Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga called power 'a joke' in 2005 interview

Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga called political power "a joke" in a July 2005 interview, saying it only matters as authority to serve her country, despite her family's tragic history with political violence. Kumaratunga, daughter of two assassinated prime ministers and widow of a murdered politician, survived a 1999 suicide bombing that cost her vision in one eye. She claimed power attracted her solely as a tool for national policy implementation. Her sister Sunethra disputed this portrayal, saying Kumaratunga loved power. During her 1994-2005 presidency, she launched military offensives against Tamil rebels and seized ministries from a rival prime minister in 2003, showing firm control of state authority.