Adil Najam
Benazir Bhutto, twice Prime Minister of Pakistan, now lies under six feet of earth in Garhi Khuda Bux, her ancestral village, in a grave next to her equally mercurial father, the late Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
!["Time]("/images/BB-killed/Bhutto-Timeline-S.jpg" "\"Time")
As the graphic above (click to enlarge) from Boston Globe shows, hers – like her father’s – was a brilliant but tragic life. Tragically ended.
Now she is buried. But I suspect that the Benazir saga is far from over. Indeed, just as all of Pakistan’s politics after Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s hanging was contextualized by his hanging, all of Pakistan’s politics after Benazir’s assasination is likely to be contextualized by Benazir’s assasination.
In the immediate aftermath of this tragic death, the country continues to reel in grief at what has happened, fear about what might happened, and immense immense anger and everything that has been happening. As I argued in an op-ed in the New York Daily News today, this mix of grief, anger and fear is a very dangerous combination. It cannot lead to any good.
Right now the scenes we see on our screens are of mayhem, of devastation, of further violence, of destruction. These are not good images for Pakistan and certainly these are not the Benazir Bhutto would have wanted as her legacy. We at ATP have written many many times about the climate of anger that defines modern Pakistan (here here, here, here, here, etc.). This anger is the single most disturbing and single most defining motif of today’s Pakistan. Right now – and not without reason – the anger is being directed at Gen. Pervaiz Musharraf’s government. Much of this should, but not in this way.
More important to note is who the anger is not being directed at. I hope that the legacy of Benazir Bhutto’s untimely and tragic death is a legacy of a society that seizes this moment to reassert its demand for democracy and to recognize that extremist violence is our problem. This is not a mercenary war. This is Pakistan’s own battle. Right now the evidence suggests that society continues to tear at its own self. I fear that it will not change anytime soon. That things are likely to get worse before they become any better. But, I refuse to give up hope. At least, not yet.
As I wrote in my New York Daily News op-ed:
If this moment ends up being defined by Pakistan’s latent anger – if it launches a cycle of crackdowns and protests – it will certainly empower and embolden the militants further. But if it is defined by society’s sense of shared loss, felt grief and the continued movement toward genuine democracy, it might – just might – bring together a fractured society and awaken in them the realization that the common enemies are extremism, violence and terrorism. Then, we might just have half a chance of winning this war on terror. And Benazir Bhutto’s death would not have been in vain.
HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, PARENTS TO LEARN ABOUT COLLEGE, CAREERS AT UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS DALLAS EVENT
US Fed News Service, Including US State News February 19, 2007 The University of Texas at Dallas issued the following news release:
High school juniors and seniors from the Dallas Independent School District (DISD) and other area schools will have an opportunity to learn about the college admissions process and career opportunities at a free, public event to be held Saturday, Feb. 24 on the campus of The University of Texas at Dallas. Organizers expect as many as 1,000 attendees.
En espa?±ol Called Las Llaves del Exito, which means “The Keys to Success,” the event will offer a wealth of information and advice, in English and Spanish, on planning for, applying to and paying for college, essay writing and test-taking and career opportunities. High school seniors in attendance will even be able to get admitted to a local college or university on site, provided they bring with them the required paperwork, including their parents’ 2006 income tax return, high school transcript and college admissions essay. website cedar valley college
“Many of the students in attendance will be the first in their families to attend college and therefore may not be familiar with the college admissions process,” said Matthew Sanchez, a member of the event planning committee and a recruiting coordinator in UT Dallas’ Enrollment Services Department. “As a result, we plan to offer hands-on assistance with admissions forms, scholarship applications and the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. We view this event as an important first step by young men and women in achieving their college and career aspirations.” According to Sanchez, representatives from at least 13 area colleges and universities will be present to provide information and answer questions. These will include: go to site cedar valley college
* Brookhaven College * Cedar Valley College * Dallas TeleCollege * Eastfield College * El Centro College * Midwestern State University * Mountain View College * Northlake College * Richland College * Texas Woman’s University * University of North Texas Dallas Campus * The University of Texas at Arlington * The University of Texas at Dallas The event is sponsored by DISD, the Dallas County Community College District and area universities. For additional information about Las Llaves del Exito, please call 214-860-2432.
About UT Dallas The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 14,500 students. The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UT Dallas, please visit the university’s website at www.utdallas.edu.Contact: Steve McGregor, 972/883-2293, smcgreg@utdallas.edu.
Steve McGregor, 972/883-2293, smcgreg@utdallas.edu.
!["Time]("/images/BB-killed/Bhutto-Timeline-L.jpg" "\"Time")
RSS
Twitter
Facebook
LinkedIn
Digg
YouTube
This is ill fate of pakistan and its people that any politician who has the potential to do good for pakistan is assasinated . First Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto shaheed and then Benazir shaheed. these people have sacrificed there lives for the country. Benazir was such a brave lady who knew her life was at risk but fought for democracy. She was not selfish and there is nothing wrong if Mr Zardari is the president of Pakistan because if he is a Mr 10% then you may know other politicians who are even more than 10%.