ISLAMABAD 27 December 2008. First anniversary of Benazir Bhutto's assassination

Dec 27 marks the first anniversary of the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, former Pakistan prime minister and head of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP). The new government of Pakistan has asked the United Nations to launch an independent inquiry.

She died in a gun-and-suicide bomb attack as she left an election rally in the city of Rawalpindi. Her death heralded the defeat of the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid- i-Azam party, which was backed by President Pervez Musharraf, in the 18 Feb elections. After the elections, the PPP and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League formed a coalition government. 

The party maintains that Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, who has ties to Al Qaeda, orchestrated the assassination.

The Dec 27 attack was the second attempt on Bhutto's life. Her convoy was attacked at her homecoming parade in her home city of Karachi after her return from exile on 18 Oct 2007, and dozens of people were killed. 

The Bhuttos are are a prominent Pakistan family. Born in 1953 in the province of Sindh and educated at Harvard and Oxford, Benazir Bhutto gained prominence because of the high profile of her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Though she was a reluctant convert to politics, she was twice prime minister of Pakistan -- 1988-1990, and 1993-1996. On both occasions she was dismissed from office by the president for alleged corruption. At the height of her popularity she was one of the highest-profile women leaders in the world.

In common with Indira Gandhi from neighboring India, Bhutto was surrounded by controversy. Neighbouring countries, especially India, criticized her support for the Taliban in neighboring Afghanistan when she was prime minister. Her husband, Asif Zardari, provoked more controversy. He had allegedly played a role in both her administrations, and had been accused by various Pakistani governments of stealing millions of dollars from state coffers. Many commentators argued that the downfall of Bhutto's government was accelerated by these charges. Though Zardari served eight years in jail, none of the 18 corruption and criminal cases against him had been proved. He was freed on bail in 2004 amid accusations that the charges against him were weak and going nowhere. Benazir had denied all the corruption charges against her and maintained they were politically motivated. She went into self-imposed exile in Dubai in 1998.

Bhutto returned to Pakistan on 18 Oct 2007 after reaching an understanding with President Pervez Musharraf by which she was granted amnesty and all corruption charges were withdrawn. UPDATED Dec/08

NEWSAHEAD CORRESPONDENT C.BALAJI CONTRIBUTED TO THIS ARTICLE. HE IS AVAILABLE FOR FREELANCE ASSIGNMENTS IN INDIA AND THE REGION. email: mohan balaji

RELATED READING:
Benazir Bhutto killed in attack (news.bbc.co.uk 27 Dec 2007)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7161590.stm

Obituary: Benazir Bhutto (news.bbc.co.uk 27 Dec 2007)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/2228796.stm

Pakistan's Parliament Wants UN Probe into Bhutto Assassination (www.bloomberg.com 15 Apr 2008)
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aaFq.PxRgaG4

Attack on Bhutto convoy kills 130 (BBC 19 Oct 2007)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7051804.stm