- In full:
- Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike
- Also called:
- Sirimavo R.D. Bandaranaike
- Born:
- April 17, 1916, Ratnapura, Ceylon [now Sri Lanka]
- Died:
- October 10, 2000, Colombo, Sri Lanka (aged 84)
- Notable Family Members:
- spouse S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike
- daughter Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga
Sirimavo Bandaranaike
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Who was Sirimavo Bandaranaike?
Sirimavo Bandaranaike (1916â2000) was a prominent stateswoman who made history by becoming the world's first female prime minister upon her party's victory in the 1960 general election in Ceylon (later Sri Lanka).
She carried on her husbandâs program of socialist economic policies, neutrality in international relations, and the active encouragement of the Buddhist religion and of the Sinhalese language and culture. Her government nationalized various economic enterprises and enforced a law making Sinhalese the sole official language.
She served multiple terms, from 1960-1965, 1970â77, and 1994â2000. The family she founded with her husband rose to great prominence in Sri Lankan politics.
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What was her role as prime minister of Sri Lanka?
As prime minister of Sri Lanka, Sirimavo Bandaranaike implemented policies rooted in socialist economics, international neutrality, and the promotion of Sinhalese culture and Buddhism.
Key aspects of her role included:
* Nationalization Bandaranaike's government nationalized various economic enterprises.
* Language policy She enforced a law making Sinhalese the sole official language, a move that alienated the Tamil minority.
* Economic reforms Her government further restricted free enterprise, nationalized industries, and carried out land reforms.
* New constitution Bandaranaike promulgated a new constitution that created an executive presidency and renamed Ceylon as Sri Lanka.Her policies, while reducing wealth inequalities, led to economic stagnation and ethnic tensions, contributing to her government's defeat in 1977.
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When did she first become prime minister?
Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the world's first female prime minister in July 1960, after her party, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), won the general election in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). She took office after her husband's assassination and continued his program of socialist economic policies, encouraged Buddhism, and made Sinhalese the sole official language. She served as prime minister three times (1960â1965, 1970â1977, 1994â2000).
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Why was Sirimavo Bandaranaike significant in world history?
Sirimavo Bandaranaike made history in July 1960 when she became the world's first woman prime minister upon her party's victory in Ceylon (later Sri Lanka).
Bandaranaike continued her husband's policies, advocating socialist economics, international neutrality, and promoting Sinhalese language and culture, along with Buddhism. Her government nationalized economic enterprises and made Sinhalese the official language. Although her socialist policies reduced wealth inequalities, they caused economic stagnation and alienated the Tamil minority, which led to her replacement as prime minister in 1977. From 1994 to 2000, Bandaranaike served another term as prime minister under her daughter's presidency.
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What changes did she make in Sri Lanka during her leadership?
Sirimavo Bandaranaike, the world's first female prime minister, served multiple terms and implemented significant changes in Sri Lanka. Continuing her husband's program of Sinhalese nationalism, she implemented policies to nurture and protect local industry and to extend the state sector.
During her leadership, most private schools were nationalized, and state subsidies to any remaining private schools were discontinued. Her government enacted reforms that restricted private enterprise and extended nationalization to embrace various private industries and foreign-owned plantations as well as a large part of the wholesale and distributive trade. Measures aimed at reducing social inequality were enacted, and an ambitious program of land reform was put into effect. Additionally, she promulgated a new constitution that created an executive presidency and made Ceylon into a republic named Sri Lanka.
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How did her actions shape Sri Lanka's society and politics?
Sirimavo Bandaranaike's actions significantly shaped Sri Lanka's society and politics. As the world's first female prime minister, she carried on her husband's program of socialist economic policies, encouraged Buddhism, and made Sinhalese the sole official language, which alienated the Tamil minority.
Her government nationalized economic enterprises and restricted free enterprise, which, while reducing wealth inequalities, caused economic stagnation. Bandaranaike's policies and failure to address ethnic rivalries led to a major defeat in 1977 but she returned to power in 1994. Her legacy includes a family that remained prominent in Sri Lankan politics, including her daughter Chandrika Kumaratunga, who also became president.
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Sirimavo Bandaranaike (born April 17, 1916, Ratnapura, Ceylon [now Sri Lanka]âdied October 10, 2000, Colombo, Sri Lanka) was a stateswoman who, upon her partyâs victory in the 1960 general election in Ceylon (later Sri Lanka), became the worldâs first woman prime minister. She left office in 1965 but returned to serve two more terms (1970â77, 1994â2000) as prime minister. The family she founded with her husband, S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike, rose to great prominence in Sri Lankan politics.
Born into a wealthy family, she married the politician S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike in 1940 and began to interest herself in social welfare. After her husband, who became prime minister in 1956, was assassinated in 1959, she was induced by his Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) to become the partyâs leader. The SLFP won a decisive victory at the general election in July 1960, and she became prime minister.
Bandaranaike carried on her husbandâs program of socialist economic policies, neutrality in international relations, and the active encouragement of the Buddhist religion and of the Sinhalese language and culture. Her government nationalized various economic enterprises and enforced a law making Sinhalese the sole official language. By 1964 a deepening economic crisis and the SLFPâs coalition with the Marxist Lanka Sama Samaja Party (âCeylon Socialist Partyâ) had eroded popular support for her government, which was resoundingly defeated in the general election of 1965.
In 1970, however, her socialist coalition, the United Front, regained power, and, as prime minister, Bandaranaike pursued more-radical policies. Her government further restricted free enterprise, nationalized industries, carried out land reforms, and promulgated a new constitution that created an executive presidency and made Ceylon into a republic named Sri Lanka. While reducing inequalities of wealth, Bandaranaikeâs socialist policies had once again caused economic stagnation, and her governmentâs support of Buddhism and the Sinhalese language had helped alienate the countryâs large Tamil minority. The failure to deal with ethnic rivalries and economic distress led, in the election of July 1977, to the SLFPâs retaining only 8 of the 168 seats in the National Assembly, and Bandaranaike was replaced as prime minister.
In 1980 the Sri Lanka parliament stripped Bandaranaike of her political rights and barred her from political office, but in 1986 Pres. J.R. Jayawardene granted her a pardon that restored her rights. She ran unsuccessfully as the SLFPâs candidate for president in 1988, and after regaining a seat in parliament in 1989 she became the leader of the opposition.
Bandaranaikeâs children, in the meantime, had become major political figures within the SLFP. Her son, Anura P.S.D. Bandaranaike, was first elected to parliament in 1977 and had become the leader of the SLFPâs right-wing faction by 1984. He was frustrated in his bid to become the partyâs leader, however, by his sister Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, who held left-wing views and was favoured by their mother for the leadership. In response, Anura defected from the SLFP and joined the rival United National Party (UNP) in 1993.
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Chandrika had been active in the SLFP before marrying the film actor Vijaya Kumaratunga in 1978, and after his assassination in 1988 she rejoined her motherâs party. She soon came to head its left-wing faction, and a string of electoral victories propelled her to the leadership of an SLFP-based coalition that won the parliamentary elections of August 1994. Chandrika became prime minister, and in November of that year she won the presidential election over the UNP candidate, becoming the countryâs first female president. Chandrika appointed her mother, Sirimavo Bandaranaike, to serve as prime minister in her new government, which mounted a major military campaign against Tamil separatists in 1995. Failing health forced Sirimavo to resign her post in August 2000. Shortly after voting in the October parliamentary elections, she suffered a heart attack and died. Chandrika, barred from seeking a third term, left office in 2005.