- PPP Chairman Bilawal and President Zardari will address the meeting.
- Scene decorated with party flags, portraits of Benazir and leaders on site.
- Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif remembers Benazir as a champion of democracy.
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and its supporters across the country are today (Friday) celebrating the 17th death anniversary of their assassinated leader, Benazir Bhutto, with great devotion and respect.
A main congregation will be held in Garhi Khudabakhsh, the birthplace and resting place of the Bhutto family. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, President Asif Ali Zardari and party central and provincial leaders will address the meeting.
Benazir’s youngest child, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, who is now the first lady of Pakistan and central president of the ladies’ wing of the PPP and Asif’s sister and Member of the Provincial Assembly (MPA) Faryal Talpur, the Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah had reached the Presidential House in Naudero. in Garhi Khudabakhsh a day before the birthday.
Meanwhile, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Faisal Karim Kundi and other leaders are also present there.
At the rally venue, a 20-meter-wide main stage was decorated with party flags, portraits of Benazir and other party leaders. On this occasion, famous poets of the country will pay tribute to their late leader through poetry.
Meanwhile, CCTV cameras were installed around Garhi Khudabakhsh and surrounding areas by the Larkana police, and 8,500 policemen and personnel, including SSU, women, traffic personnel and commandos, were dispatched to ensure security.
As the PPP remembers its leader, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also delivered a message on Benazir’s death anniversary.
“Today we commemorate the 17th anniversary of the martyrdom of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. A champion of democracy and a staunch defender of the power of dialogue and reconciliation in the political process, Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto remains an icon of courage and resilience” , he wrote in an article on X this morning.
He said the Charter of Democracy, signed between Benazir Bhutto and Mian Nawaz Sharif, is a testament to its enduring legacy.
“I extend my deepest respect to his family, especially President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, and his supporters, who proudly carry his vision and advance his ideals,” he said. -he concluded.
Benazir Bhutto, first female Prime Minister of Pakistan
Women have played an important role in Pakistan’s turbulent political history, rallying support for their detained relatives, like Benazir.
Born on June 21, 1953 into the prominent Bhutto family, Benazir was known for her charisma and resilience. As a young woman, she defiantly spoke out in support of her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, also a former prime minister, who was imprisoned and executed in 1979 during the military regime of the late General Zia-ul-Haq.
Benazir was a pioneering politician and stateswoman of Pakistan, who served as the country’s Prime Minister twice, from 1988 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1996.
She was the first woman to lead a Muslim-majority country as Prime Minister and also the first woman to lead a democratically elected government, making her a pioneer in the political landscape.
The former prime minister championed democracy, women’s rights and economic reforms amid significant political turmoil.
Despite his progressive outlook, his tenure faced challenges, including strained relations with opposition forces. Tragically, her life was cut short in an assassination in 2007 while campaigning for a historic third term, leaving a lasting legacy in Pakistan’s political history.
— Additional contribution from Reuters