First Woman Head of State’, an exceptional distinction welcomed universally

• We really stunned the world, as makers of the first woman Head of State. The world wondered how it materialised in Ceylon; A record that will endure eternally in mankind’s history
• Her tears created a wave of sympathy which drew massive crowds. This gave the novice lady all the courage, dynamism and vitality to win 75 seats out of 146, a clear ruling majority

Leelananda de Silva, [economic adviser] in his autobiography says, “in November 1976, returning from the Non-aligned summit via Rome, we visited the Boca Verita (mouth of truth). There you put your hand into the mouth of a lion made of stone, and the mouth keeps closing and opening. If your hand gets caught, then you are supposed to be a liar. Prime Minister, Mrs. Bandaranaike was amused by this and she called me from a distance and asked me to put my hand in to check my ‘reliability’. Luckily for me, my hand was not caught. The Prime Minister had a great sense of humour.  

The Adikaram, an up-country aristocrat took safeguards to ensure a non-recurrence of two misadventures when their daughter lost the baby. Soothsayers emphasised that the lady should deliver the third, away from the ancestral home. He had a sister married to an Ellawala and living in Ratnapura. On April 17, 1916, the Ellawala Walauwa made preparations for welcoming a new member to the family. Ratwatte, later a member of the Senate of Ceylon, was a descendant of a family that held high office in the courts of ancient Sinhalese monarchs. Quite a few writers and speakers on Sirimavo Bandaranaike, inadvertently or erroneously refer to her place of birth as Pussaliyadda Walauwa, Mahawelatanne in Balangoda; also they believe that she was named ‘Sirima’, and only as PM in 1960, that respectful suffix ‘–vo’ was added, calling her Sirimavo. Her original Birth Certificate issued by the state, the marriage certificate, wedding invitation and admission documents from St Bridget’s Convent which are preserved and displayed at Sirimavo Bandaranaike Museum at BMICH, confirms this truth.  

Two general elections followed the assassination of the Prime Minister, her husband in 1959, and at the party hierarchy’s invitation, she hesitantly joined the fray and agreed to appear on the election platform

“Sirimavo had to wait till she was six for schooling, but attended kindergarten for one year, travelling by buggy cart. The little girl insisted that a particular bull be bound to the cart, and she confounded the carter whenever he attempted to use a different bull,” says, Maureen Seneviratne, Sirimavo’s biographer. Her amazing longing or passion for things close to her sentiments, she amply demonstrated later in her political life as well. Bradman Weerakoon, the PM’s official Secretary endorses this, “She insisted fresh mangosteens from Horagolla, Rambutan and mangoes from Attanagalle, be airlifted to London to be served for the guests at a dinner, she hosted for several distinguished VVIPs; her hand-written personal note to me, specifying, where exactly to pick the fruits, types and details of varieties”. -‘Rendering unto Caesar’-B Weerakoon-2004: Pp-91/92.  
Volumes had been published on her Temple Trees days: now for a glimpse of her nursery, pre-teen, adolescent and young housewife days at Ellawala Walawwa, Mahawelatenne, Horagolla, Wentworth,’ Tintagel and Temple Trees.   

Leelananda continues, “We came in a Philippine Airlines aircraft, and the Prime Minister was travelling Economy class, as was her policy to cut down on costs. When the plane stopped on the tarmac, the guard of honour was drawn outside the First class exit of the plane. The Prime Minister came out of the Economy class entrance and she had to walk a little distance on the tarmac to be greeted by the guard of honour. All this was watched by a large crowd, some of whom were not pleased with what happened. I had to explain that the Prime Minister’s view was that there was no need to live beyond our means, using public money.  

The senior Adikaram, maternal grandfather was a linguist and a man of wide reading. He knew German and French, Sanskrit, Pali, Hindi and Bengali. His library consisted of Astrology, Literature, Medicine, Botany and numerous other topics. Young Sirimavo and her siblings had free access and exposure during their school days to the valuable volumes which the eldest in the family read keenly and gained considerable knowledge from text and periodicals.  

At Wentworth she gave birth to her three children and then from Guilford Crescent they moved to Rosemead Place

Proposed in June 1940, the couple was wooing till the wedding planned for October. On July 8, the ‘boyfriend’ West Ridgway paid a visit to Balangoda, spent the day and left in the evening; the next day she wrote a ‘love letter’ to her fiancé, the Minister of Health, Solomon W Ridgeway D Bandaranaike —her choice of words, courteous unfaltering and ‘naughty’ to express the deepness of emotions—obviously, S.W.R.D. did cherish forever. A short extract from the letter written 83 years ago is preserved at the Sirimavo museum.  
“My own precious darling…, Why did you leave me and go away yesterday? I am feeling wretched after you left me…my sweetheart I never felt so helpless…”  

On October 2, 1940, the bridegroom, the Oxon Barrister, was ushered to Mahawelatenne Walawwa, in a procession, in the company of his father Maha Mudliyar Sir Soloman Dias Bandaranaike and the advisor to the British Governor; an elite from low country Sinhalese Anglican family. Oriental music was played throughout, while the bride carried a spray of white lotuses. The marriage was described by Sir D. B. Jayatilleke, the leader of the House in the State Council as a historic occasion, worthy of a niche in the records of the country. Shortly after her wedding, in November, the husband and Minister of Health had to make an official visit to New Delhi with a delegation led by D. S. Senanayake; DS invited Sirimavo, the newly married lady to accompany her husband.  

The couple moved into Wentworth, a residence in Guildford Crescent where Sirimavo developed a fancy for tennis, the husband’s game, and was seen walking to Women’s International Club with cousin Mrs. Danton Obeysekara. At Wentworth she gave birth to her three children and then from Guilford Crescent they moved to Rosemead Place. Sirimavo played an active role in Mahila Samithiya women’s institution linked to the All Ceylon Women’s Association and became its President.  

“We came in a Philippine Airlines aircraft, and the Prime Minister was travelling Economy class, as was her policy to cut down on costs. When the plane stopped on the tarmac, the guard of honour was drawn outside the First class exit of the plane”

On another occasion, Leelanada wrote, “…the Prime Minister had to make a speech at the reception given to her by Prime Minister Takeo Miki. We prepared this speech by making a reference to Sri Lanka’s close friendship with Japan and the role that J.R. Jayewardene had played in San Francisco in 1951 when the Japanese peace treaty was signed. Sri Lanka had waived any kind of reparations from Japan for war damage, and proposed full freedom, a generous offer to Japan advocated by D. S. Senanayake. One member of our delegation was not happy with the reference to J.R. We showed the draft to PM and she had no objection to what we had included in her draft speech. This was a very gracious act on her part, as J.R. was then the leader of the opposition.”   

The two general elections followed the assassination of the Prime Minister, her husband in 1959, and at the party hierarchy’s invitation, she hesitantly joined the fray and agreed to appear on the election platform. When emotionally charged, inexperienced Sirimavo shed tears on stage as an expression of grief, the minority UNP government repeatedly played Dayananda Gunawardena’s Nari Bena song, ‘Kumatada sobaniye kandulu salanne’ [My dear lady, why do you weep] ad nauseam over the two channels at Radio Ceylon, the sole electronic media. Her tears created a wave of sympathy which drew massive crowds. This gave the novice lady all the courage, dynamism and vitality to win 75 seats out of 146, a clear ruling majority. Sirimavo Bandaranaike took oaths as the Prime Minister of Ceylon and as ‘First Woman Head of State’, an exceptional distinction welcomed universally. We really stunned the world, as makers of the first woman Head of State. The world wondered how it materialised in Ceylon; A record that will endure eternally in mankind’s history.   

[email protected]