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The Women of the World

Chancellor Merkel Joins an Elite Club

By Ferda Ataman and Vera Kämper

As German chancellor, Angela Merkel joins the small club of female leaders around the world, including the prime ministers of New Zealand, Mozambique and Bangladesh. Though there are few women leading the international community, most have one thing in common with Merkel: impressive political resumés.

Michelle Bachelet, President Elect of Chile:

Bachelet was born on Sept. 29, 1951. She was elected the first female president of Chile on Sunday, Jan. 15 2006, beating her conservative rival, the billionaire businessman Sebastian Pinera. Bachelet, who will be sworn in on March 11, will be the fourth consecutive president from the center-left coalition known as the Concertacion to govern Chile since 1990. In 2000 President Ricardo Lagos named her Minister of Health and in 2002 she was appointed Defence Minister, becoming the first woman to hold this post in a Latin American country. She then found herself in charge of a military that had been involved in 1973 coup led by General Pinochet after which both she and her mother were kidnapped and tortured. Her father, an Air Force general, who had served in Salvador Allende's government, was detained and charged with treason. He was tortured and died in custody in 1974. Bachelet and her mother were released due to family connections and went first to Australia before settling in East Germany. She returned to Chile in 1979 and became active in politics in the late 1980s campaigning for a return to democracy. Giving her victory speech Bachelet, a doctor and single mother, said: "Who would have said, 10, 15 years ago, that a woman would be elected president?"

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Luisa Dias Diogo.

Luisa Dias Diogo, Prime Minister of Mozambique: Diogo was born on April 11, 1958. She became the first woman prime minister of Mozambique in February, 2004 and is a member of the Frelimo Party -- an independence movement that originated in the 1960s. Prior to becoming prime minister of the African country, she worked in finance and became minister of finance under her predecessor Pascoal Mocumbi -- an office she kept when she succeeded him. Only recently has she handed the finance ministry over to Manuel Chang. In her first year as prime minister, she presented the parliament with an economic and social plan in an effort to improve the finances of the heavily indebted country. Diogo is active internationally in promoting increased financial help for Mozambique and other poor, developing countries.

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Helen Clark, prime minister of New Zealand: Clark was born on Feb. 26, 1950 in Hamilton and was recently re-elected for her third term as the country's prime minister. As a 31-year-old in 1980, Clark had become the first woman parliamentarian in New Zealand in 40 years. Following several ministerial posts and a myriad difficult political battles, she managed to climb her way to the top of the Labour Party. When she was first elected prime minister in 1999, many feared she would reverse a number of economic reforms passed by her predecessor. She took the opposite course, however, and additional reforms pushed through by her government have fostered growth in the economy and population. She was, in short, able to put a stop to the ominous emigration trend that threatened New Zealand demographics. She herself refers to her policies as a sort of third way between socialism and market radicalism. The 55-year-old is considered intelligent and tenacious, but despite her success, her brusque style has made it difficult for her to profit in the popularity stakes.

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Tarja Halonen, president of Finland: Halonen was born on Dec. 24, 1943 in Helsinki and has been Finland's president since 2000. Her inauguration coincided with the introduction of a constitutional amendment limiting the powers of the Finnish president, meaning that the former foreign minister has little say over Finland's foreign affairs now. Halonen has held a long list of political offices in Finland: parliamentary secretary, social and health minister, minister of justice, foreign minister and, finally, president. As foreign minister, she was Finland's primary advocate in the European Union while at the same time displaying sensitivity when it came to dealing with neighbor Russia. She ran in 2000 for the Social Democrats and received a surprising 40 percent of the vote. And with that, she -- as a single mother who was politically engaged -- has also become something of a symbol for modern Finland. Most expect Halonen to be re-elected on Jan. 15, 2006.

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Begum Khaleda Zia, prime minister of Bangladesh: Zia was born on Aug. 15, 1945 in Dinajpur. She has been prime minister of Bangladesh since 2001. As the head of one of the poorest countries in the world, the 60-year-old has little international influence. She has, however, been Bangladesh's prime minister once before, from 1991 to 1996, and came to power this time around with the help of two Islamist coalition partners. In between her two stints of power, another woman -- Hasina Wajed, daughter of Bangladesh's founding father Mujib ur-Rahman -- held the reins. The two rivals both came to power not only because of their political experience but also because of the power of their families. Zia does not have much schooling and never went to university. Her husband was president of Bangladesh until he was murdered in 1981. She is not considered well-liked and she has been unable to break the vicious cycle of poverty, corruption and political instability that grips Bangladesh. According to the opposition party Avami League, some 13,000 opponents of Zia's nationalist-Islamist government have been murdered.

