Benazir Bhutto

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"We are prepared to risk our lives. We’re prepared to risk our liberty. But we’re not prepared to surrender this great nation to militants. The attack was on what I represent. The attack was on democracy and very unity and integrity of Pakistan” (Times Magazine).

Pakistan, a country of 170 million inhabitants in South Asia, has been beset with a myriad of political, economic, religious and social problems since its inception in 1947. Establishment of democratic institutions has been a big struggle and military dictatorships have ruled the country with a strong hand a majority of the time. More recently, as a result of these ongoing problems, Pakistan has become a hotbed of terrorist activity. Courage, fearlessness, and boldness defined Benazir Bhutto throughout her life, despite numerous political and personal hardships faced by her and her family at the hands of military dictators and her political adversaries. These qualities, especially in a female faced with extreme conservatism from a male-dominated Muslim society such as Pakistan, has inspired millions of people throughout the world today.

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Benazir Bhutto was born on June 21, 1953, in Karachi, Pakistan. She was the daughter of a previous prime minister, Zulifkar Ali Bhutto. Her father was overthrown by a military dictator named General Zia and later implicated in a false case and hanged to death. At the age of sixteen, she attended Radcliffe College in Cambridge, Massachusetts and later studied at Oxford University in London, England. When she finished her studies, Bhutto went back to Pakistan and began to take interest in politics, being the only child out of the four to do so. She married Asif Ali Zardari, a Sindhi landlord, on December 18, 1987. Bhutto had intended to run in the elections against Zia, but President Zia died in 1988 in a mysterious plane crash. After his death, in the November elections, Bhutto led the People’s Party to a resounding victory then becoming the first female prime minister of Pakistan. In August 1990, President Ghulam Ishaq Khan dismissed her from her office blaming her for abusing her powers. Bhutto, upset by this false accusation, vowed to return to office again. Although elected to office again in 1993, Khan dismissed her again. After her last dismissal, Bhutto did not wish to be the prime minister again, but wanted to keep helping her People’s Party. In 1998, she went into a self-imposed exile in Dubai.

In the meantime, political conditions in Pakistan followed a familiar trend whereby another military dictator, General Musharraf, started ruling Pakistan with a strong hand. Facing strong international pressure, Musharraf was forced to call for elections in February 2008. Benazir decided to end her self-imposed exile and return to Pakistan in 2007. While campaigning in Sindh province in December 2007, Benazir Bhutto was assassinated. It is believed that her killers belonged to the Al-Qaeda operating from Afghanistan, who did not like her liberal political views.

The personal tragedy of losing her father at the hands of military dictatorship in a blatantly unfair manner would have dealt a mortal blow to many ordinary families. Benazir Bhutto, however, dealt with it in a dignified and courageous way. Her father had prepared her to play an important role in the political history of Pakistan. Before that could happen, however, it required a great deal of courage, boldness and fearlessness. “Benazir Bhutto had those qualities, for she did not keep silent and, despite the strong hand of the military, spoke up her mind and repeatedly criticized the harsh military rule at grave danger to her safety and security” (Dickson). It was a very difficult battle, but she did not lose faith. Whether abroad or in Pakistan, she kept the People’s Party of Pakistan together and waited for the right moment to come when she would have the opportunity to make a “difference in the lives of millions of Pakistanis by helping them get rid of the military dictatorship” (Dickson). Her mother and brothers had to face extreme hardships at the hands of the military in Pakistan. Two of her brothers died under mysterious circumstances. A possible hand of the military behind those deaths was strongly suspected. Her mother was kept under house arrest many times (“Benazir Bhutto”). She suffered from many physical ailments and proper medical help was not available to her (Weimbaum). After her death, Bhutto effectively lost all of her family. Her commitment to make her country better politically and economically never wavered (“Bhutto, Benazir”).

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Having been raised in the conservative society of Pakistan, as well as having studied abroad for a long period of time, Benazir’s broad-mindedness suited her well in her political campaigns. All her life, her detractors considered her a liberal politician, not suited to the political and religious environment of Pakistan. However, an objective analysis would reveal that she imbibed the best of both the eastern and the western value systems of “freedom, liberty, justice, and respect for cultural and religious values” (“Benazir Bhutto”). Her extreme popularity amongst the masses of Pakistan is a testament to the fact that they believed in her value system (“Benazir Bhutto”). She cared for the common people and they looked up to her as a beacon of hope in a tumultuous, haphazard, corrupt, and unethical world of Pakistani politics. “She inspired the younger generation of Pakistanis by involving them in her party, government, and political institutions of Pakistan. To her credit Bhutto took steps to restore basic human rights. Restrictions on the press were lifted, and unions and student groups were allowed to gather freely” (“Bhutto, Benazir”). “She also won respect by outsmarting her opponents in their attempts to oust her from office. Bhutto emphasized economic growth (increase in the production, distribution, and use of goods and services) and argued for less government influence in the economy” (“Bhutto, Benazir”). We, in this part of the world, may take those things for granted, but in a country like Pakistan, espousal of those values inspired younger men and women to collaborate with her in her dream of making Pakistan a modern country with strong democratic institutions. We cannot judge the success of her endeavors at this time, but one thing remains certain that without her presence on Pakistan’s political horizon, military dictatorships would be a fact of life for all the times to come and we would not be even thinking of democracy in Pakistan (Weimbaum). In the end, her unselfishness would also be a great source of inspiration for many people in Pakistan.

In the late 1990s after her defeat in the elections Bhutto was very gracious and said she no longer desired the prime minister's post. "My father worked from morning to night. I worked from morning to night. My father, what did he get? He got hanged. What did I get? I got slandered," she said. "Let there be a new leadership. I want my party to win the next elections, and I will help my party prepare to win. But I don't want to be prime minister" (“Benazir Bhutto”). Bhutto’s reasoned response and determination against extremely conservative elements in Pakistani politics, some of whom considered it “un-Islamic” for a woman to be the prime minister of a Muslim country is a source of inspiration for many people, both in Pakistan and around the world. It shows that with perseverance, steadfastness, and true grit one can overcome insurmountable obstacles and hurdles just like Benazir did.

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Benazir’s life may have been cut short by the bullets of terrorists, but her legacy is bound to remain alive in Pakistan. It is indeed amazing that Benazir, whether being in or out of the office in Pakistan, left her imprints on Pakistan’s political horizons. Her heroic struggle to establish democratic institutions will continue to be cherished by the Pakistani people. It is even more astounding how a woman could have so much effect on Pakistan’s political, cultural, and social life in an extremely conservative male-dominated society. You need courage to stand up for your convictions, boldness to tackle enormous political and economic problems head-on, and fearlessness to answer your unreasonable and rabid critics. Benazir Bhutto amply demonstrated that throughout her life and that is why she is my hero.