Pakistan mourns as Bhutto laid to rest

Paramilitary forces were ordered to shoot protesters in Karachi on sight to prevent riots as Benazir Bhutto, who was shot dead after addressing a rally in Rawalpindi on Thursday evening, was laid to rest next to her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto at the ancestral town of Bhuttos.

The funeral of Bhutto was offered by midday at Garhi Khuda Bakhsh, a small town near Larkana city of Pakistan’s Sindh province, where thousands of people had gathered to have a last glimpse of their beloved leader. However, the family members and party leaders did not allow to so because it might have delayed burial of the slain leader for hours or perhaps days.

A large number of supporters and workers of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), which was led by Bhutto, had been gathering at the graveyard since the news of her death broke. A 50-acre piece of land had been marked for funeral prayers of the twice-elected prime minister of the country.

Thousands of PPP workers and supporters wept and beat their heads and chests as the coffin of Bhutto left her ancestral home. The coffin was draped with the tricolour PPP flag and was transported to the graveyard by an ambulance.

Earlier addressing mourners at the Bhutto House, Asif Ali Zardari, spouse of late Bhutto, appealed to the PPP workers not to cry. He asked them to bear the irreparable loss with courage and also encourage him and other family members as well as colleagues in the party to bravely endure the tragedy. “You are brothers of a brave sister. You should control yourself and also encourage others,” he said.

Sanam Bhutto, the younger sister of slain Bhutto, also reached the ancestral town onboard a special plane from Karachi after arriving there from London to attend the last rites of her sister. Sanam Bhutto, the youngest of the four siblings, has been left alone to mourn death of her elder sister as their two brothers had already been murdered.

Interim PM says elections still on January 8

On the other hand, Pakistan’s interim Prime Minister Mohammadmian Soomro said Friday that plan to hold general elections on January 8 still stands. “Elections stand as they were announced,” Soomro reportedly said when asked about a decision on the timing of the polls in the wake of Bhutto’s death.

Sharif says elections now to destroy country

Another twice-elected prime minister of Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif said Friday if the regime went ahead with the elections next month, it would destroy the country. “If the government is adamant about holding elections on January 8, it is going on a self-destructive path which will not only destroy the government itself but will also destroy the country,” reports quoted Sharif as saying. Sharif reportedly asked President Pervez Musharraf to resign as soon as possible. “Musharraf has to step down. This is the number-one demand of the nation today. And I can see that people want this to happen as quickly as possible without any delay,” reports quoted Sharif as saying.

Shoot-on-sight orders in Karachi

In the meantime, paramilitary forces deployed in Karachi were reportedly ordered to shoot on sight the violent protesters to control the unrest that sparked after the killing of Bhutto. “Rangers have been ordered to shoot on sight if they see anybody indulging in anti-state activities, attacking government offices or setting on fire private property,” reports quoted Major Athar Ali as saying. The officer reportedly said that 16,000 paramilitary troops had been deployed in Sindh province and 10,000 of them were deployed in Karachi alone.

Another report quoted the top military spokesman, Major General Waheed Arshad as saying that military troops had been sent into several cities of Sindh ahead of the funeral of Bhutto. He said the troops were sent into Larkana, Sukkur, Shahdadkot and Rohri. “Troops will assist local authorities in case of any eventuality,” a report quoted him as saying. Death toll in riots touches 19 Riots and violent protests following the killing of Bhutto had left 19 people dead, reports said Friday quoting a security official. He said the death toll from street violence was now 19, including 18 casualties in Sindh province and one in Punjab.

Meanwhile, a blast at an election meeting of the former ruling party, Pakistan Muslim League (PML), in the troubled Swat valley killed three people Friday. “The blast killed the PML candidate and two of his supporters,” reports quoted a police officer as saying.

In Hyderabad, the second largest city of Bhutto’s home province of Sindh, police reportedly opened fire on protesters Friday, wounding five. “We opened fire as protesters resorted to violence and we failed to disperse them. Five of them received bullet wounds,” a police officer said.

In Rawalpindi, where Bhutto was assassinated, police fired teargas shells Friday to quell protests. Witnesses said a crowd was trying to march toward the office of former federal minister Sheikh Rashid when police fired several teargas shells to disperse the demonstrators, who also tore posters of the firebrand former minister, a bitter critic of Bhutto in the past. Police also used teargas elsewhere as armoured police vehicles patrolled the city.

In Peshawar, a crowd reportedly ransacked and then set on fire an office of the pro-Musharraf PML party. Around 1,200 people marched on the city streets and then stormed the PML offices. The protesters, who were “Bhutto is alive”, set the PML office one fire and also pelted a cinema house with stones.