It's been one year and it's still hard to believe that Benazir Bhutto, two time Prime minister of Pakistan, is no more. I have never been a PPPP loyalist; I have never admired Benazir's politics; I have never felt comfortable with the nepotism that comes with each PPP Government. Yet, despite it all, I was shattered when I sat watching her being shot on TV one year back. THe horror of that day is brought vividly to me today, a year after her death and the pain I felt then was not at the loss of a leader, but for Pakistan. I felt as if we, the Pakistanis, were being torn apart. I felt for her, I cried for her, not because I love her, but because she was a woman. Because she was mercilessly killed and because her blood still asks for the identification of her killers.
BB was a flawed politician, no doubt, but she had many good qualities as well, the best being courage. Men in politics or real life have rarely shown such courage as she did. She brought a ring of truth to her words when she said " LIfe should be lived as a lion, not as a jackal". She had the rare ability to forgive, she was not vindictive and she had a woman's heart. No one in today's PPP can come even near her; I doubt even her children can. I feel sometimes she made a mistake when she married Zardari. I think she deserved much better. However, she proved herself a true daughter of the east when she stuck to him despite his failings. Herein lay her mistake. HEr GOvernments were doomed.
Today, I look at the TV programs showing her pictures and videos again and I feel, how beautiful she was. What charisma, what beauty, what power, but yet, so unlucky. HEr name has been used by her party to advance itself but her blood cries for justice. I believe in God and feel strongly that someday, somewhere, justice will be done. GOd has HIS own ways of doing justice and she will not lay unavenged.
Yes, she had charisma, she had potential to be an icon. Her relentless fight against Zia's regime might be a turning point if Pakistan becomes a stable democracy which I hope it's going to be. I was pained at her death..but I could not stop thinking Indira Gandhi and - "When you play with fire..."-thing hearing her assasination. Though, she was not fundamentalist but she never seemed to be interested to root out fundamentalism from Pakistan (well it's true for whole subcontinent). May be it was real difficult...may be we don't know all from this side of border ...I don't know but I must mention it here. I also think, she is not an exception to other politicians in playing to the gallery ( read Kashmir - favourite topic of any Pakistani politician) without really being interested in finding a solution . I personally have doubt if she had any control over the govt machineries, when she was in power. But nevertless, her contribution to Pakistan, can not be undone.
ReplyDeleteWEll, as far as her contributions to Pakistan go, they were very few, apart from giving a soft image to Pakistan abroad. She was distrusted by the establishment and let down by her party, but never by the people and therein lay her strength. It was the cult of BHutto, more than anything, that always saved her. BUt yes, you are right. She played to the west about uprooting findamentalism when in power, but she was herself responsible for the rise in Talibanism.Well, well, she's dead now. The point of my article was, whether or not she was a good politician, but that her blood lies unavenged. She died a violent death and needs justice.
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