A legacy of struggle for democracy

Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto’s death anniversary will be marked this year amidst another situation of political uncertainty in Pakistan. A few days before her assassination, she had vowed to protect her country from nefarious plans of terrorists. Extremist elements wanted to target Pakistan’s sovereignty. Despite knowing the danger and threat to her life, Shaheed BB wanted to be among her people, and she wanted to be a part of the democratic process. She believed that democracy was the best revenge. Her enemies were cowards, afraid of her strength. She was targeted on the eve of December 27th, 2007, and assassinated.

She chose to give her life, leaving behind a legacy of incredible struggle for democracy. Her sacrifice left a vacuum in Pakistan’s politics and left a permanent mark in the hearts of the people of Pakistan.

Shaheed BB is one of those leaders who raised her voice against martial law. General Zia imposed martial law on July 5, 1977. During that time, she came to Lahore with her brother Shahnawaz Bhutto and stayed with Begum Nadra Khakwani. Shaheed BB opposed the dictatorship with great courage and people appreciated her for that. She gave me an interview at that time, which reflects her political acumen.

The first question I asked was “You are a great admirer of your father’s work. When you heard that the government has been toppled by a military dictator, what was your immediate reaction?’ She said that her parents were already informed at 2 AM and she came to know about it slightly later, at 3 AM. There was a feeling of regret. It was not personal regret, but it was a sense of regret at the good work of Pakistan People’s Party being disrupted. After Pakistan was split into two, it was a difficult time. But despite these challenges, the civilian government convinced India to return 5,000 square miles of Pakistani territory and 90,000 prisoners of war. Then there was the second Islamic Summit that was held in Lahore that was also hosted by a civilian government.

About her father’s reaction, she said, he wasn’t even worried about us, but he was worried about his country. In response to a question about different foreign lobbies working against her father, she said that there were a number of reasons for international conspiracies against him.

He wanted to unite the Arab world and wanted them to become aware of their strength in unity. He also wanted to bring together the developing world, uniting them against exploitation by imperial powers and they did not appreciate this. Some people did not like this at all that someone in Pakistan was striving to fight them on all these fronts.

Politics demands sacrifice. Begum Bhutto mentioned this is an interview that after becoming the First Lady, she had to give up her family life. She also said that it affected children who had to be away from paternal love and attention. Benazir Bhutto understood these challenges but she believed that growing up in such an environment gave her political consciousness. It empowered her to participate in political debates and be prepared for political struggles.

She said that in politics, we have to be careful about our words that they don’t hurt anyone or do not become a cause for complain. It is by chance that some are born in affluent households while others are born in poor households. But poverty should not be anyone’s destiny, and we must work together to fight poverty in our country.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is now following in the footsteps of his mother, carrying forward her mission of serving the people, along with his sister Aseefa Bhutto Zardari who is currently the First Lady of Pakistan.

The writer is the former press-secretary to Benazir Bhutto