As some of you may have already heard, Benazir Bhutto, the former Pakistani Prime Minister who returned to her country to help the push for a true democracy has been assasinated.
I didn't know very much about Pakistan before I started working for Dr. Ahmed, but as I became better acquainted with the crises, I admired Benazir Bhutto. Her story is absolutely amazing, and she is my new hero. The world could not only more women like her, but more men as well.
I'll write more as I throw myself head first into the news.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Rest In Peace
Posted by The Odalisque at 2:10 PM
Labels: assasinated, benazir bhutto, pakistan
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2 comments:
The question we should all ask is what global players will gain from her death. Most certainly Pakistan under Musharraf benefits as the threat to his power has been neutralized. I think that the United States also benefits. The US often expresses a very mixed message with Pakistan being a prime example. We want to promote democracy but we also support despotic rulers who we need for our stratigic interests. Bhutto was a threat to the established status quo. She pushed for democracy, but also for a free thinking Pakistan. A free thinking Pakistan suggests that it cannot be a puppet of the international community. A free-thinking democratic Pakistan implies cooperation only if there is benefit.
The point I make is that while the current must save face and try to reconcile the differences between the people's party and Musharraf, they cannot be too upset with the recent crisis because it leaves only one player, Musharraf.
This means the true threat now to US interests is the sure violent backlash for her death. I suspect a coup attempt at the very least. If it is successful, we have either a new democratic party to support which is not bad. Worse case senario is 1) civil war betwixst islamists and democracy seekers leads to Islamic rule 2)bypass the civil war and the extremists come to power.
With all that said, I think the best course of action is for Musharraf to step down and allow power to transition to the people's party of Bhutto. I think we'd get good cooperation with them on the war on terror. They'd help us with that in exchange for assistance with internal stability, which is crucial to both US and world policy.
sorry for writing so much!
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