Benazir Bhutto Assassinated

In deference to the adage, “Of the dead, speak no ill,” we should pay respect to Benazir Bhutto as a remarkable human being before the pundits get a hold of the story and tell us what she symbolized and what her death means to Pakistan.

The BBC offers an appropriate and reverent obituary.

Born in 1953 in the province of Sindh and educated at Harvard and Oxford, Ms Bhutto gained credibility from her father's high profile, even though she was a reluctant convert to politics.

Since the assassination of her father, she worked hard against the corruption and misuse of power in Pakistan. However, she constantly had to deal with accusations leveled at her, accusations which could not be substantiated.

None of about 18 corruption and criminal cases against (her husband) Mr Zardari has been proved in court after 10 years. But he served at least eight years in jail… Ms Bhutto also steadfastly denied all the corruption charges against her, which she said were politically motivated… She faced corruption charges in at least five cases, all without a conviction, until amnestied in October 2007.

Pervez Musharraf granted her amnesty and allowed her to return to Pakistan earlier this year. One reason was that she was seen as a natural ally in (the government’s) efforts to isolate religious forces and their surrogate militants.

Many of Bhutto’s critics have forgotten the good she did in her second term as Prime Minister.

In 1993, she was re-elected as Prime Minister. While in office, she brought electricity to the countryside and built schools all over the country. She made hunger, housing and health care her top priorities, and looked forward to continuing to modernize Pakistan… At the same time Bhutto faced constant opposition from the Islamic fundamentalist movement.

Bhutto’s autobiography was titled “Daughter of the East” in Britain and “Daughter of Destiny” in America. “Which are you?” she was once asked by journalist Mary Anne Weaver.

“I’m partly a child of destiny. Fate put me where I am now, against my own inner wishes, but I chose to stay on, when I could always have opted out… I have a duty to those people who believe in me and to myself… Did I have a choice?”

She also gave good reason for being the “Daughter of the East”.

“I am a daughter of the East. I was born into it; conditioned by it; thrust into a political system which is Eastern… as a daughter of the East I want other women, born into this tradition, this environment, where they’re forced to submit to those societal pressures and those fates which have been written for them, to see how I fight—as a politician, as a woman, as a mother—and how I survive.”

She survived much in her shortened life. Her father has arrested and executed. Her brothers were murdered. She was imprisoned for five years, mostly in solitary confinement. While making her prison conditions unbearable, her jailers encouraged her suicide by leaving poison in her cell. She survived many death threats and assassination attempts.

And she survived the assassination today. She continues to live in the hearts of all Pakistanis she tried to help.

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Is there an emergency or not?

At a press conference in Islamabad on Saturday, John Negroponte, the US Deputy Secretary of State, acknowledged that Pakistan faced a dangerous situation with the Taliban gaining ground in the nearly-autonomous regions of the North West Frontier Province.

"The situation in Swat is a reminder of the fact that there are issues to deal with regarding violent extremists in this country. The Pakistan Government is undertaking major efforts at the moment to deal with the situation in Swat and I suspect it will be doing so for a while to come," Negroponte said.

This is exactly the type of crisis that President Musharraf recognized in declaring a state of emergency.

"We are facing the threat of terrorism,'' Musharraf said... The army is fighting non-Pakistani gunmen, elements of al-Qaeda and their local sympathizers... the country has "suffered a lot of casualties in the war.''

Still... Negroponte put pressure on Musharraf to end the state of emergency.

Diplomats say Negroponte warned Musharraf that Washington would review its aid -- some 10 billion dollars since 2001, much of it for the military -- but he gave no details.

Meanwhile, for most Pakistanis, life goes on.

According to Muzaffar Riaz, Rwalpindi bridal shop owner, "the political crisis is there, over our heads, and it can come to us. But the reality for most Pakistanis is we are depoliticized, almost beyond belief. And so life goes on. Perhaps even with a vengeance."

