Former Pakistani
Premier Returns From Exile
Pakistan’s Former
Prime Minister, Ms. Benazir Bhutto has returned home, ending
eight years of exile and launching what she hopes will be a
stunning political comeback.
Thousands of her supporters welcomed her back to Karachi on
Thursday, amid tight security.
Ms. Bhutto arrived in a commercial flight from Dubai and said it
was “Good, very good,” to be back.
Rosy Welcome
The authorities mounted a massive security operation to protect
the 54-year-old from possible attack by militants. Hundreds of
buses and other vehicles festooned with billboards welcoming her
back were parked bumper-to-bumper along the boulevard from the
airport to the city center.
Supporters including representatives of Pakistan's minority
Christian and Hindu communities and Baluch tribesmen with
flowing white turbans, walked toward the airport, while groups
of men performed traditional dances, beat drums or shook maracas
along the way.
A 35-year-old poultry farmer from the southern city of
Hyderabad, Azad Bhatti, said he had "blind faith" in Bhutto's
leadership.
“When Benazir Bhutto is in power there is no bomb blast because
she provides jobs and there is no frustration among the people,”
he said. “Whatever she thinks is for the betterment of the
people.”
Outside the airport in Karachi, police baton-charged one group
of supporters who approached the VIP terminal, where Bhutto was
expected to arrive after landing. But with the crowds swelling,
they later relaxed the cordon and permitted thousands of
flag-waving PPP partisans to gather round the building.
Political Quagmire
Bhutto, who fled Pakistan in the face of corruption charges in
1999, has chosen to come home during a period of political
uncertainty, as the political future of the President, General
Pervez Musharraf is doubtful with violence by Islamic radicals
on the rise.
With parliamentary elections due in January, she hopes to
campaign for a record third premiership, most probably with the
support of the country's U.S.-backed military president.
Bhutto paved her route back in negotiations with President
General Pervez Musharraf, who seized power in a 1999 coup.
Musharraf is promising to give up his command of Pakistan's
powerful army if he secures a new term as president.
The talks have yielded an amnesty covering the corruption cases
that made Ms. Bhutto leave Pakistan in the first place, and
could see the archrivals eventually team up to fight al-Qaeda
and the Taliban.
Musharraf has seen his popularity plunge since a failed attempt
to oust the country's top judge in the spring. The rapprochement
with Bhutto appears aimed at boosting his political base as he
vies to extend his rule.
He easily won a vote by lawmakers on October 6th to give him a
new five-year presidential term. The Supreme Court, however,
ruled that Musharraf's victory can only become official once it
rules on challenges to the legality of his re-election.
At a hearing last Thursday, presiding Justice Javed Iqbal said
the court hoped to issue a ruling within 10 to 12 days.
The court is also examining the legality of the amnesty.
The Homecoming
Before boarding her flight from Dubai, Bhutto told newsmen that
her homecoming felt like a miracle.
“I hope that, as this miracle is happening, that a miracle will
happen for the impoverished and poverty-stricken people of
Pakistan who are desperate for change, who want safety, who want
security, who want opportunity, who want empowerment and
employment,” she said.
Ms. Bhutto, whose two elected governments between 1988 and 1996
were toppled amid allegations of corruption and mismanagement,
hopes to lead her secular, liberal party to victory in
parliamentary elections in January.
AP/YINKA
