By Neville de Silva Diplomatic Editor Asian Tribune
London, 28 December: Former Pakistan
prime minister Benazir Bhutto's assassination was described as a "dark
day for Pakistan and the Commonwealth" by the London-based
organisation's retiring secretary-general Don McKinnon.
"I strongly condemn this outrageous act. Violence can serve no
useful purpose in any society, especially in one that is seeking to
rebuild democracy and reconcile deep divisions. Such an act can only
strengthen the hands of those who seek to repudiate the path of
democracy and dialogue," said McKinnon whose organization last month
suspended Pakistan from the Commonwealth and was looking forward to the
restoration of democracy and the rule of law in the coming months.
The Commonwealth, especially the Commonwealth Ministerial Action
Group (CMAG), the 10 member group, recommended Pakistan's suspension
after President Musharraf declared martial law and withdrew the
constitution.
Expressing his sorrow and shock, McKinnon said "This is a heinous
and cowardly act of violence and an utterly senseless tragedy,." he
said.
Five months ago Benazir Bhutto was in London and addressed the
prestigious International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) on the
"Future of Democracy in Pakistan" during which she said that Pakistan
has become a "staging area for al Qaeda" and that the forces of
militancy and extremism are launching attacks against NATO from parts
of Pakistani territory.
She accused the "military dictatorship" of President Musharraf of
fuelling extremism by putting in place a "culture of weapons."
She said the Madrassa, the religious schools, have been turned into a "place of hate and weapons."
Some are already claiming that the assassination was the handiwork
of the Taliban which saw Benazir Bhutto as an obstacle to the spread of
their message of Islamic extremism.
While some are blaming Islamic extremists for the killing in an
effort to derail moderate politics in the event that Bhutto's Pakistan
Peoples' Party (PPP) emerges as a serious contender for power in the
schedule Jan 8 elections, others are pointing the finger at President
Musharraf or perhaps those close to him for trying to create a
situation that would allow the president to take more extreme measures
to clamp down on political activity, dissent and the media.
Still others say that the Musharraf regime deliberately did not
provide her with sufficient security particularly after the attempt on
her life shortly after returning to Pakistan a couple of months ago.
The Commonwealth leaders who endorsed the CMAG's suspension of
Pakistan at their November meeting in Kampala, were to send a
delegation to Pakistan to assess the situation some time after the
January 8 election to see whether the country was making progress
towards restoring democracy, the rule of law and the independence of
the judiciary which were key issues when CMAG recommended its
suspension.
If the assassination results in a postponement of the election as
urged by some political leaders or President Musharraf takes tough new
measures, the Commonwealth is more likely to put off sending that
delegation on which Sri Lanka was a most likely member having called
for less stringent action against the Musharraf regime.
- Asian Tribune -
