Memory: Civil society, PPP activists to pay tribute to BB

Capital's civil society organizations and individual activists plan candlelit vigil today to remember sacrifice of BB.


Our Correspondent December 27, 2013
Benazir Bhutto. PHOTO: FILE

RAWALPINDI/ ISLAMABAD:


There will be some candles lit this time around to remember the “daughter of the east.”


Islamabad’s civil society organizations and individual activists have planned a candlelit vigil for Friday to remember sacrifice of Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan’s former prime minister and the then-chairperson of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) on her 6th death anniversary.

Benazir was assassinated in a gun-bomb attack at Rawalpindi’s Liaqat Bagh in 2007 as she was exiting a political rally in the run-up to the 2008 general elections.

Compared to 2012, when Benazir’s death anniversary went almost unnoticed in the twin cities, the vigil this year puts some attention back on the political leader whose career included two terms as the country’s prime minister, corruption allegations, commitment to democracy and life in exile.

The public vigil, planned to be held in F-6, will also feature poetry recitations and brief speeches. It will be in addition to the regular Quran Khawani and prayer ceremony organised each year by the PPP at its secretariats in Rawalpindi and Islamabad to mark the death anniversary.

PPP activists are also expected to attend a gathering at Liaquat Bagh, where Benazir was assassinated and a monument built in her memory, to remember their deceased leader. The PPP district chapter had finalized arrangements for the gathering by Thursday evening.

Talking to The Express Tribune, PPP District President Amir Fida Paracha said hundreds of activists from all over the district will participate in the gathering to pay tribute to BB and her services to democracy and human rights.

Paracha said former PM Raja Pervez Ashraf, PPP’s Punjab Secretary General Tanveer Ashraf Kaira and former NA Deputy Speaker Nawaz Khokhar are also likely to attend the gathering.

SZABIST Students tribute

On Thursday, students at the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology (SZABIST) Islamabad also organised a stage play to commemorate Benazir.

The hour-long play, “From Oxford Girl to BB Shaheed,” captured the life events of Benazir and her work as a political leader. Students also produced and screened a 45-minute documentary to highlight Benazir’s personality and the role she played in national politics.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27th, 2013.

COMMENTS

Replying to X

Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.

For more information, please see our Comments FAQ