just want to have one place to collect the statement and by whom, when and where. Any and all leaders.
No real motive here, just want to have them in one place.
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir’s assassination
Rivals find kind words for Benazir
Dawn Report
The Awami National Party has decided to observe three days of mourning for Benazir Bhutto. “For the first time in my life, I can’t find words to express my grief. I am hurt. I am really hurt,” ANP leader Asfandyar Wali Khan told Dawn by phone from Walibagh in Charsadda. Mr Khan, who was addressing an election rally in his hometown, stopped his speech and told his party supporters to suspend all election activities for three days. “There will be three days of mourning and all election activities have been stopped,” he said. “This is not a trivial event. It will have far-reaching consequences,” he said. Asked if elections were possible in such circumstances, he said that the situation was very fluid and things would become clear in a couple of days.
CHAUDHRY SHUJAAT: Pakistan Muslim League-Q president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain condemned the assassination of Ms Bhutto and termed it a national tragedy. He said in a statement issued in Lahore that all Pakistanis shared the grief with the Bhutto family and the PML-Q strongly condemned the act of terrorism. He said his party considered terrorism as enemy of humanity, since it neither had a religion nor any political party. He said Ms Bhutto had made a major contribution to Pakistan’s politics, and despite being on different side of the political divide, “we always respected her courage and commitment” to her political views. The PML chief said: “We express deepest condolences to her husband Mr Asif Ali Zardari and their children”. “At this moment I request and appeal to all political leaders to promote harmony and patience, instead of taking any political advantage from this sad incident,” he said.
PML-Q Punjab president Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi also condemned Ms Bhutto’s assassination and called for more stringent measures to check suicide and terrorist attacks. In a condolence message to the bereaved family, he termed the incident a national tragedy. He said his party had suspended all election-related activities for the time being.
ALTAF HUSSAIN: Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Altaf Hussain termed the killing of Ms Bhutto the murder of democracy and liberalism. In a statement issued from the London Secretariat of MQM, Mr Hussain expressed sorrow and said that the assassination was a colossal loss to Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto would be known as a martyr for the cause of democracy, he added. He described her death as a monumental tragedy that would be condemned by all liberal-minded people. He further said that he wanted to bring this on record that Benazir’s murder was the third assassination of a prime minister belonging to the Sindh province. Liaquat Ali Khan was the first to be shot dead in Rawalpindi, then Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who was sent to the gallows there and today Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto had been martyred just like her father, the MQM chief maintained. He said: “I am personally deeply in pain and saddened by this tragedy, and offer my heartfelt condolences to her husband Asif Ali Zardari, her children, People’s Party leaders and workers”. He said that the Rawalpindi blast was an act to harm the country and create a sense of isolation among the people of Sindh. “The gap that has been created by Benazir’s death cannot be filled,” he added. He called upon President Pervez Musharraf and caretaker Prime Minister Mohammadmian Soomro to investigate and reveal the conspiracy behind the killing and give exemplary punishments to the culprits and conspirators. He said that the solidarity of Pakistan would be threatened if justice was not seen to be done. He also declared three-day mourning by MQM workers.
SHERPAO: PPP (Sherpao) leader Aftab Khan Sherpao, who himself has survived two suicide bombings, told Dawn from Islamabad that Ms Bhutto’s death would lead to further violence. “This is disastrous. What is left here?” he said with grief in his voice. “I was anticipating this that (the number of) suicide bombings would increase and there will be an intensification in the attacks,” he said. Mr Sherpao, who was associated for 22 years with Ms Bhutto before parting ways with her to form his own faction, paid rich tributes to the assassinated leader. “She was a brave lady and she was killed at the place where her father was assassinated,” he said. Asked if elections would be possible in such circumstances, the former two-time chief minister of the NWFP said, “I don’t think so. This (Ms Bhutto’s death) will lead to more violence and beneficiaries of destabilisation would join in.” He regretted that there had been no concerted effort to eliminate the sources of suicide bombings.
AJK PRESIDENT, PM: Azad Jammu & Kashmir President Raja Zulqarnain Khan and Prime Minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan condemned the assassination, terming it a great loss for Pakistan and its people. Expressing sympathies with the families of all those who lost their lives in the tragedy, the AJK prime minister announced a three-day mourning in the state. He also called upon the people of Pakistan to remain peaceful so that enemies of the country could not take advantage of the situation.
Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman expressed his heartfelt grief and sorrow over the death of Ms Bhutto. According to a JUI press release issued in Lahore, Maulana Fazl said it was a great tragedy which would have impact on the politics of the country for a long time to come. He said despite ideological differences with the People’s Party “we are equally grieved over the incident and share grief and sorrow of the PPP leaders and workers”. He regretted that peaceful political atmosphere was being vitiated and urged all the political forces to sit together and ponder over the prevailing situation and ways to improve it. The Maulana also condemned the firing on a PML-N rally and said it was a conspiracy to spoil the political atmosphere.
Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri, Maulana Ameer Hussain Gillani, Maulana Muhammad Amjad Khan, Qari Sher Afzal Khan also condemned Banazir’s killing and declared it a worst incident in the history of the country. They said that it was a conspiracy against the democratic process.
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir's assassination
thansk reza
u have the same for musharraf, shaukat, qazi, Imran, aitezaz, iftikhar, ejaz ul haq..any of the old timers around like yaqoub khan, pir pagara, jatoi?
thank you for finding this.
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir's assassination
From Daleel's thread
Imran's reaction to on going events.
Pakistan's Imran Khan says nation headed 'towards chaos'
MUMBAI (AFP) — Pakistan cricket legend Imran Khan warned that the South Asian nation was heading "towards chaos" and called for President Pervez Musharraf to quit following Benazir Bhutto's assassination.
"General Musharraf's time is up. He should step down as there's no end to terrorism in Pakistan," Khan, who leads Pakistan's marginal Tehreek-e-Insaf party, told reporters in India's financial capital.
"Pakistan is going towards chaos. Musharraf kept saying he will crush terrorism... today terrorism is crushing us," Khan added.
Khan called for the setting up of a consensus caretaker government and a judicial probe into the assassination of two-time premier Bhutto.
Pakistan's main opposition leader was killed in a gun-and-suicide bomb attack Thursday ahead of scheduled January 8 elections.
"The upcoming elections in Pakistan are all a sham. (After Bhutto's death) who will now hold political rallies? Who knows what happens next in Pakistan?" asked Khan, who was on a private visit to Mumbai.
Khan said he would head back to Pakistan on Saturday and added that his party would boycott the upcoming elections.
The Pakistani elections now appear increasingly in doubt, with senior government officials apparently considering whether to announce a delay.
"I do not feel threatened, but the truth is that anyone can be bumped off in Pakistan and blame it on the Al-Qaeda," Khan said.
Pakistan pointed a finger on Friday at the extremist Al-Qaeda terrorist network for the assassination of Bhutto, as her body was taken to her ancestral home for burial and anger at her death erupted into deadly unrest in the streets.
At least 32 people have been killed in violence since Bhutto's death and there have been angry demonstrations in several cities, with mobs ransacking offices and torching buildings and vehicles.
Khan blamed the United States for jeopardising Bhutto's life.
"America kept saying openly that she (Bhutto) is our candidate... obviously her life came under more threat from Islamic fundamentalists," Khan said.
Khan said Musharraf had no option now but to step down.
"You cannot win the war on terror if you lose the battle to gain people's hearts and minds," said Khan, who was staying at a beach-front residence owned by the leading Indian industrialist Godrej family.
"Musharraf is a problem, not our solution," he added.
Khan said Pakistan is ready for a democratic-led process towards growth, stating that Washington should support democracy, not an individual.
"India should back our democratic process," he added.
*Paying tribute to Bhutto, Khan called her "far bolder and stronger than any man I know."
*
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir’s assassination
Jamali sad over killing
QUETTA, Dec 28: Former prime minister Mir Zaffarullah Jamali on Friday condemned assassination of PPP chairperson Benazir Bhutto and termed it a conspiracy against the country. Talking to APP on telephone, he said that her killing was a worst example of cruelty and inhumanity. “No religion in the world allows killing of innocent lives and those responsible for the act will not escape the wrath of Allah Almighty,” he said. He hoped that the government would utilize all available resources to reach the perpetrators. He expressed deep grief over the loss of lives in the incident and added that the nation stand united with the family of Benazir and other PPP workers and appealed to the people to stay calm and let the government do its job.
