Benazir Bhutto - SZABIST

It has staked everything in this proxy war, and has killed thousands of its own people, yet it has been
blamed for "not doing enough". Pakistan continues to bleed in this ongoing war on terror. The culture
of uncontrollable suicide attacks has added a new worrisome dimension to the ongoing national crisis
that has engulfed our country in recent years.
Last eight years have particularly been a painful period in our country's history. What is most
worrisome at this juncture is that Pakistan's national edifice is being dismantled methodically, blockby-block,
by keeping it engaged on multiple external as well as domestic fronts and by emasculating
its constitutional institutions. Questions now abound about the very future of Pakistan.
Pakistan has seen a constant struggle between power and polity since the very beginning of our
independence. Might always and everywhere considered wrong has never been claimed so "right" as
in Pakistan. In this process, we have lost half the country and also our "raison d'etat." Political regimes
have been overthrown in military coups and elected leaders either executed or banished in exile.
A nation's strength always lies in its people and institutions. In our Pakistan, both have been denied
their role or relevance. The country has been stripped of its democratic ethos. Constitutions have been
violated in letter and in spirit with impunity. Institutional paralysis has kept the whole nation
disenfranchised. It is unsure of what its own original rationale was and what it stands for today.
Today's Pakistan has nothing right in its political system. It is neither parliamentary nor presidential,
and is without any parallel in contemporary history. Poor governance is its constant hallmark. Crime
and corruption are rampant and galore. Law and order are nowhere to be seen. We are mired in
domestic chaos and instability as a result of serious constitutional and political crisis since March this
year.
We are even ashamed of our image problems that have aggravated over the last couple of years. We
have been in global headlines for frequent blasts and suicide attacks, killing hundreds of innocent
people including civilians and security personnel. Benazir Bhutto's assassination now brings us
another wave of global ignominy and opprobrium. The UN Secuity Council in an emergency meeting
condemned the terrorist attack in which besides Benazir Bhutto, scores of other lives were also lost.
Like an 'enfant terrible' we feel proud in being censured in global forums. Only last month, we were
expelled from Commonwealth for violating its fundamental values of freedom and democracy. We
were in the impressive company of an island country called Fiji, which is not even a full-fledged state
when it was being indicted for its military dictatorship at the 53-member Commonwealth summit in
Kampala.
We are not moved even if the world community at large, especially our friends and allies, are
seriously disappointed or even embarrassed on the fate of democracy in our country and the plight of
the judiciary, the media and the people of Pakistan. We don't take anything to heart. Look, how
gracefully we digested the tragedy of 1971, the worst that could happen to any country or a nation. We
did not make it an 'issue of our core' for we had other 'core issues'.
The world watches us with anxiety and concern as we continue to replay our blunders and aggravate
our crises. The worst has been judicial maelstrom that has gripped our country since March this year,
followed by many tragedies including the May 12 carnage and subsequent October 18 blasts in
Karachi and the November 3 extra-constitutional emergency 'blitz' which was an assault in one stroke
on our constitution, our judiciary, media and our fundamental freedoms and rights.