Murtaza Bhutto

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Mir Murtaza Bhutto (Urdu: مير مرتضی بھٹو ) (September 18, 1954 - September 20, 1996) was a Pakistani politician and left-wing radical from the powerful Bhutto family, and the brother of former Prime Minister of Pakistan Benazir Bhutto. He was assassinated under mysterious circumstances.

Mir Murtaza Bhutto with Sardar Nabil Ahmed Khan Gabol
Mir Murtaza Bhutto with Sardar Nabil Ahmed Khan Gabol

Contents

[edit] Biography

Murtaza Bhutto, the elder of the two sons of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, was a left-wing revolutionary.[1] He took to arms after his father was executed by the military dictator Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in dubious circumstances. He shifted his base to Afghanistan, where a post-Soviet invasion communist government provided him with sanctuary and training.

Soon after Pakistani young men in groups started to cross over the hazardous mountains in packs to join his international organization "al-zulfiqar"-a militant wing of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), a left wing party. KHAD offered help, and Bhutto willingly accepted while exploring other options in Tripoli (Libya), Damascus (Syria) and Beirut (Lebanon). Later, he married Lebanese-Syrian Ghinwa Bhutto, who now runs the Pakistan Peoples Party-Shaheed Bhutto (PPP-SB).

Murtaza Bhutto's group made numerous attacks on military and state infrastructure. These included the hijacking of a PIA airline in March 1981, and the murder of a Pakistani diplomat on board the plane[2]. Salamullah Tipu was his lieutenant, and was later put before a firing squad on what critics argue was Murtaza's behest.[citation needed]

Murtaza Bhutto campaigned as an independent in the 1993 elections, winning a seat in the assembly governing the Sindh province[3]. In 1995 he led a schism of the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)[3].

[edit] Murtaza Bhutto and Asif Ali Zardari

After returning to Pakistan from exile, Bhutto offered his sister Benazir Bhutto the chance to revive the manifesto of PPP which his father championed. However, he was not happy with the corrupt ways of Benazir's husband Asif Ali Zardari and wanted him removed from influence in the PPP. [4] When his sister decided to side with her husband, Murtaza became a strong critic of PPP government and the ongoing corruption. Zardari, and his protege Abdullah Shah Lakiyari (then Chief Minister of Sind), obstructed Murtaza's political compaign[4]. Murtaza invited Zardari to talk in private and settle the problems within the family. However, the meeting ended in confrontation and Murtaza shaved off half of Zardari’s moustache[4]. This humiliated Zardari. It is widely believed in Pakistan that this incident drove Zardari to rage and he used help from Lakiyari's police machinery to assassinate Murtaza Bhutto[4]. Benazir became highly unpopular after this incident and her limo was stoned by PPP workers when she tried to visit Murtaza's funeral ceremonies[4]. After Benazir's government was dismissed in 1996, Zardari was detained for having a part in Murtaza's assassination[5]. However, no charges were ever proven due to lack of evidence (the scene of Murtaza's assassination was wiped off before any Police investigators could arrive at the scene. [4]).

[edit] Assassination of Murtaza Bhutto

On 20 September 1996, Murtaza Bhutto was shot and killed, along with six supporters in what was later determined to be an ambush by police.[6][4][3].

On the evening of his assassination there were 70 to 100 police officers placed yards away from his residence (70 Clifton Road, Karachi), including several high-level police officials[7]. Some of the officers were in sniper positions in the nearby trees with the streetlights being shut. As the car carrying Bhutto approached the house, it was stopped by a police contingent. When Bhutto exited the car, the police opened fire. All of the six men accompanying him were fatally shot too. Bhutto was shot several times, but the shot that killed him was fired execution style on his neck [7]. The victims were left to bleed without any medical attention for half-an-hour to 45 minutes. All of the seven men were then taken to different locations, none to emergency hospitals[7]. Bhutto was taken to Mideast Hospital[7]. In the aftermath of this assassination, none of the police officers were arrested, and some were later promoted to higher positions[7]. Benazir Bhutto's government arrested all the survivors and witnesses, two of whom died mysteriously in police custody[7].

A judicial tribunal concluded that the assassination could not have occurred 'without approval from the highest level of government', thereby implying the involvement of Benazir Bhutto (the prime minister at the time) or her husband Asif Ali Zardari(the minister of Industry). [4][7][6]

Murtaza's daughter Fatima Bhutto (born 1982, a writer who published a book about the 2005 Kashmir earthquake), has criticized her aunt and her uncle for their role in connection with the death of her father.[7]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Zahid Hussain. "Bullet-proof glass for Benazir Bhutto as thousands flock to greet her return", The Times, October 18, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-12-28. 
  2. ^ LRB · Tariq Ali: Daughter of the West
  3. ^ a b c "Benazir Bhutto accused by critics in brother's death", CNN, 1996-11-21. 
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h Tariq Ali. "Daughter of the West", London Review of Books, December 13, 2007. 
  5. ^ Raja Anwar. The terrorist prince: the life and death of Murtaza Bhutto. London: Verso. 1997. ISBN 1-85984-886-9
  6. ^ a b ""Pakistan in Turmoil after Benazir Bhutto’s Assassination"", "Democracy Now", December 28, 2007. 
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h Fatima Bhutto. "Murtaza Bhutto's Murder", September 20, 2007. 
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