Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, a historical symbol of bravery

Shaheed Bhutto was certain about her death, yet she resumed her election campaign

KARACHI:

It has been 16 years since Shaheed Benazir Bhutto left us, but the pain of her tragic death still remains fresh.

Reflecting on this great tragedy, the soul still trembles today, as terrorists attacked and brutally martyred her in Liaquat Bagh, Rawalpindi, on December 27, 2007.

The tragic event not only shocked the people of the country but also democratic forces worldwide, leaving a lasting legacy of grief, sorrow, and sadness transmitted from generation to generation.

Even today, people often ask the question that when the martyr Benazir Bhutto knew in advance that her life was in danger, why did she return to her homeland after 8-year exile? The answer to it is that Shaheed Benazir Bhutto was not only aware of the danger but also believed that some national and international forces had conspired and planned to kill her.

Not only had foreign governments informed him about this plan, but she herself had also briefed some world leaders and media representatives about it. She had formally informed the then President General Pervez Musharraf about the project. Despite this, she returned home.

In an interview, she expressed, “We are individuals who engage in discourse. We possess ideology and emotions. We know how to live and die. History is woven with the sacrifice of martyrs. The very fabric of history is crafted by the threads of revolution.”

On October 18, 2007, as Shaheed Bibi was leaving Dubai, numerous people cautioned her against returning to her homeland due to the imminent threat to her life.

However, she persistently reiterated, “I will not abandon my people. We live and die alongside them.”

When she landed at Karachi Airport on the same day, there was a cheering sea of people welcoming her. It was a historic day when the people decided they wanted a peaceful, developed, and democratic Pakistan under the leadership of Benazir Bhutto.

In October 2007, a revolution unfolded in Pakistan. Anti-democratic and anti-people forces utilized the power of gunpowder to suppress people’s power by targeting Ms. Benazir Bhutto through terrorists.

About 200 democrats were martyred, and hundreds were injured in this terrorist incident. Bhutto was spared in this incident, but the pages of her unpublished book, “Reconciliation,” were stained with the blood of the martyrs.

Read Oxford Union honours Benazir Bhutto on 15th death anniversary

In this book, a solution was provided to eradicate terrorism worldwide, including Pakistan, and to establish a peaceful global society. This will only be possible when the path of reconciliation is embraced everywhere, replacing conflict.

This implies that Shaheed Ms. Benazir Bhutto arrived in Pakistan on October 18, 2007, with a significant mission as a world leader.

Completing this mission was not feasible by remaining distant from the people.

After the tragedy on October 19, 2007, when she conducted a press conference at Bilawal House in Karachi, a journalist asked her whether, despite the events of October 18, she would continue running a public relations campaign for the elections.

To this, she replied without any pause, “Those people also want me not to run an election campaign and go back. They wish for real democracy not to be restored in Pakistan. However, if democracy is not restored, the dangers for Pakistan will increase. I will stay with my people.”

Then the world witnessed Shaheed Bibi initiating a public relations campaign once again. In every meeting, she used to declare, “I have risked my life for democracy in Pakistan.”

After the October tragedy, she added more to her book “Reconciliation” and mentioned, “I suffered the punishment of my father’s arrest, imprisonment, and murder, and I knew that such wounds of the soul never heal. I was ready to do anything to spare my children from the pain I endured at my father’s death. However, this was the only thing I could not do.”

From these words of Bhutto, it is not difficult to infer that she loved her children dearly and did not want to subject them to the shock of her death.

During the election campaign, she once visited the shrine of Shaheed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh and sat there alone for several hours, closing all the doors of the shrine.

On that very day, people realised that Shaheed Bibi was certain about her death.

Despite this, she resumed the campaign.

Today, if there is democracy in Pakistan, it is the result of the sacrifice of Shaheed Bibi. She is a metaphor of bravery and courage.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 27^th, 2023.