a moment in time, leading a normal life," said the former queen, who appears even younger than her age.
"I hope and pray I will marry again one day. It is a natural feeling for any woman to want to settle down and have children. Insya Allah (god willing), when the right man comes along, I shall consider marriage with my parents' blessings."
The late king left 10 sons and four daughters from four marriages, but he and Siti Aishah had no children.
She said she had spent the years since her husband's death quietly with her family but was now venturing out and in recent times had eaten at roadside food stalls and visited Islamic carnivals.
"I know I may be 'breaking the rules' but I believe I am entitled to bend a few rules now and then," she said.
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