http://www.dawn.com/2007/12/29/local24.htm
Deposed CJ condemns Benazir’s killing
ISLAMABAD, Dec 28: Deposed Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry condemned the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and other innocent citizens on Thursday and declared it a cruel and cowardly act and well calculated attack on the forces who ever hoped for true democracy. “This has come as a shock to the entire nation including myself,” Justice Chaudhry said in a statement released by Advocate Athar Minallah here on Friday. “This is a wound which will probably never heal,” he said and offered sympathies to Ms Bhuttos husband Asif Ali Zardari and her children. “My sympathies are with the families of all innocent lives lost and the nation who stand united in this moment of grief,” the statement.
http://www.dawn.com/2007/12/29/nat9.htm
She was a threat to establishment: Aitzaz
LAHORE, Dec 27: Pakistan People’s Party leader Aitzaz Ahsan expressed sorrow over the tragedy befalling Benazir Bhutto, saying “there were great apprehensions in the establishment about her chances in the election.” Speaking to Dawn over phone on Thursday, he claimed: “Even though her rhetoric was soft towards the establishment, she was considered by her nature a threat to the establishment. “Everyone feared that she would be a dominating partner in any alliance or arrangement within the structure of the state. She was not expected to be a Shujaat Husain, Zafarullah Jamali or Shaukat Aziz,” Aitzaz replied to a query on reasons behind her assassination. “It (the establishment) endeavoured to thwart her onward march on the date of her arrival in Karachi. And those who feared her finally got her in Rawalpindi,” he said, demanding that there should be a proper, free and fair investigation. But it was not possible as long as the present regime remained in office, he hastened to add. Already they had spoiled the investigation into the Karachi blast of Oct 18, ridiculing Benazir’s demand for independent investigation from the United Kingdom, he said. The tragedy, he said, had put the federation of Pakistan at a great risk and a great burden rested on the Punjab and the Punjabis to demonstrate their solidarity with the people of Sindh. “Benazir Bhutto was not a leader of only one province, but she had following in all the provinces. It is for the Punjabis to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Sindhis in a struggle against the present system,” he said. Earlier, Aitzaz sounded sad and expressed his feelings in these words. “I am deeply grieved. I have not felt so sad and depressed since April 4, 1979 when her father was executed. There is not a greatest challenge the country faces today. This colossal tragedy, he said, had exposed the federation to jeopardy. “She was a great leader and her nationwide party reflected the federation itself because the PPP reached out to every region and nook and corner of every province,” he said.
http://www.dawn.com/2007/12/28/nat17.htm
Rafiq Ahmad Tarar
Former President of Pakistan and PML-N Rafiq Ahmad Tarar said that the assassination of Benazir was a national tragedy. He said that the murder of BB and the firing at the public rally of PML-N leader Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, both on the same day and in the same city was reflective of the incompetence of the current regime. According to him under such conditions, rulers should resign and a national government should be inducted after a consensus.
Qazi Hussain Ahmad
Amir Jamaat-e-Islami Qazi Hussain Ahmad has called upon the nation to observe a nation wide strike on Friday to protest against the tragic murder of Benazir Bhuto. In a press statement, he said the whole nation was in a state of shock upon her assassination. Following tragic deaths of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, Murtaza Bhutto and Shahnawaz Bhutto, it was another tragedy befalling the Bhuto family. He alleged that President Musharraf should resign immediately because he alone was responsible for the tragedy. He further added that a civilian government should be established forthwith which could restore the constitution and the judiciary and create an election friendly environment. staff report
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\12\28\story_28-12-2007_pg13_4
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir’s assassination
President strongly condemns Bhutto’s killing, vows to eliminate terrorists
ISLAMABAD, Dec 27 (APP): President Pervez Musharraf Thursday strongly condemned the tragic murder of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in a terrorist attack in Rawalpindi and expressed the resolve to combat extremists and terrorists, till their elimination. In a message to the bereaved family, he termed killing of chairperson Pakistan Peoples Party Ms Benazir Bhutto “a great tragedy” and announced three-day national mourning.
Today Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto was killed in an attack by a cruel, barbaric terrorist in Liaqat Bagh Rawalpindi … Inalillah-e-wa inna alehe rajaeoon,” the President said in a message telecast on PTV. “This is a great tragedy which I cannot describe in words … I am deeply saddened and I condemn it very strongly,” the President said.
