Benazir assassination: Investigation report presented to PPP CEC

Report contains details of all elements involved in Benazir's assassination; pinpoints financiers of the killers.

LARKANA:

On the eve of the 32nd death anniversary of the founding chairperson of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the investigation report into the assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto was unveiled to the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) on Sunday.

Though the contents of the report have not been made public yet, it reportedly contains details of all elements involved in Benazir’s assassination on December 27, 2007 in a gun-and-bomb attack outside Rawalpindi’s Liaquat Bagh. The report also pinpoints the financiers of the killers.

Interior Minister Rehman Malik read out the report to PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, while excerpts were also read out to the participants of the CEC meeting in Naurdero, Larkana.

Federal Law Minister Babar Awan also briefed Bilawal Bhutto on the reference sent by President Asif Ali Zardari to the Supreme Court seeking reopening of the case of ‘judicial murder’ of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

After the briefing, Bilawal said the premature release of the entire report could legally sabotage the case currently in progress. “It could also allow the conspirators - who may not be confined to our borders - to permanently deprive the people of Pakistan and the citizens of the world of the truth they deserve,” he said.

He advised the CEC members to appoint a limited number of its most senior members to have a full and complete briefing of the entire report.

“Given the complexities of this conspiracy, this committee of senior members can advise us on how to proceed with the publication of the report. It will decide what information can responsibly be released to satisfy the desire of our supporters for information,” Bilawal said. “While also ensuring we do not hamper the legal proceedings already in progress in our national courts. We cannot allow those that conspired to rid the world of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto to sabotage our desire for justice and our search for the truth,” he added.

Bilawal said the report identifies the individuals involved in the criminal act and also follows the trail they left behind in an attempt to expose the financers, orchestrators and co-conspirators involved.

“Everyone directly involved, who could be arrested and are still alive have been taken into custody,” he added.

He said the report also raises many questions and having read everything it is easy to conclude that this was a grand conspiracy. He said assassination of her mother was a conspiracy to rid
the world of its best weapon to combat international violent extremism. It was a conspiracy to rob Pakistan of its best hope to establish a fully functional democracy, he added.

He divulged that as son of Benazir and her heir, he was the only person to have received a complete briefing of the investigation into her assassination. “I would like to thank our investigation team. In taking on this responsibility they have risked their lives. They have worked tirelessly for three years to come to the truth.”

The participants of the CEC meeting also offered prayers for the souls of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto.

With additional input from APP

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th,  2011.