Remembering Bhutto
Not the news any of us wanted as we ease out of our holiday break. Benazir Bhutto was a brave, courageous woman, with a vision for a better Pakistan — a Pakistan that could democratize, that has greater respect for human rights, that has an eye towards modernization and economic progress. Despite repeated exiles, death threats, and assasination attempts, she always returned to her country with the well-being of Pakistan paramount.
Bhutto beleived in the democratizing force of information and media. She condemned Musharraf’s crackdown on Pakistan’s emerging independent television stations, including the government’s import ban on satellite dishes. As we discussed last month and Bhutto was shrewdly aware of, the rise of Satellites and the Internet has made state control much trickier for autocrats.
Bhutto will be missed by Pakistan and by the world.