“Democratic” Benazir: Bush’s Next Bully

BENAZIR Bhutto is asking for “Democracy” in Pakistan after a deal with military dictator General Musharraf and the Bush administration. She is eager to serve US interest and the imperialist agenda of control in the region. In return, she already cleansed herself from all the corruption charges pending in the Pakistan courts and protected her corruption money ($2 billion) and real-estate wealth spread in several Western and Arab countries.

Benazir Bhutto said repeatedly that she is asking democracy to curb “extremism” in Pakistan. General Musharraf has imposed Marshall Law in the excuse of “Islamic extremism” in Pakistan.

Who are “Islamic extremists”? The answer: The people who challenge the imperialist hegemony, the US and NATO occupation of brother/neighbor country Afghanistan, and the US intervention in the region. They stood up to challenge General Musharraf and his enslaved Pakistan military. These people (“Islamic extremists”) are struggling to liberate themselves, Afghanistan and Pakistan from all kinds of control and influence. These are the people who want to see the Pakistan for which their ancestors struggled. What was the purpose of the creation of Pakistan?: A laboratory of Islamic politic, social, education and economic system in the modern world.

Pakistan’s Constitution says, “All existing laws shall be brought in conformity with the Injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah, in this Part referred to as the Injunctions of Islam, and no law shall be enacted which is repugnant to such Injunctions” (Article 227- Provisions relating to the Holy Qur'an and Sunnah).

The country’s official name is “Islamic Republic of Pakistan.” The people of Pakistan, who are willing to see their country back to its path, the true and full implementation of the Constitution and implementation of “Injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah,” are now termed by the imperialist power as “extremists” and “terrorists.” Pakistan’s own state terrorism against these people is allowed and supported.

The people of the northern areas of Pakistan and students of some Madrasahs stood up against the imperialist power, and the US dollars and arms and ammunition backed the military monster of Pakistan. Wall Street Journal, November 8, 2007, writes, “Washington has given military and financial aid totaling nearly $10 billion to Gen. Musharraf's military-led government since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The U.S. views Islamabad as a crucial ally in the battle against global terrorism— The Pakistani military receives around $160 million a month from the Pentagon to support military operations against al Qaeda and Taliban militants based in Pakistan's remote tribal region. The State Department is seeking nearly $850 million in aid for Pakistan for this fiscal year to help purchase of foreign weapons system, among other things.” A congressional study released in September found that the US continues to be the number one arms supplier in the world. In 2006 the worldwide total for arms sales was over 40 billion dollars. Pakistan, India, and Saudi Arabia were the top buyers from 2006. The Pakistani military Junta led by General Musharraf has used these arms and money to slaughter his own people. He has one agenda: “Root out the Islamic forces of his own country.” Benazir Bhutto has now joined to help this power to crush the people’s aspiration to return to the path of Islamic State.

Benazir Bhutto is the lifelong President and Chairman of the Party without any election in the party ever being held, and she was self-exiled herself. Now she plans to bring “democracy” to Pakistan. She had never been elected for any government office before the first time she was imposed on Pakistan as a Prime Minister in a forced and rigged election by GHQ of Pakistan.

After a long and self-imposed exile, Benazir Bhutto’s recent entry into the Pakistan polity to cash in on the situation developed in the weakened General Musharraf’s regime. The situation has been developed by a long struggle of Islamic forces and lawyers’ movement in Pakistan.

She says that she is the custodian of her father Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto’s legacy. What is the Bhutto legacy? He got the minority vote in the first general election of Pakistan in 1970. East Pakistan's Awami League, led by the Bengali leader Sheik Mujibur, secured a majority of the seats in the National Assembly. There were only 120 candidates of Pakistan Peoples Party contesting the elections for 300 members of National Assembly, and out of which 103 were from the constituencies in the Punjab and Sindh. Pakistan Peoples Party didn't nominate a single candidate from East Pakistan. Pakistan Peoples Party managed to win only 81 out of 138 seats reserved for West Pakistan in the National Assembly. Awami League emerged as the single largest party in the National Assembly by winning 160 seats. It was also able to win 288 out of 300 seats in the East Pakistan.

Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto threatened the elected members of the National Assembly from East Pakistan to break the legs if they come to Islamabad to join the Assembly. He said that “Idhar Ham-Udhar Tum” means we will rule here and you will rule there. He divided Pakistan with the help of Pakistan Military’s dictator Yahya Khan. President Yahya Khan postponed the opening of the national assembly to skirt East Pakistan's demand for real democracy and provoked civil war. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, with the help of the military dictator, refused to hand over the democratically elected Awami League and became the Prime minister of “liberated Pakistan” from the majority Bengal of his own country. India attacked East Pakistan and broke up Pakistan, which was going through the civil war. The new country “Bangladesh” emerged on the name of ethnicity and language. This is the legacy of Bhutto.

The unanimous Constitution of Pakistan of 1973 was formed and passed in the Bhutto’s era, but the Constitution has never seen the light of day during his rule, which ended July 5, 1977, when he was imprisoned by General Zia-ul-Haq, who imposed Martial Law. On April 4, 1979, the former Prime Minister Bhutto was hanged, after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence passed by the Lahore High Court. The High Court had given him the death sentence on charges of murder of the father of a dissident P. P. P. politician. This is the legacy of Bhutto.

The 1973 Constitution was in abeyance, and Zulfiqar Bhutto was ruling under his world’s first innovative law called “Civilian Marshal Law.” His words were the order of the state, and it was a plain fascism in the name of democracy. This is the legacy of Bhutto.

Now, unelected, lifelong Peoples Party Chief Benazir Bhutto, owns, admits, and promotes her father’s legacy. She is now cooperating (or challenging) Military Marshal Law to facilitate a new “Civilian Marshal Law” in the country. She is the new bully of the Bush administration in the situation of his failing partner General Musharraf, camouflaging under the umbrella of democracy.

Benazir Bhutto knows very well that the people’s memory is very short, and youths of the nation were kept ignorant. She also knows that she, with the help of external money and corporate international and local media, can fool the nation again. People of Pakistan, who already experienced two times Benazir-Zardari dictatorship, loot, and plunder, must be aware of the new situation. The burning desire of “democracy” now propagated by the Bush criminals and corporate media (including Pakistani TV channels) is just another trap of fascist rulers. The Pakistan military role will be continued with the same as it is but behind the curtain of so called “democracy.” The election may be held soon under the tight control, rigged and engineered. Military dictatorship and false democracy (civilian dictatorship) are the two faces of the same coin. Never forget, Hitler was also the elected President of Germany.

(Jawed Anwar can be reached at Jawed@DailyMuslims.com . For more articles go to www.DailyMuslims.com )

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