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In Asia

Five women held or still hold the presidency of their country. These were:

• Indira Gandhi in India (1966-77, 1980-84),
• Chandrika Kumaratunga in Sri Lanka (1994-2001 and from 2004),
• Megawati Sukarnoputri in Indonesia (2001-4),
• Corazon Aquino (1986-92)
• and Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (from 2001) in the Philippines.

Mrs. Gandhi, the only daughter of Nehru repressed with hardness her opponents and prepared her children to continue the saga of power.
Mrs. Kumaratunga heiress of the saga Bandanaraike daughter of Solomon and Sirimavo.
Mrs. Sukarnoputri daughter of one of nine wives of Sukarno, the leader of the fight against the colonisers.
Mrs. Aquino after the killing of her husband, Benigno Aquino, headed the opposition to the dictator Marcos until she was able to overthrow him.
Mrs. Arroyo daughter of the President Diosdado Macapagal, studied at the university with Bill Clinton.


Six women were appointed as Prime Ministers:

• Golda Meir in Israel (1969-1974),
• Benazir Bhutto in Pakistan (1988-90, 1993-96),
• Begum Khaleda Zia in Bangladesh (1991-96 and from 2001),
• Sirimavo Bandaranaike in Sri Lanka (1960-65, 70-77, 94-2000),
• Jennifer Shipley (1997-99) and Helen Clark (from 1999) in New Zealand.

Mrs. Meir was born in Ukraine raised in USA and immigrated in 1921 to Palestine, showed her leadership in the war of Yom Kipur.
Mrs. Bhutto spent six years imprisoned, was the first woman to preside over the government of a Muslim country.
Mrs. Khaleda Zia at the age of 15 married captain Rahman, an hero of the independence, she entered in politics when he was murdered.
Mrs. Bandaranaike was the widow of the Prime minister Solomon Bandaranaike, assassinated at the hands of a Buddhist monk.
Mrs. Shipley before assuming the government was minister of the Women's Matters and minister of the health care.
Mrs. Clark was re-elected for her good administration focused on reduction of debt, of the unemployment and an increase of the social expenses