For the last so many years, just few days before her birth or death anniversary I used to think about writing my recollections about Benazir Bhutto but every time I picked up pen, my memories were swayed by intensity of emotions. This year also I was determined that I will definitely pen down my memories and submit my piece well in time before her 60th birth anniversary but then I thought great leaders should not be confined to particular days their lives have messages that need to be reminded to people time and again.
My memories of this icon of bravery rightly named Benazir (unique) span over nearly three decades and are packed with examples of her showing respect and concern for ordinary people like me. I have the highest regards for her as a leader who devoted her whole life fighting for equality and justice for All.
As a non- Muslim Pakistani, (tagged as minority) , I had absolutely no idea till I met BB that an Oxford educated leader of international stature, who was born with silver spoon in mouth, could feel with great intensity about the down trodden segments of society. She had the courage to touch and embrace which for most of us are untouchable subjects, human rights being one among them.
Being a fond follower of Quaid-e-Azam’s vision of a tolerant Pakistan, where people could enjoy equal rights irrespective of cast, creed, sex and age, I always waited for a leader who could revive those principles.
It was in BB’s thinking that I found a true reflection of Quaid’s philosophy both in her vision and action. She was committed to making country truly Quaid’s Pakistan. When BB was elected for the first time in 1988 I was Mayor of Rugby. In February 1989 I was honoured for a State visit along with my wife and delegation for eight days. There she introduced me to leaders of other political parties as well. When she came to Birmingham on one event when she saw me sitting among audience she personally invited me on the main table.
A closer look at Benazir Shaheed’s political life reveals that the concept of human rights was at the very core of her political philosophy and practice. Her commitment to human rights was beyond political leaning, sans political point scoring and anchored in real needs of people of Pakistan.
It was inclusive and responsive aimed at progress of people and addressed wide range of rights of people. This is an area of her life where there is less to quote from her speeches and more from the practical measures she put in place.
Her initiatives to establish first ever government owned mechanism for addressing human rights issues in the form of Human Rights Cell (which later became a full Ministry of Human Rights) was a great leap forward in this direction which combined with numerous other steps such as creation of separate police stations for women, protection of followers of other faiths, recruitment of lady health workers for ensuring right of health and so on mark her actions for upholding rights of people.
In both her tenures, Benazir Shaheed tried to bring in lime light the notion of human rights as a means to protect rights of every one. She recognized the necessity of ownership of state for protection of rights of people. The beginning of a new paradigm of human rights in Pakistan was establishment of Human Rights Cell , headed by her adviser on Human Rights Syed Kamran Haider Rizvi ; a political prisoner for eight years under Zia’s rule, who was committed to human rights issues due to his own experience. In this paradigm state assumed a responsive role for ensuring human rights , hand in hand with civil society rather an opposing force for such organizations as it had happened in past. Human Rights Cell was responsible at the government level to monitor and improve human rights situation in Pakistan. The cell later became a full fledged Ministry with Iqbal Haider as its first minister.
One of the priority area of Human rights cell and Ministry was protection of rights of minorities, she took personal interest in the rights of minorities. it was during this period that two young Christian boys who were falsely implicated in blasphemy cases were able to make a safe passage to a European country and their lives were saved.
No country can progress in real sense without investing in its human resources and fulfilling the basic rights of security of life, justice, food, education, health and dignity. It’s the time to revisit an apolitical approach to human rights. Everyone including political parties can pursue at least one theme unanimously and that is Human Rights. Respect of human rights for creating any civilized society is so important that Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) sealed the task of conveying message of Allah in his last sermon by asserting significance of Human Rights. It was His last public address and the ultimate message for Humanity.
Every summer during her visit to London she made it a point to invite me for dinner or tea. I had the honour to host Begum Nusrat Bhutto in to Rugby when she was Senior Minister and visited UK. Her visit was covered by the BBC. During her last visit I gave her video tape of Begum Saheba’s visit to Rugby. She was so excited and happy to receive the recording.
When she left for Pakistan in 2007 she informed me of her decision by an email from Dubai. I spoke to her and requested her not to go due to likely danger to her life. Her reply was my people are with me and they need me and your prayers are with me. I told her I will a fast that day for your safe return. She was barely saved in bomb blast in Karachi but due to her passion for people of Pakistan she could not exercise restraint of not going into public. She lived for ordinary people and died among the masses. If she was alive she would have seen diamond jubilee of her birthday this year. She died young but left behind a vision that is growing and maturing and that was her vision of Democracy. I cannot wish her many happy returns of her birthday but can certainly make a wish “long live Pakistan “, “long live democracy”.
The writer is an educationist; Former Mayor of Rugby and Leader of Labour Group on Rugby Borough Council