[NYTr] Bloody Homecoming Began as a Day of Joy an Hope

[All the News That Doesn't Fit]

The Independent - Oct 19, 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article3075723.ece

The bloody homecoming

Within hours of her return to Paskistan, Benazir Bhutto escapes
assassination attempt that leaves at least 115 dead

By Andrew Buncombe in Karachi and James Macintyre

Benazir Bhutto's triumphant homecoming to Pakistan turned to deadly
carnage last night when two car bombs ripped through crowds surrounding
the former prime minister's truck as it made its way through Karachi,
killing at least 115 people and wounding hundreds more.

Ms Bhutto, who had returned after eight years of exile, escaped
unharmed but there was no doubt she was the target of a carefully
planned assassination attempt. A small explosion was followed by a huge
blast just feet from the front of her vehicle, shattering its windows
and setting a police escort on fire. Four bullets were also fired at
the convoy, reports said.

Ms Bhutto could be seen in television pictures being lowered from the
bottom deck of her truck. Azhar Farooqi, a police commander, said she
was rushed from the area under contingency plans to return her to her
Karachi residence. "She was evacuated very safely," he added.

Ghulam Mohammed Mohtaram, the provincial home secretary, said the main
impact of the blast was absorbed by the police vehicle. Dozens of
bodies could be seen lying motionless at the scene; other victims were
writhing around in agony.

Seemi Jamali, a doctor at the nearby Jinnah Hospital, said his casualty
unit had taken in 19 dead and 70 wounded. Between 20 and 25 of the
injured were in a critical condition. Another medic at the Liaqat
National Hospital reported 30 dead and 80 hurt, many critically.

Men were seen running away from the scene, some stretchering the
wounded to hospitals as blood streamed down the white robes worn by
many of them.

The perpetrators of the bombs – which police indicated might have been
suicide attacks – were not immediately clear. Earlier, however, the
pro-Western Mrs Bhutto had criticised Islamic militants groups whose
threats had overshadowed her return to Pakistan. She has previously
infuriated al-Qa'ida sympathisers by offering support to the US in its
efforts to find the terror group's leader, Osama bin Laden.

In Washington, the National Security Council spokesman, Gordon
Johndroe, said: "The US condemns the violent attack in Pakistan and
mourns the loss of innocent life there. Extremists will not be allowed
to stop Pakistanis from selecting their representatives through an open
and democratic process."

Last night's atrocity cast an appalling shadow over what had seemed
only hours earlier like a mass celebration for a much-loved figure who
was twice elected prime minister during the 1980s and 1990s. More than
150,000 jubilant supporters surrounded the convoy carrying the former
leader, shouting "long live Bhutto".

Ms Bhutto had refused to travel around Pakistan's largest city by
helicopter, as officials had advised her to do for security reasons. "I
am not scared. I am thinking of my mission," she told reporters en
route from Dubai to Pakistan. "This is a movement for democracy because
we are under threat from extremists ." Nonetheless, at least 20,000
security personnel had been deployed to provide protection, amid
intelligence reports which suggested that at least three militant
groups were plotting suicide attacks. Mrs Bhutto described the trip as
a " wonderful" homecoming. "I counted the hours, I counted the minutes
and the seconds, just to see this land, to see the grass, to see the
sky," she added, clutching prayer beads and dressed in a green shalwar
kameez and a white headscarf.

Ms Bhutto, who some accuse of corruption during her premiership,
returned with the agreement of General Pervez Musharraf – himself a
highly controversial figure – who last month secured a new term as
president, though this has yet to be ratified.

Ms Bhutto became the first female head of a Muslim state when she was
sworn in as prime minister in 1988. She was deposed 20 months later
under President Ghulam Ishaq amid claims that she laundered state money
through Swiss bank accounts. She was re-elected in 1993 but again
sacked by the president in 1996 on similar charges. Three years later,
she moved to Dubai in exile and, until yesterday, she had not returned.

