Who was Benazir Bhutto?
Benazir Bhutto came into the world in Karachi in 1953. Her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, set up the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and went on to lead the country. She studied at Harvard and Oxford, where she headed the Oxford Union. General Zia ul-Haq seized power and had her father executed. She then endured jail and exile while taking charge of the PPP. After Zia died she won the 1988 election. She held the top job twice, in 1988-1990 and 1993-1996. On 27 December 2007, an attack at a Rawalpindi rally killed her.
Political views
- Fought General Zia's military government for years, from prison and from exile, and drew very large crowds when she came home in 1986.Source: news.bbc.co.uk
- Set herself up as a modern woman leader facing a male-run establishment, and many later saw her as a symbol for women's rights.Source: en.wikipedia.org
- Left in place the Hudood Ordinances brought in under Zia, which let down liberals and women's rights campaigners.Source: en.wikipedia.org
- In her second government she pushed privatisation and spoke more openly in favour of a liberal economic course.Source: en.wikipedia.org
- Described her government's links with the Taliban as political engagement meant to calm the movement and steady Afghanistan. She denied sending military help.Source: theguardian.com
- Found it hard to remove the president's power to sack elected governments, even after she survived a no-confidence vote that former intelligence officers had backed.Source: bbc.com
- Spent 2007 campaigning against militancy and warning that the coming election might be rigged.Source: theguardian.com
Legacy
Supporters see Bhutto as a face of democracy and modern ideas in Pakistan, and as a trailblazer for women in public life. In the West, governments treated her as a liberal friend in the struggle with militants. Her death made her a martyr in the PPP, now led by her husband Asif Ali Zardari and her son Bilawal. Critics note that both of her governments were dismissed, with charges of corruption and poor management. She said those charges were politically driven. A 1999 conviction was later overturned after signs of pressure on the judge. Critics also raise the corruption claims against her husband, the recognition of the Taliban in 1996, and her 2007 deal with General Musharraf, a move some called a betrayal of the democratic cause.