Bhutto Death Threatens Democracy, Security

(CBS)  Violence is not new to Pakistan. The attack on Benazir Bhutto took place in the same park where Pakistan's first prime minister was assassinated, 56 years ago.

The Bush administration has spent $10 billion since 9/11 to bolster security and democracy in Pakistan. Now, it may be back to square one, reports CBS News correspondent Wyatt Andrews.

Ten days before her probable election, Benazir Bhutto was already among the most important leaders in the world. It was she who would legitimize a fair election in Pakistan.

She was pro-reform, anti-terror and for the most part pro-American. A grim looking President Bush expressed sorrow, not just for her family, but for democracy itself.

"The United States strongly condemns this cowardly act by murderous extremists who are trying to undermine Pakistan's democracy," Mr. Bush said.

In Afghanistan, President Hamid Karzai, who met with Bhutto just hours before her death, described her as a martyr for democracy. Around the world, it was as if a promising moment in history had just slipped away.

"This is a sad day for democracy. It's a tragic hour for Pakistan," said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Bhutto, despite a record of corruption and thirst for power, was genuinely popular in Pakistan, mostly in the southern province of Sindh. But her populist message also earned her an estimated 35-40 percent approval overall. She was hated however in the northwest frontier, along the Afghan border, a 1,500-mile stretch where tribal leaders, al Qaeda and the Taliban hold sway. Bhutto had promised to chase down the terrorists here including Osama bin Laden in a way President Musharraf never would or could.

"Benazir Bhutto was the most vigorous in her expression of clarity that she would go after al Qaeda," said Wendy Chamberlin, president of the Middle East Institute and former ambassador to Pakistan. "You don't hear any other candidates saying that. And that was why she was targeted."

But Bhutto had more enemies than just al Qaeda. She had denounced the Pakistani intelligence service, was at arms length with the army and she'd defied emergency rule under Musharraf. To her supporters, the list of suspects in her death is endless, and the risk right now is uncontrolled rage on the streets.

"What we have to watch particularly along the border regions in Peshawar as well as in Lahore and Karachi is how many people come out in the streets, how much anger there is," said CBS consultant Jere Van Dyk in Afghanistan.

For the U.S., a destabilized Pakistan is a double threat. Street violence could derail the elections and it could make vulnerable Pakistan's nuclear arsenal. Defense officials tell CBS News national security correspondent David Martin they are physically watching Pakistan's nukes.

The Pakistanis are believed to have between 50 and 75 nuclear weapons. They are stored in facilities which the U.S. helped to design to make as secure as possible, Martin reports. The weapons consist of bombs for aircraft and warheads for missiles, but they are stored in a disassembled form as an additional fail-safe. That would first have to be assembled before it would be a true nuclear weapon ready to go off.

Pakistan has long been the real front line in the global war on terror - a place where secular democrats were confronting religious extremists by trying to stage a free election.

Now the most popular of the secular democrats is dead.

[ralphj53]

December 30,, 2007
Hello;
Could it be that PAKISTAN was NOT READY to recieve Benazir Bhutto as their NEXT prime minister?... Maybe because of a MALE DOMINATED political structure, that has been in existence for thousands of years?

A lot of these countries look at women as INFERIOR, and not QUITE capable of leading their country into the twenty-first century.

Here in this country... we look at PAKISTAN''S political machine as an MCP phenomenon. MCP stands for Male Chauvanistic Pig.

Women are viewed as INFERIOR to their male counterparts, and therefore, are viewed as INCAPABLE to lead the country, in a MALE dominatded field of endeavour.

They look at a woman PRIME MINISTER, and question ...how would she REACT to a political CRISES that would ENDANGER the STABILITY and SAFETY of the nation... if it ever came to pass?

Again, that MCP mentality kicks in and of course, takes it''s natural course of events. This is just a thought.

slim 6744

[Con Mohrat]

tibu987,
Bush was only trying to help democratize the muslim nations.

He succeeded in Iraq (check Mission Accomplished); he succeeded in Palestine (check Hamas winning the election, and Bush labeling them (''terrorists''), and now Pakistan and Afghanistan are more of Bush''s success stories for his legacy.

Bush spent his political capital trying to demolish Social Security (or was it outsourcing it to Haliburton?) while vacationing like the present time, playing golf and fishing for most of his time in office, and now his time has run out. He is at the end of his tether. Time to write his legacy just as above.

[tibu987]

The evil Bush cabal gave it''s kiss of death to Bhutto.
With typical Bush foreign policy, they, (Bush idiots) supported Musharraf and gave him billions of dollars, enough to corrupt him. Then, after that mistake, Bush cabal decuided to change horses and support Bhutto to knock Musharraf off his pedestal.
It is no wonder that the U.S. earns the enmity of people in many foreign countries.
"With friends like (us), who needs enemies."
The Bush cabal is responsible for Bhuttos''s death, they placed her in the line of sure fire.

"The enemy isn''t liberalism, the enemy is not conservatism, the enemy is b llsh t".
Columnist Lars-Erik Nelson (deceased)

[Razzl]

Another brilliant neocon operation: Musharraf was pressured to allow Bhutto back into the country and step down as head of the army so he wouldn''t be in a position to hold dictatorial power in the future. Of course, now that Bhutto is dead, having Musharraf be able to hold dictatorial power may be the only way to control Al Quaeda and the Taliban. Do the neocons have a plan B for this one? Of course not, the Bushies are a faith-based regime all the way...

[klifton2-2009]

The world has become a very violent place from the corridors of power in Washington to the religious fanatics and extremists of various dominations everywhere. Some use violence to achieve economic ends and others for perverted and misguided religious reasons. Regardless, all are criminals because each leaves behind a trail of blood. There are no heroes only villains and evil.

[johngoodnews]

Too bad. If Bhutto had lived, the natural gas pipeline, the TAP, from Russia, thru Iran? and Afganistan and Pakistan to India would have been a reality because Bhutto would have wiped out the Taleban and al Qaeda whose presence in the Afghan-Pak border is for the sole purpose of shutting down the construction of the natural gas pipeline from Russia to India--after all al Qaeda''s actions have had one very significant effect: they have made more money for Muslim oil producers than you can shake a stick at. And for sure they didn''t want Russia supplying a nation like India with non-Muslim oil. You gotta love it.

[prosperine-2009]

So long Benazir... beautiful lady, hope to millions. Your misogynist, hate-filled enemies finally got you, but you expected that all along. No one can replace your courage. Please don''t let this one act be the catalyst Al Qaida is hoping for.

[nikkicatt1]

I have enjoyed the banter, but, work calls. Someone has to support the decadent West and pay for all their propaganda!! Long Live America!! God Bless and Happy New Year!!!

[nikkicatt1]

Of course Osama will say Bush did it, even if Osama knows who did. This does not negate the fact Bush would be a fool to have ordered this. (I know he is an idiot, but I don''t think he is that stupid.)

[kevkevsuperrev]

Ahh, the big picture has been placed on the wall. Now Iran is effectively surrounded. The Zionist plan is in full motion. There can''t be democracy in Pakistan, the region must remain unstable for the jews to stick their dagger in and twist.