Sheikh Hasina

She married in 1968 to a prominent Bengali scientist, M.A. Wazed Miah. Together the couple had one son and one daughter.

Her son, Sajeeb Wazad, follows her footsteps remaining active in the ‘Awami League’. It is rumored his net worth is over $1 billion, making him one of the richest men in Bangladesh.

This leader was born on September 28, 1947 into a life of turmoil and violence. Her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was integral in the movement to separate Bangladesh from Pakistan and also became the first President of Bangladesh.

While simultaneously studying at the University of Dhaka in the 1960s, she worked as her father’s political liaison while he was imprisoned.

On August 15, 1975 she was met with unfortunate tragedy. Her father, mother, and three brothers were all murdered in their home by military officers. As a result, she went into lonely exile for the next six years.

In 1981, she returned to Bangladesh and became a strong advocate for democracy. She was elected to lead the ‘Awami League Party’ in February. Unfortunately, her unpopular opinions put her under house arrest or in prison for most of the decade.

In 1990, through a constitutional process, she offered General Ershad, who had gained power through a coup and led though martial law, a 24-hour ultimatum which ultimately led to him to quit.

In the elections that followed, her party, the ‘Bangladesh Nationalist Party’ (BNP) convinced the government to change from one of complete executive control to one where the Parliament was supreme and the executive party more accountable.

Her next task was to create an equal voting process. Prior to her pushing voting as a basic human and political right in 1996, elections were generally falsified through selective voting lists, predetermined votes, and a slanted counting process. An amendment for neutral and free elections was passed the same year.

On June 23rd, 1996, she was elected and sworn in as the second female Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Throughout her term, the country continued to be in political, often violent, chaos.

The most significant move of her career was the signing of the ‘Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord’ in December 1997. The treaty was an agreement between Bangladeshi government and the ‘Parbatya Chattagram Jana Sanghati Samiti’, a political organization armed with a militia. The peace agreement ended decades of violence, confrontation, and hostility between the government and the tribes of the region.