Naheed KhanSaturday, December 27, 2014
From Print Edition
From Print Edition
I am writing this column with a heavy heart and with deep feelings of sorrow and grief in loving memory of my political mentor Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto .Hundred and thousands of her followers mourn December 27 and visit her grave to pay respect to the departed soul of their leader. The supporters and voters inspired by her incredible commitment to carry the ideology and philosophy of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto which was reflected through her words and actions all her political life feel sad to recall that day but Pakistani nation as a whole feels grieved over this unfortunate incident. This outrageous attack on her life was not only a big shock to the Pakistanis but this was an attack on humanity and a great blow to the Federation.
Seven long years have passed but her assassination is still an unsolved mystery which has certainly shaken the entire political set-up of the country. As a result the Pakistan People’s Party with its major vote bank was marginalised to Sind only and in 2013 elections big names in the party were defeated badly in other provinces.
Who killed her and who was behind this conspiracy is a major question which needs to be answered till today.
Prior to her arrival in Pakistan although she was informed by different sources that certain militant groups are after her and they might harm her physically on her return but she was determined to return to the country to lead her party campaign in the general elections and to play an effective role in the transition of democracy and to resolve the problems being faced by Pakistan through an elected government, enjoying the support of the people. She was confident that strong democracy is the only answer to fighting terrorism and to interpret Islam as a moderate religion which gives message of tolerance, peace and love.
Her tragic assassination is not only a loss to the party but it’s a big loss to Pakistan too. She fell victim to those forces who want to weaken Pakistan and want instability. All her life she fought against military dictators and gave her life fighting for democracy and saved Pakistan. Today there is no charismatic leader in Pakistan of national standing who has public support like she had. Today Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto have become synonymous in the political history of Pakistan and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s legacy is not complete without Benazir Bhutto and vice versa.
She was a moderate, liberal, progressive and a strong believer of democracy and her agenda was to change the destiny of the people of Pakistan. She had strong leadership qualities but she had tough time in both her tenures establishing her government and addressing the problems been faced by the country.
She was concerned that Pakistan came into existence in 1947 through a democratic struggle and main objective of creation was to have a separate homeland for the Muslims and to have a fair socio-economic and political system free of exploitation and discrimination on the basis of race, sect and creed; wherein all the cultures and languages could have equal opportunities to progress; wherein industries were to flourish by using the modern technologies to have our country prosper and the millions of its citizens could live a dignified life but she was upset that we have not been able to turn dream of Quaid-i-Azam for Pakistan into reality.
She was sad that gap between the rich and the poor is widening and the poor had to face the wrath of the State on demanding their rights .She was upset that whenever her elected governments initiated the process of empowering the people at grassroots level, the establishment with the connivance of anti-people forces toppled her government and pushed the country into darkness .Basically, she was victim of two forces first the West, which was unhappy with her missile programme, and second those elements who were in favour of militancy. However, she was adamant to fight against these forces for federal parliamentary democracy to save people of Pakistan from this darkness and to make a liberal stronger and a prosperous Pakistan with political and economic stability.
She wanted Pakistan to identify its core security issues with India and proposed to open borders to make its economy strong and that to have peace in the region its important for both the countries to resolve the Kashmir issue through peaceful means acceptable to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
She was an important and critical voice against the emergence of extremist groups and wanted the nation to defeat these forces of extremism. She was a choice for the people of Pakistan between democracy and dictatorship. She had a desired for a safe Pakistan where economic investment would help reducing the poverty. She wanted to take Pakistan on the path of peace and stability because she would believe that wars in the past have brought devastation to our country and people are mired in poverty and backwardness.
She had dream of a democratic, peaceful and a prosperous Pakistan where every one is free and have an equal opportunity to participate in the nation building. She would believe that as we have entered the new millennium, role of men and women will be redefined and that the contributions of women will play an increasingly central and vital role in the progress of Pakistan .She would believe that the greatest gift rewarded by Allah Almighty is that we all have sense of responsibility to our country and to our society. She would feel that today we are privileged to live in a free world with challenges and unprecedented opportunities. We should take advantage of the opportunities and should never give up the hope.
