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Politics : Liberalism: Do You Agree We've Had Enough of It? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hope Praytochange who wrote (19932)	12/31/2007 11:09:29 AM
From: Ann Corrigan	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 224704

Bhutto's husband appears far less than grief stricken and more than a little politically ambitious in the wake of his wife's death..hmmmm, On the other hand, her son looks dramatically shaken: usatoday.com >Bhutto's husband and son maintain political dynasty By Paul Wiseman, USA TODAY ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Standing before the cameras Sunday, bespectacled 19-year-old Bilawal Bhutto Zardari looked more like a South Asian Harry Potter than the newly crowned leader of a powerful political movement. But the Oxford University student had the only qualification he needed to become chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party: He's the son of party leader Benazir Bhutto, slain by an assassin on Thursday. And he's the grandson of the party's charismatic founder, former prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was overthrown and executed by the military three decades ago. The young Bhutto Zardari "represents a bloodline to a family of martyrs," says former party adviser Husain Haqqani, director of Boston University's Center for International Relations. "The Pakistan Peoples Party isn't the Republican Party or the Democratic Party. It's the Bhutto family party," says Ayaz Amir, a columnist for the newspaper Dawn and parliamentary candidate for a rival political party. In choosing a teenager, the Peoples Party overlooked experienced contenders such as lawyer Aitzaz Ahsan, who rose to prominence leading pro-democracy protests against President Pervez Musharraf. "The Peoples Party won't accept anyone but a Bhutto," political commentator Zaheer Javed says. Haqqani says dynasties are part of the landscape in South Asia, where political institutions are weak and personalities dominate. India has the Gandhis, and Pakistan the Bhuttos — political royalty with histories of triumph and tragedy. Longtime Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi, daughter of prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, was gunned down by her bodyguards in 1984. After her death, her Congress Party turned to her untested son, Rajiv. "I remember reading many analyses saying the Congress Party is dead now," Haqqani recalls. "In the end, it was the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty that survived." Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991. His widow, Sonia Gandhi, now heads the Congress Party and is the power behind Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Similarly, Haqqani expects the Bhutto dynasty to endure. For the time being, the Peoples Party will be in the hands of Asif Ali Zardari, Bhutto Zardari's father and Bhutto's husband. He'll run the organization while his son finishes school. Zardari brings baggage: He spent eight years in jail for corruption and is derisively known as "Mr. 10%" for allegedly taking kickbacks. "Zardari will face a problem of legitimacy," columnist Amir predicts. "With Benazir at his side, he could do anything. … If people are unhappy with him now, they will question his claim to leadership." But the widower has strengths. He won respect in the Peoples Party for toughing out his years in prison. Haqqani says Zardari has a populist touch, a sense of humor and genuine concern for the well-being of poor Pakistanis left behind during an apparent economic boom under Musharraf. Zardari on Sunday announced that the Peoples Party will participate in elections scheduled for Jan. 8. The elections have been in doubt since Bhutto's assassination and the two days of rioting and looting that followed. Calm returned to Pakistan's streets during the weekend. The country's Election Commission is to discuss today whether to postpone the elections. The Peoples Party is poised to benefit from a wave of sympathy votes from Pakistanis mourning Bhutto's death. As long as the party keeps the Bhutto family connection, Javed says, "they will sweep the whole country."<