Women in Power in Asia - Female Heads of State or Government
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Roza Otunbayeva (1950-present) served as the president of Kyrgyzstan in the wake of the 2010 protests that overthrew Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Otunbayeva took office as the interim president. Bakiyev himself had taken power after Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution of 2005, which overthrew dictator Askar Akayev.
Roza Otunbayeva held office from April 2010 to December 2011. A 2010 referendum changed the country from a presidential republic to a parliamentary republic at the end of her interim term in 2011.
Yingluck Shinawatra (1967-present) was the first female prime minister of Thailand. Her elder brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, also served as prime minister until he was ousted in a military coup in 2006.
Formally, Yingluck ruled in the name of the king, Bhumibol Adulyadej. Observers suspected that she actually represented her ousted brother's interests, however. Â She was in office from 2011 to 2014, when she was ousted from power.
Park Geun Hye (1952-present) is the eleventh president of South Korea, and the first woman elected to that role. Â She took office in February of 2013 for a five-year term.
President Park is the daughter of Park Chung Hee, who was the third president and military dictator of Korea in the 1960s and 1970s. Â After her mother was assassinated in 1974, Park Geun Hye served as the official First Lady of South Korea until 1979 - when her father was also assassinated.
•Roza Otunbayeva, Kyrgyzstan
Roza Otunbayeva (1950-present) served as the president of Kyrgyzstan in the wake of the 2010 protests that overthrew Kurmanbek Bakiyev, Otunbayeva took office as the interim president. Bakiyev himself had taken power after Kyrgyzstan's Tulip Revolution of 2005, which overthrew dictator Askar Akayev.
Roza Otunbayeva held office from April 2010 to December 2011. A 2010 referendum changed the country from a presidential republic to a parliamentary republic at the end of her interim term in 2011.
•Yingluck Shinawatra, Thailand
Yingluck Shinawatra (1967-present) was the first female prime minister of Thailand. Her elder brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, also served as prime minister until he was ousted in a military coup in 2006.
Formally, Yingluck ruled in the name of the king, Bhumibol Adulyadej. Observers suspected that she actually represented her ousted brother's interests, however. Â She was in office from 2011 to 2014, when she was ousted from power.
•Park Geun Hye, South Korea
Park Geun Hye (1952-present) is the eleventh president of South Korea, and the first woman elected to that role. Â She took office in February of 2013 for a five-year term.
President Park is the daughter of Park Chung Hee, who was the third president and military dictator of Korea in the 1960s and 1970s. Â After her mother was assassinated in 1974, Park Geun Hye served as the official First Lady of South Korea until 1979 - when her father was also assassinated.
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