Reconciliation

"Yes, I think this is a really remarkable book. It is a mix of several things. It is her second autobiography. She wrote one when she was much younger, Daughter of the East , and this one kind of finishes the story of her life – unfortunately it literally finishes the story of her life. But in addition to being an autobiography, it is also a manifesto. And it is a manifesto of those who believe that Islam is a religion of moderation and of modernity. She tries in this book, and I think succeeds brilliantly, to demolish the argument of those Muslim extremists and fundamentalists who say women are inherently second class in the Islamic world and that jihad is the only answer to the struggle between Islam and the West. And she points out that, in fact, the Koran and Islamic beliefs are very much consistent with the vision of a modern, moderate Islam. And it is precisely because she so brilliantly demolished the arguments of the extremists and stood as the symbol of a modern, moderate Islam, especially in Pakistan, that she was murdered three years ago. I had the privilege of meeting her several times and talking to her. I found her to be the person who probably gave me more insights into the nature of modern Pakistani politics and history than any other person I met. Well, like any politician she comes with a complete package of flaws as well as stars. She had her flaws like any other politician, there is no doubt."

"The primary focus of the book is reconciliation and she talks about it at two levels. One is Islam and democracy. She makes it very clear that from her perspective – and this is, I would argue, a mainstream view within Pakistan and elsewhere also – there is no contradiction between Islam and democracy. Yes, there are hardliners, there are religious extremists, and she explains in detail how they tried to nullify this idea. But benefiting from her knowledge of religion and of religious political discourse, she is able to argue that democracy fits in very well within the larger Islamic worldview, within Islamic thinking. The second level of the book is her case for more understanding between the Muslim world and the West. She argues that any conflict, or any difference based on religious lines, will be counterproductive for both. So this is from someone who was a major political leader – the first woman elected as prime minister of any Muslim state – making the case for reconciliation not only between Islam and democracy but also between Islam and the Muslim world, including Pakistan, and the Western world. In my recent visits to Pakistan I have seen this book in every bookstore. It has been translated into local languages. There are many scholars and writers who have been saying the same thing, but because they have not been very well known, or they weren’t very good writers, they were not as influential. Also, the way books are published in Pakistan and various parts of the Muslim world, the readership is not normally very large, especially for English books, so it’s very restricted. Benazir’s book came out in 2009 and her ideas were also regularly reflected in her speeches and her statements and the manifesto of her party. Her views were quite popular, there was support for them – that’s how her party got the vote. Her party is in government now and is trying to implement those ideas – with mixed results so far. Benazir Bhutto was making a case for pluralism. As this book makes clear, she understood very well the issues that are now really starting to haunt Pakistan – the religious radicals, the religious extremism in the northwest, the militancy which is expanding in the tribal belt, the increasing terrorist attacks all across the country. I had a chance to talk to her before she went back, when she was in New York. I asked her very specifically what was she expecting when she went back. I indirectly made the case that there would be threats to her life. There would be people waiting for her – all the extremists and militants. They would target her not only as a democratic leader, but also as someone who wanted a reconciliation between Islam and the West, and who was known for her pluralistic thinking within the Islamic context. Benazir said to me, “I know, my life will be in extreme danger, but I think I owe this to Pakistan. I need to go back and fight it out there”. She was pretty clear that she would probably go down, but she wanted to go down fighting. That’s the kind of feeling I get from this book as well. I’m sure there were many editors and people who helped her write this book. But she is able to make the case so clearly for Pakistan’s democracy, for defeating those extremists – who right now are gaining more strength. There was [the governor of Punjab] Salman Taseer’s assassination, and the killing of Shahbaz Bhatti, the Christian cabinet minister, both because of their critical stance on the controversial blasphemy laws. Extremists have indeed been able to expand their space. Benazir Bhutto stood for a fight and struggle against that. That’s the main theme of the book, and that’s why I picked it. Yes. Across the board in the political arena and in the media, there was recognition for her struggle. Through martyrdom she did gain more support. For example, there was recognition even from a former head of the intelligence who had always been very critical of her. There was a change in the tone of some conservative religious scholars who had always blamed her for many of Pakistan’s problems. There was some legitimate criticism of her as well. When she did have the chance to rule the country [1988-1990; 1993-1996], she could not deliver on many counts. There was corruption in her government as well. Then, she left the country for seven to eight years. But at the end of the day, the Pakistani nation was very shocked at her tragic death. It was only at that point that many people realised how important she was – with her dynamism, with her international stature, and her clarity about democracy and the role of religion."