She was conscious that the values of respect, love and tolerance are fading away in the society which in not good for our future generations. She had strong belief that the greatest blessings and deepest rewards in life comes helping others, from giving to those in need, and from striving to care for the world in which we are merely guests.
She was a visionary leader with unmatched abilities and had a deep sense of commitment to democracy .When General Pervez Musharraf regime tried to stop her through absentee law for contesting elections in 2002 and not to register the PPP, so instead of PPP to boycott elections she immediately pulled the party out of this crisis and blessed the party’s old guard Makhdoom Amin Faheem to form PPP Parliamentarians for election purpose according to the basic principles of the PPP. In 2007 she had to file her nomination papers under the banner of the PPP Parliamentarians. I remember that a night before she had come to Larkana and stayed at Dr Begum Ashraf Abbasi’s residence and next morning from there she went to district election office to file her nomination papers with thousands of her supporters.
I had never seen her so relieved and happy after she filed her nomination papers. Her main concern was registration of the PPP after the elections but unfortunately after her death this was completely ignored and the PPP was declared an NGO/ private association.
People do criticise her agreement of NRO with General Musharraf but the fact should not be ignored that due to this arrangement Mian Nawaz Sharif was also able to come back to country and to take part in the elections. She forced General Musharraf to hold free and fair elections and for smooth transition to democracy and shedding off the military uniform was made a prerequisite for the elections. She signed the Charter of Democracy with Mian Nawaz Sharif putting aside her past differences in the interest of the country because she strongly believed that all the political parties should get together and should not give chance to anti-democratic forces to take over.
Although she was groomed in a political atmosphere built by Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto but she proved her abilities and worth by her hard work and commitment to the country and her identification with the under-privileged classes till her death and proved to the world that she deserve this place. There is no such thing as dynastic politics.
People with big names can make head ways but they are successful if they are charismatic and people accept them as a leader. Moreover, they have capability and capacity to make correct decisions.
Seven years after the horrific scenes of the evening of December 27 we have gone through heart-breaking ordeal of the attack on the Army Public School Peshawar, an attack on the future of Pakistan and in between we have witnessed attacks in Kamra, Mehran Base, GHQ, FIA HQ in Lahore, police installations, the Marriott, the Peshawar airport, the Karachi airport and every other symbol of authority in Pakistan.
The nation seems to have awakened from its deep slumber seeing all those children and teachers being burnt, shot and slaughtered in a manner never seen in the history of the world.
The unity in the nation and the categorical commitment of the Pakistan Army under a professional soldier General Raheel Sharif and other institutes of the Pakistan Armed Forces is probably the greatest tribute to Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto for there is a unity of voices in condemning all those forces of bigotry who want to reduce Pakistan to a failed state. May be the sacrifice of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto is being honoured today by accepting what she was saying on that fateful day of December 27: “We will fly the flag of Pakistan in Swat”, a symbolic interpretation that will destroy all terrorists and killers.
Today, she is not in this world but she had left an ideology and philosophy for the workers of the PPP who are true heirs and custodian of Bhuttos legacy. People do come and go in this temporary world but some write history and live in the hearts of the people .Today Bhuttos legacy is been torn into thousands of pieces. philosophy is been shattered but Both Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto have emerged as Saisi Qalandars for all the political workers of this country regardless of their political affiliation, caste or creed and as a symbol of respect for the have-nots of this country. I am sure Bhuttos will always be remembered until there is one person left deprived in this country. Bibi we miss you and pray to Allah Almighty to bless you with a best place in heaven. All your life you fought for the rights of the poor people. Inshallah, Allah Almighty will reward you in that world. Your workers love you and miss you a lot Bibi.
The writer was the political secretary to Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.
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