The assassination of the charismatic Pakistani political leader, Benazir Bhutto, did not come as a surprise to me as it did to most people I knew. Without doubt the mindless cold blooded murder horrified me. But deep down, there had been this intuitive knowledge that Benazir would undoubtedly pay the price of being a strong, passionate and controversial Woman leader in an anarchic political milieu and an overly male dominated society.
Being a novice in politics with no interest in rectifying the lack of knowledge about the affairs of various countries across the world, I am not equipped to comment on the leader Benazir was.
But to the rank outsider that I was, Benazir Bhutto assumed larger than life dimensions the day she confidently stepped on to the center stage of world politics and assumed office as the prime minister of Pakistan. I was greatly impacted by this lovely, confident lady who looked to no man for moral support, made no apologies for her gender or even attempted to undermine her feminine charms and beauty as a concession to the hardened egos of the men around her. It was admiration that I watched Benazir adroitly,by virtue of her attitude, force the men around her to look past the surface and see the strength of the woman within.
It was with regret that I received the news of her banishment but Benazir, true to form, bounced back after 8 years. It was with a sense of pride that I followed Benazir’s path as she determinedly boarded the flight back to Pakistan, made light of her critics and detractors and refused to tuck tail and scurry for cover even after the first real attempt on her life.
Last night, as I watched the repeat telecasts and news bulletins about her last hour on this world, I could not help but wonder at the grit and strength of this lady who chose not to live in comfort in the bosom of her family with the exalted tag of a political émigré but instead returned to the land of her birth to pay her dues to her country and society. Surely Benazir, given her lineage and her tragic family background, knew the risks she ran by returning to Pakistan and throwing herself into the fight for democracy. And yet she had the moral strength to follow her heart and remain true to her cause.
To those who would dismiss her as a puppet of the west, I say that to find acceptance in this role, one would need to be suave, intelligent, a strong negotiator and capable of striking a chord with the leaders of the west. If Benazir, a woman in a society governed by the military and religious hardliners, managed to do that, then we should all doff our caps to her in salutation of her capabilities rather than disparage her.
As with most leaders of stature, there are bound to be voices to detract, to hint at profits made and coffers lined. But, what these critics need to understand is that, regardless of what the truth may have been, Benazir was a human being of integrity who did not take the easy way out even though her gender offered her the perfect reason to do so. Unlike most other woman, she opted not to live in comfort, in seclusion and in safety with her family. And the consequence: A waste of mother, wife and if I read the media reports right, a leader as well!!!...
Were I were given the choice of an epitaph for her, I would say ‘In Life, She Towered Over Men....May her soul now rest in peace.'
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3 comments:
Well summerized
To understand Benazir Bhutto, you have to watch the documentary AND THE WORLD REMAINED SILENT by Ashok Pandit at least ten times.
Benazir Bhutto was the Witch of the East.
Perhaps Bhavya, but I am not talking about or condoning Bhutto Politics...Honestly speaking, which women leader - Thatcher, Meir, I Gandhi, etc - has not come in for harsh criticism?
MY piece was about the woman and her ability to hold her own in an extremely conservative and highly male dominated environment...Very few women leaders, even from progressive socities can claim to have done the same
As far as politics goes, I say, its each to his own...
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