July 21, 1960 - Sirima Bandaranaike

Ceylon introduces world’s first woman prime minister, Sirima Bandaranaike. When Ceylon’s prime minister was assassinated in 1959, his wife Sirima Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike took the helm of her husband’s political party. That made the 42-year-old widow the world’s first woman prime minister, a duty she accepted officially on July 21, 1960. Bandaranaike overhauled the country’s constitution and changed her nation’s name to Sri Lanka. Her leadership caused much turmoil, especially policies leading to the improper treatment of the country’s minority Hindu Tamils. Through voter manipulation and the scapegoating of the Tamils, Bandaranaike stayed in power for decades. She died of a heart attack on October 10, 2000.

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