Benazir Bhutto - SZABIST

She was demonized by the civil-military oligarchy that has virtually run Pakistan since 1958, the year
of Pakistan's first military coup. But she retained a hard core of popular support, and her socialdemocratic
Pakistan People's Party is widely regarded as Pakistan's largest political party.
In 1988, at the age of 35, Bhutto became the youngest prime minister in Pakistan's troubled history,
and the first woman to lead a Muslim nation in the modern age. For her supporters, she stood for
women's empowerment, human rights and mass education. Her detractors accused her of many things,
from corruption to being too close to the U.S.
During her second tenure as prime minister, Pakistan became one of the 10 emerging capital markets
of the world. The World Health Organization praised government efforts in the field of health.
Rampant narcotics problems were tackled and several drug barons arrested. Bhutto increased
government spending on education and 46,000 new schools were built.
Thousands of teachers were recruited with the understanding that a secular education, covering
multiple study areas (particularly technical and scientific education), would improve the lives of
Pakistanis and create job opportunities critical to self-empowerment. But Pakistan's political
turbulence, and her constant battle with the country's security establishment, never allowed her to take
credit for these achievements.
For years, her image was tarnished by critics who alleged that she did not deliver on her promise.
During the early days after Mr. Musharraf's decision to support the U.S.-led war against terrorism in
the aftermath of 9/11, conventional wisdom in Washington wrote her off. But Pakistan's constant drift
into extremism, and Mr. Musharraf's inability to win Pakistani hearts and minds, changed that.
Earlier this year, the United States and the United Kingdom supported efforts for a transition to
democracy in Pakistan based on a negotiated settlement between Bhutto and Mr. Musharraf. She was
to be allowed to return to Pakistan and the many corruption charges filed against her and her husband,
Asif Zardari, were to be dropped.
Mr. Musharraf promised free and fair elections, and promised to end a bar imposed by him against
Bhutto running for a third term as prime minister. But on Nov. 3, his imposition of a state of
emergency, suspension of Pakistan's constitution, and arbitrary reshuffling of the country's judiciary
brought that arrangement to an end. He went back on his promises to Bhutto, and as elections
approached, recrimination between the two was at its height.
Benazir Bhutto had the combination of political brilliance, charisma, popular support and international
recognition that made her a credible democratic alternative to Mr. Musharraf. Her elimination from
the scene is not only a personal loss to millions of Pakistanis who loved and admired her. It exposes
her nation's vulnerability, and the urgent need to deal with it.
Mr. Haqqani, a professor at Boston University and co-chair of the Hudson Institute's Project on Islam
and Democracy, is the author of "Pakistan: Between Mosque and Military" (Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace, 2005). He has served as adviser to several Pakistani prime ministers, including
Benazir Bhutto
Wall Street Journal
December 28, 2007