Last night, the Pakistani ambassador to the US, Mahmud Ali Durrani,
confirmed that Ms Bhutto had survived the attempt on her life. "We
are... sad about the loss of life but the good news is that Benazir is
safe," he said. 

                                ***

The Independent - Oct 19, 2007
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/asia/article3075724.ece

A day that had begun full of joy and hope

By Andrew Buncombe

Before the bomb blasts brought carnage to the huge crowd that welcomed
Benazir Bhutto back from eight years in exile, the former prime
minister was seen weeping with emotion.

On top of her specially customised truck which threaded its way slowly
through the sea of flag-waving supporters, Ms Bhutto had declared:
"It's a wonderful homecoming. Who could have had a better homecoming?"
She added: "I feel overwhelmed by the love and support of the people. I
have always felt very proud of the people of Pakistan... They are the
people who will save the nation if given a chance."

Flying into Karachi from Dubai on an Emirates flight, EK606, the former
prime minister finally emerged from the terminal and boarded her truck
at 3.30pm, by which time thousands of her chanting supporters had
gathered in front of the building. Seventy-five minutes later her
open-top truck had barely moved more than 200 metres, such was the
crush of people and the deliberately slow pace of its procession.

"Jiye Bhutto," sang her supporters as they danced and waved. "Long live
Bhutto."

Her supporters and detractors will argue about precisely how many
people turned out to welcome her on a blistering, cloudless day; one
senior Pakistani journalist and a veteran of political rallies reckoned
at least half a million people were present. Perhaps a better
indication of the sheer number of people was that, from about three
miles from the airport, the main road, Sharea Faisal, was so solidly
packed with people that it was impossible to drive.

Cars and buses were parked up in the centre of the fume-filled highway
and people were either walking to welcome her bus or else waiting on
the pavement for her entourage to pass.

So why had so many people turned out to welcome this woman who went
into self-imposed exile to avoid corruption charges – allegations
levelled at her in the courts of several countries and which she has
never been able to shake off?

Why had these crowds – including many, many poor people from rural
parts of the province of Sind – come to cheer for a woman born into a
life of privilege and wealth? "We like her, we love her," said Mohammed
Rahn, from Lyari, one of Karachi's poorest districts, as he sat on a
banner-strewn bridge with a dozen friends. "Benazir gave me employment
during her first term. We endorse her."

Many said they were here because of their affection for Ms Bhutto's
father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the country's first elected prime minister
who was hanged by General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq after a coup in 1979.
Though Ms Bhutto may have inherited her wealth, at least they knew
where her money had come from.

Mohammed Ismail Balauch, who was standing in the crowds at the airport,
said: "Her father provided jobs for the people of Lyari. He came many
times. This is a day of happiness for the people of Pakistan."

All parts of the country appeared to be represented, from Kashmir to
the Punjab. And some people had clearly come out of curiosity; one
17-year-old, Walid Khan, admitted he had only gone to the airport
because his friends persuaded him to get on the PPP bus.

Ms Bhutto's return to Pakistan came as the result of a power-sharing
arrangement she has made with the country's military leader, General
Pervez Musharraf. Part of the deal – brokered by the United States and
Britain – includes an amnesty, signed by General Musharraf, that
quashed a series of outstanding corruption charges against her.

For its part, Ms Bhutto's PPP party agreed to abstain from, rather than
boycott, the presidential election earlier this month which General
Musharraf won by a landslide.

Many senior PPP members disapproved of her negotiations with General
Musharraf, though such concerns were apparently not shared by the
rank-and-file supporters filling the streets yesterday. Most dismissed
the claims and said that, unlike General Musharraf, she would work for
the ordinary people.

Ms Bhutto also dismissed suggestions that she should not have made a
deal with a man who seized power by means of a coup in 1999. "Of course
there will be criticism," she said, waving to her supporters.

"I had a choice of either entering dialogue and moving towards
democracy or else repeating the last five years. If the last years
would be repeated then the extremism would be repeated. We chose the
path of negotiation – there does not have to be collaboration."