TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Suicidal Assassin Robs Pakistan Of Brave Champion Of Democracy

ADVERTISEMENT

The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 28, 2007

The last thoughts of a gunman who pushed through a crowd at a political rally and fatally shot Benazir Bhutto might have been how easy it is to derail democracy and silence forever a powerful voice of reform.

The assassination of Bhutto, the first woman to be prime minister in the Muslim world, does that and worse: It leaves Pakistan on the brink of chaos.

Had voters returned her to high office as was expected on Jan. 8, Pakistan would have been a stronger country, more democratic and less willing to appease radical Islam. Now the best short-term hope is stability through military rule.

Bhutto was an ally of the United States in the struggle against terrorism. She was an understanding friend in a nuclear-armed nation where anti-Americanism runs rampant. She was unafraid to stand up to the extremists and the military that made deals with them.

In a recent interview, she hit both: "When the Taliban came down from Tora Bora they were on the run. They were absolutely broken. But they have reorganized. They could not do that unless there is some support from the government or intelligence."

She refused to tolerate the terrorist havens were Osama bin Laden may be hiding.

"The tribal areas are living in the medieval age. There's no police system, there's no court system, no appeal. They're at the mercy of the tribal chiefs who are the heads of the clans."

She was planning to bring the tribal areas under control, give them representative government and a budget. In response, two warlords there promised to kill her.

President Pervez Musharraf had tried to keep the nation under control by declaring emergency rule and putting the head of the supreme court and several justices under house arrest.

Under pressure from President Bush, he had given up his military uniform and had lifted martial law a few weeks ago. But the chief justice remains a prisoner and the media are under tight restrictions.

"We have the worst of all possible worlds," Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., recently said of Musharraf. "Our ally is an isolated and deeply resented leader who is less popular with his own people than Osama bin Laden."

Bhutto, who had reached a power-sharing deal with Musharraf, held more promise. She was popular and she believed in democracy and the rule of law. Despite her broad appeal, she also was hated by many of her countrymen, who saw her as a Westernized puppet. She had attended Radcliffe College and Harvard University, where she excelled.

On Christmas Eve she wrote that her country was at a crossroads: "We can turn our backs on the years of dictatorship, fundamentalism, and economic decline." Or Pakistan could continue the military rule and backward thinking that some of her critics will die to preserve.

One insightful Pakistani commentator called her the best hope of the "vast moderate and secular population."

Despite Bhutto's untimely death, those hopes remain. It will be the duty of a new generation of leaders to make sure the aspirations of the Pakastini people stay alive in that dangerous part of the world.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT