The Politics of Assassination

Here's my personal comment on the assassination of Benazir Bhutto last December 27, 2007.

The politics of assassination is an apparently, if temporarilly, effective one:

Colosio in Mexico

Rajiv Ghandi in India

Indira Ghandi in India

Mohatma Ghandi in India

Zia al Huq in Pakistan

Anwar Sadat in Egypt

John and Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King

In our own country: Ninoy Aquino

Now Benazir Bhutto

The point is that these political assassinations irrevocably change the landscape of a country’s political situation, and are hence an “effective” tool of political warfare, however heinous.

The recovery from trauma is almost always lengthy, the rebounding of political effectiveness of the affected party, movement or entity is usually tremendously and negatively impacted, and the message is clear to would be reformers, challengers, or overly autocratic hegenomists.

Was Bhutto the savior of Pakistan…? I doubt it…flawed, corrupt, ego driven….no real democrat, and yet the shock waves of the act of overt assassination are enormous.

Bhutto's death is a tragedy with numerous historical antecedents. How the reaction shakes out is the determinant issue. Certainly Nawiz Sharif regaining power would be a pathetic result (more corruption, ineffectual governance, status quo.) So the question remains, can this political party (sorry,i forgot the name) of Bhutto take this tragedy and turn it into genuine opportunity.

I hope so.