The President said “I on this occasion, I condole with the entire family of Ms Bhutto; including Begum Nusrat Bhutto, Asif Zardari and Sanam Bhutto and particularly her children.“My prayers, my sentiments, and my sympathies are with the children of Mohtarma Bhutto; Bilawal, Bakhtawar and Asifa.”He said his sympathies are also with all those innocent countrymen and their families, who fell a victim of this heinous crime.He prayed to Allah Almighty to rest the departed souls in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved families to bear this tragic loss. The President said the national flag will fly at half mast for three day as a mark of respect for Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and to mourn this great tragedy.He said the act was carried out by those very terrorists, with whom the government was already fighting.
“Pakistan and the nation faces the greatest threat from these terrorists. I, on this tragic incident want to express my resolve, and also seek solidarity from the nation, their cooperation, also to stand by me, that we will not rest with peace, until we eliminate these terrorists, and root them out.”
“Because it is vital for the survival of our nation and for its development as these are a major impediment in our progress.” The President on this occasion appealed to the nation to remain calm and exhibit tolerance and patience. “May Allah help and support us and our nation,” the President said.
Re: pakistani politicians reaction on benazir’s assassination
Farewell to Wadi Bua
Fatima Bhutto
LARKANA: My aunt and I had a complicated relationship. That is the truth, the sad truth. The last fifteen years were not one we spent as friends or as relatives, that is also the truth. But this week, I too want to remember her differently. I want to remember her differently because I must. I can’t lose faith in this country, my home. I can’t believe that it was for nothing, that violence in its purest form is so cruel and so unforgiving. I can’t accept that this is what we have come to. So, I must offer a farewell. One that is written in tears and anger but one that comes from a place far away, from the realm of memory and forgiving –- a place where at another time, we might have all been safe. As a child, I used to call my aunt Wadi Bua, Sindhi for father’s older sister.
When I got the news, I was told that something had happened to Wadi Bua. It was an expression I hadn’t heard or used in a very long time, when I heard it said to me over the phone I remembered someone different. We used to read children’s books together. We used to like exactly the same sweets –- sugared chestnuts and candied apples. We used to get the same ear infections, ear infections that tortured us and plagued us throughout the years. I have never before written an article that seemed so impossible. We were very different. Though people liked to compare us, almost instinctively, because well, they could. It is difficult for me to write about two people, one in the present tense and one in the past, at the same time.
Especially when one person’s passing makes the other one wonder whether there is a cusp to things and whether or not there really is a past and present to life. I never agreed with her politics. I never did. I never agreed with those she kept around her, the political opportunists, hanger-ons, them. They repulse me. I never agreed with her version of events. Never. But in death, in death perhaps there is a moment to call for calm. To say, enough. We have had enough. We cannot, and we will not, take anymore madness. I mourn because my family has had enough. I mourn for Bilawal, Bakhtawar, and Asifa. I mourn for them because I too lost a parent. I know what it feels like to be lost and left at sea, unanchored and afraid.
I mourn for the workers of the party, those who have been bereaved of their own loved ones in this tragedy. When congregants gather in a church, temple, or mosque they offer prayers for those that reside beyond. The congregants sing to the heavens and they offer the divine their hymns of sadness and hope. There are no hymns consisting of frustration or anger –- this too shall pass, they say, remember that. What hymns do we sing now? In those hymns, there is hope encapsulated in the sadness. There is a lingering sense that after darkness a dawn will rise. What then do we have to be hopeful for? And how do we proceed to wake the dawn? I have always been honest with you, I promised that to you at the beginning. Honestly, I am at a loss. I am compounded in a state of shock. I am in shock because I have yet to bury a loved one who has died from natural causes. Four. That’s the number of family members, immediate family members, whom we have laid to rest, all victims of senseless, senseless killing.
I was born five years after my grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s assassination. I was born into the void of his absence and for my father, Murtaza, I was a new chance at life. I grew up hearing my grandfather’s speeches, watching him on old black and white video cassettes, enamoured at his every word. My father was a young man when his father was killed and it was something he carried with him every second, every minute for the rest of his life. I was three when my uncle Shahnawaz was murdered. I remember Wadi Bua sitting with me and telling me stories while the rest of the family was with the police. When I was fourteen, my life was ended. I lost my heart and soul, my father Murtaza. I am and have been since then a shell of the person I was. I suppose there are cusps in life, and thank god for that because that way we can stay in between. And now at twenty five, Wadi. But this isn’t about me, it’s about those whom we have lost. It’s about the graveyard at Garhi Khuda Bux that is just too full. I pray that this is the last, that from this moment onwards we will no longer have to bid farewell too quickly. . Wadi, farewell.