In anticipation of the June 7 centenary of Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra, UNESCO has named the Princess a world eminent personality for 2015.

The Thammasat University Libraries own A Memorial to Princess Prem Purachatra. Translated, compiled and edited by Mom Luang Anong Nilubol, the book tells how Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra was a granddaughter-in-law of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), grandfather of HM King Bhumibol (Rama IX). Her work to advance Thai society, especially in the fields of communication and culture, are still felt today. She was instrumental in creating and serving as editor for the Kingdom’s first English-language periodical, the Standard weekly newspaper, to communicate with the outside world. She served as president of the International Council of Women from 1976 to 1979. The first international women’s human rights organization, the International Council of Women dates back to 1888. Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra was the first and only Thai woman to ever be named president of this venerable institution. She established other societies, including the Asian Handicraft Promotion and Development Association.

A lifetime of service.

Born on June 7, 1915, Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra attended the Jane Hays Memorial School in Bangkok and the Wattana Wittaya Academy. She also studied in France, where her father worked as a civil servant in the Thai embassy. Choosing to study pharmaceutical science at the Sorbonne in Paris, after three years she found a job as an apprentice pharmacist. At the outbreak of the Second World War, she returned to Thailand. In 1940, Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) married Prince Prem Purachatra, a lecturer at the Faculty of Letters, Chulalongkorn University as well as a guest lecturer at Thammasat and Silpakorn Universities. In 1943, Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) became a Red Cross volunteer, recruiting and training relief workers. She declared:

True happiness comes from giving, especially from making others happy.

In 1959, she was elected president of the National Council of Women of Thailand, founded in 1956 and under the Royal Patronage of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit since 1961. Since the National Council of Women of Thailand had joined the International Council of Women in 1960, it was natural for Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) to be elected president of the latter group in the 1970s. A fluent speaker in English, French, and Spanish, she was able to communicate with other delegates. She shared with them detailed knowledge about the lives of Thai women in the countryside. Establishing the Asian Handicraft Promotion and Development Association was intended to improve the quality of life for rural women.

She founded over 20 charities to help the poor, develop the Thai countryside, and improve education. These include the Social Welfare Council of Thailand, the Thai Handicapped Children Foundation, The Foundation of the Welfare of the Mentally Retarded of Thailand, and The Foundation for Rural Development Co-ordinating Center. In 1982, commemorating the 200th anniversary of the founding of Bangkok, Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) established the Ruamchit Normklao Foundation for Children and Youth, under the Royal Patronage of Her Majesty the Queen. This foundation, providing educational scholarships, addresses all educational levels. It also supports Dharma and Pali studies for Buddhist novices. Based on her long experience with charitable ventures, in 1967 Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) wrote the following thoughts:

A person, or oneself in particular, is non-permanent. The organization we are working for is the most important. We need to lay a secure foundation for its sustainability. We must let people who understand join us as much as possible. Thus, we must please others. One needs to learn new things at all times, because we know that an unlearned life is like one that is already dead. We must strive to protect the virtue of other people, to encourage them to work for charity organizations. Try to observe one’s own faults. Improve oneself to get along with others. Do not change others for your convenience, since that is impossible.

Even when hospitalized during her last illness, the Princess was concerned with the social welfare of others, and asked visitors to donate money to scholarship funds rather than bringing or sending flowers. In the challenging field of human development, Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) believed that to develop high-quality, moral citizens, a nation must concentrate on:

• Physical improvement for healthy living.
• Educational improvement for sufficient knowledge
• Spiritual improvement of the mind, which should no longer be burdered by greed, anger, and ignorance.
• Improvement of wisdom and the ability to tell right from wrong.
• Behavioral improvement for the culture of good citizens who refrain from harming others, contribute to the society and nation, and are loyal to the nation, religion, and monarchy.  

As part of her work with the Foundation for Rural Development Co-ordinating Center,  Princess Prem encouraged country dwellers to develop their own communities with planning and projects in career-building, savings, income-increasing, and setting-up cooperatives.

Ongoing commemorations.

As part of the celebrations and appreciations of Princess Prem (Ngarmchit), on her centenary the Thailand Post Co., Ltd. will issue a Princess Prem Purachatra Eminent Personality of the World 100th Birthday Anniversary Commemorative Stamp in the denomination of three baht. Last November, the Nation reported that following her example, before the National Day for People with Disability on November 15, the Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra Foundation selected seven disabled persons with outstanding achievements. The honorees included Winai Insamian, a blind massage therapist; Miss Pitchayakorn Kusolkarn and Mrs. Pornsiri Tanpattana, schoolteachers who did not allow deafness to discourage them from being educators; Professor Dr. Pasuk (Boonsue) Mahakkanukrauh, a handicapped doctor and professor of anatomy at Chiang Mai University; Mrs. Anchalee Sitti, a handicapped educator; Mr. Passapol Emradee, an intellectually-challenged person who maintains strong social responsibilities and filial duty; and Mr. Suranat Intaraksa, whose autism did not keep him from achieving academic and professional accomplishments and a sense of social responsibility. By bringing attention to these valiant people, the Princess Prem (Ngarmchit) Purachatra Foundation followed its namesake’s lifelong philosophy.

In a similar way, last November the ICT for All Club donated funds to educate pupils of the Srisangwan School for Disabled Children, Foundation for the Welfare of the Crippled under the Royal Patronage of Her Royal Highness the Princess Mother (Somdet Phra Srinagarindra Boromarajajonani).

(Images courtesy of UNESCO and Wikimedia Commons)