Listen... Eids is just around the corner. If you don't prepare your wedding now, crisis or no crisis, you will have to wait another year. (And who's to say next year will be better?)

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Happy Independence Day!

On Tuesday, Pakistan celebrated its 60th birthday. In commemorating the day, President Pervez Musharraf encouraged all citizens “to serve as instruments of enlightened moderation”. Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz claimed that the day was not just for the people of Pakistan. The day marks the end of foreign rule over a sovereign nation, but also demonstrated to the world that a democracy could be built on Islamic principles.

It is a good time to remember the ideals of Quaid-e-Azam Jinna who wanted to build Pakistan as a nation where Muslims could live in safety. That nation was not to be an Islamic state governed by sharia, but a modern democracy where freedom of religion was guaranteed for all. In Jinna’s Pakistan, Islam was supposed to be a culturally binding force and a source of morality and compassion among the governing bodies.

The charisma of Jinna gave hope to many people including the religious minorities. When Jinna wrote to Gandhi that the “Quran is a complete code of life. It provides for all matters”, he assured Gandhi that Islam in Pakistan would guarantee the civil rights of each individual. Jinna felt firmly that religious intolerance had been “the biggest hindrance in the way of India to attain freedom and independence.” If there had been no intolerance, the people of the subcontinent would have been free “a long, long time ago”.

In his address at the inauguration of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan, Jinna stated…

“If you change your past and work together ...in a spirit that everyone of you, ...no matter what his color, caste or creed, ...is first, second and last a citizen of this state ...with equal rights, privileges and obligations, ...there will be no end to the progress you will make.”

He continued, “I cannot emphasize it too much. We should begin to work in that spirit and in the course of time all these angularities of the majority and minority communities will vanish.”

Three days after Independence Day, on August 17, 1947, Jinnah, lived up to his words. Risking much criticism, he attended a Christian thanksgiving service held at the Holy Trinity Cathedral in Karachi. Emulating the spirit of Quaid-e-Azam, may the people of Pakistan see no end to their progress!

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Reality, ideals, and opinions

It is not easy being involved in journalistic endeavors when what is happening is at odds with what should be happening which maybe at odds with what is pushed to be happening.

What should be happening is delineated in a brilliant essay written by Najam Sethi published in the Wall Street Journal. In this essay, Sethi acknowledges that although many recognize that Musharraf is down, he is far from out, especially because of the disorganization of the opposition. Three key points that Sethi makes regarding the direction for Pakistan include 1) that America should recognize what a strong ally it has in Musharraf; 2) that the American government, in formulating long term policy, has to be aware of the possible strength of the Islamic ideologues and the possible anti-American feelings in the military; and 3) that “what is needed is a transitional power-sharing partnership between the military and political parties on the basis of an agreed moderate and liberal reform agenda.”

What is happening is an increased protest against Musharraf with calls for his immediate expulsion. America is sending its envoys to Islamabad in a move seen as putting pressure on Musharraf. The Islamic right is becoming emboldened.

What is pushed to be happening is America’s abandonment of Musharraf, leaving him to his own fate. An example is Newsweek’s calling for Musharraf to leave office. In addition, the New York Times is pushing for America to pull out support for Musharraf. At least, the Wall Street Journal is going for balance. While the WSJ acknowledges that “President Pervez Musharraf´s economic policies have worked”, it still publishes pieces, such as Max Boot’s opinion, that America should ignore Musharraf.

Musharraf being forced from office except through legitimate elections can only be catastrophic for Pakistan, considering the many divisive political factions ready to grab power. There are some who see even the peaceful ouster of Musharraf as a disaster. If Benazir Bhutto or Nawaz Sharif were to return to power, American author Arthur Herman claims, past ineptitudes would be repeated. Maybe not; after all they would be working on Musharraf’s foundation of a strong economy and international relations.

This just in: concluding their visit to Islamabad, the American envoys are expressing support for Musharraf and his reforms. To solidify their views, they might want to give Sethi a call and see what he has been up to lately.

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