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Mary McAleese, president of Ireland: McAleese was born on June 27, 1951 in Belfast in Northern Ireland. A political independent, she has been Ireland's president since 1997. She won her first election in an avalanche and stayed in office in 2004 after no other candidate emerged to oppose her. Her resume is an impressive one. She received a law degree in 1973 and became a professor of criminal law and criminology at the early age of 23. In 1994, she became the first Catholic pro-vice chancellor of Queen's University in Belfast. McAleese is not the first woman president in Ireland -- she succeeded the popular Mary Robinson -- but it was the first time that two women occupied the position in succession. McAleese made reconciliation between Northern Ireland and Ireland a goal for her administration.

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Gloria Arroyo, president of the Philippines: Arroyo was born on April 5, 1947 in Manila. She became vice president of the Philippines in 1998 and then became the 14th president of the country in 2001 when she took over from her predecessor Joseph Estrada. Estrada had been arrested for "economic plundering." Arroyo comes from a powerful family. Her father Diosdado Macapagal was likewise president and became known for his integrity and his modest lifestyle. Arroyo, an economist, promised to fight poverty and to combat the system of patronage that plagues the Philippines. Another challenge facing her administration is the Islamist terror group Abu Sayyaf -- one of the reasons she joined the United States in its struggle against international terrorism. In 2004, Arroyo announced her intentions to run for re-election and promised a wide-reaching package of economic reforms, including investment incentives to attract foreign investors. She managed to win the election, but was then -- along with some of her family members -- accused of having manipulated the vote. The accusations resulted in a drastic loss of popularity for Arroyo. Nevertheless, the Philippine parliament decided at the beginning of September 2005 not to initiate impeachment proceedings. Many see her as a cold economist with little charisma. And on the whole, her country has lagged behind Asia's other "tigers."

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Not much is known about Maria do Carmo Silveira, the prime minister of São Tomé and Príncipe). The leader of the tiny African nation is thought to be 45 years old. She took over in 2005 from her corruption-plagued predecessor Damio Vaz d'Almeida after heading the country's central bank. That expertise has allowed her to also handle the finance minister portfolio. She is the second female prime minister to lead the island since free elections were first held in 1991. The country is deeply indebted so she has worked closely with the International Monetary Fund to secure financial aid. However, the country's prospects may soon improve following the discovery of oil in the surrounding waters of the Gulf of Guinea.

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Vaira Vike-Freiberga, president of Latvia: Vike-Freiberga was born on Dec. 1, 1937 in Riga. She has been the president of Latvia since 1999. She emigrated to Canada during World War II, but returned from exile to her homeland in 1998 to work as a professor of psychology. Her predecessor, Guntis Ulmanis, led the country for two terms following independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, but had to step down due to term limits. Vike-Freiberga -- previously without political ambitions and virtually unknown to the public -- was nominated in 1999 by three parties and surprisingly won the vote. Though she does not belong to a party, she has ensured that Latvia has stuck to a strong pro-western course and also led the country successfully into the European Union. She has become one of the country's most popular politicians with her confident and independent approach. Accordingly, it was no surprise when she was easily re-elected for a second term in 2003.

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Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, president of Liberia: Johnson-Sirleaf was born on Oct. 29, 1938. Her election as president of Liberia this autumn will, in all likelihood, be confirmed on Wednesday following an investigation into accusations of election fraud by her opponent, former world football player of the year George Weah. The 66-year-old grandmother will take over an impoverished country rocked by 14 years of civil war that has resulted in the deaths of more than 200,000 and left tens of thousands unemployed. One of her greatest challenges, however, will be that of staying alive; two former presidents of Liberia have been killed and a unit of UN peacekeepers has been assigned to protect the president-elect. A trained economist, Johnson-Sirleaf has been involved in Liberian politics since 1972 when she became secretary of state for finance and she was minister of finance from 1980 to 1985. She initially supported Charles Taylor's rebellion against General Samuel Doe in 1989 -- and was imprisoned for her trouble. Indeed, at one point, she was the only rebel who survived from a group of 12 imprisoned during the coup attempt. Later, she became active in opposing the leadership of former president Charles Taylor and even charged with treason. Her election is considered to meet the free and fair standard by international election observers.