January 18, 2008

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many people in Pakistan believe former prime minister and opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated by Pakistani government agencies or politicians close to the current government, according to a poll by Gallup Pakistan and Gallup International. 48 per cent of respondents share this view, while 17 per cent think she was killed by either al-Qaeda or the Taliban.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many people in Pakistan believe former prime minister and opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated by Pakistani government agencies or politicians close to the current government, according to a poll by Gallup Pakistan and Gallup International. 48 per cent of respondents share this view, while 17 per cent think she was killed by either al-Qaeda or the Taliban.

On Oct. 18, Bhutto—the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) who had lived in exile for a decade—returned to Pakistan. As her caravan travelled through Karachi, two massive suicide bombings killed more than 140 people, and injured 450 more. Bhutto—who was not hurt—accused political foes of planning to kill her.

On Dec. 28, Bhutto was assassinated after an election rally in Rawalpindi. Bhutto was to take part in a parliamentary election—originally scheduled for Jan. 8, but eventually postponed until Feb. 18. Before her demise, Bhutto claimed that government insiders were planning to kill her, and said Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf should be held at least partially responsible should something happen to her.

In October 1999, Musharraf led a military coup to depose then Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif. Two years later, Musharraf assumed the presidency. An April 2002 referendum—where less than 30 per cent of eligible voters participated—extended his term until October 2007.

In October 2002, the pro-Musharraf Pakistan Muslim League - Quaid-e-Azam (PML-Q) elected 69 legislators to the 342-seat National Assembly. Following a deal with the Muttahhida Majlis-e-Amal Pakistan (MMA), the legislative branch passed a controversial constitutional amendment which legalized the 1999 coup and gave the president the authority to dissolve the legislative branch with the Supreme Court’s approval.

On Jan. 15, Bhutto’s widower, Asif Ali Zardari, said he and other party leaders provided evidence to a group of British detectives who are investigating Bhutto’s death. Zardari also called for the United Nations (UN) to launch a probe into the assassination, saying, "The government rejected our appeal for a UN probe, so the People’s Party will directly approach the UN."

The Pakistani government has blamed al-Qaeda and a man called Baitullah Mehsud for Buttho’s assassination, on the basis of an intercepted conversation where two men discuss her death.

Polling Data

Who killed Benazir Bhutto?

Pakistani government allied politicians	25%
Pakistani government agencies	23%
Al-Qaeda or Taliban	17%
Other external forces	16%
Don’t know	19%

Source: Gallup Pakistan / Gallup International
Methodology: Face-to-face interviews with 1,300 Pakistani adults, conducted on Dec. 30 and Dec. 31, 2007, and Jan. 6 to Jan. 8, 2008. Margin of error is 5 per cent.

 

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