People of India, Pakistan not enemies: Fatima Bhutto

Noted Pakistani writer, journalist and grand daughter of former Pakistani President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Fatima Murtaza Bhutto said that the people of Pakistan and India are not enemies and there is no enmity between the common people of both the countries.

She spoke with Arun Lakshman on the sidelines of the Kovalam literary festival, which she inaugurated on Saturday.

There has been vehement criticism that your book Songs of Blood and Sword is a work done to legitimise your father Murtaza Bhutto (son of former Pakistan premier Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and brother of Benazir Bhutto) and that it does not reflect the history, politics or the social situation of Pakistan in the right perspective?

The book is indeed a memoir of my father Murtaza Bhutto, but it does reflect the history and politics of Pakistan. I have done extensive research to cover the history and I feel I have done justice to the work. Regarding the political and social aspects of Pakistan, I have been clearheaded in writing it. Also, a major part of the history has been before I was born and I had to depend on lot of research material available for writing this book.

Noted Pakistani writer and political activist, who was once a student leader and then advisor the Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Raja Anwar in his book The Terror Prince. The Life and Death of Murtaza Bhutto has said that Murtaza was behind the Al-Zulfikar organisation and it was formed to avenge the death of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Your comments on this?

Raja Anwar wrote this book after the tragic death of my father. He should have written it well before my father was assassinated because then he could have defended the writings against him in the book. Now there is no such defence as my father is no more. Also, Raja Anwar was in a Kabul prison from 1982 to 1985 during the period when these incidents occurred, as claimed in the book. This means he has relied on hearsay and not on facts. There have been several other mistakes in the book including the name of persons and places.

Your book has been published in English, French, Italian and even in Hindi but not in the most popular medium in Pakistan, Urdu. Why is it so?

Urdu is the language used by the local and ordinary people of Pakistan, while English is used by the elite of the country. The elite is lazy and afraid, and does not act, so the rulers don't find it a major threat for a book published in a language read by the elite of Pakistan. But every ruler is afraid of the local people and rightly so; the Pakistani establishment also fears that. No Urdu publisher has come forward to print my work in the Urdu. No distributor was willing to sell this book.

Do you feel that the strong-arm tactics employed by the Pakistani establishment is the reason behind Urdu publishing houses not bringing out your work?

What else can be the reason? As a writer I want millions of Pakistani people who speak and read Urdu to read this book rather than the elite class, who are always afraid to act and speak out. If published in Urdu, local people will know and understand what happened to my father and where the country was headed to. This could have had a major impact on the society of Pakistan.

How is the young generation in Pakistan? Are they actively involved in cleansing the political system in your country or are they aloof from all this?

I can't say in one shot about the young generation of Pakistan. They are from different classes in different areas. For instance, the youth of Sindh province may be different from other areas and Sindh is a place that I know well. Here the youngsters are restless and want to change the system or rather want to move out and do something for the country. Throughout Pakistan youngsters are for freedom; to think freely, just like youth of any country.

Do you think Pakistan will see a youth uprising just as it happened in Egypt, Tunisia, Syria and some Arab countries like Oman and Bahrain?

I don't see it is coming now, but youths want freedom and they want a corruption free democratic political rule and not a dictatorship or the corrupt administration of today. However, we cannot rule out the possibility.

How do you rate the present Pakistani government?

There is nothing much to say about the present Pakistani government and they are already into major acts of corruption and nepotism at the cost of the country.

Several Pakistani writers and authors and journalists have gone on record that the feared and dreaded Inter-services Intelligence has threatened them and that they were being followed. Have you ever been threatened by the ISI?

The ISI has never threatened me. But after my book Songs of Blood and Sword was published, there have been several actions by the establishment on my family that can be considered as a threat or more than that. In fact, the car in which my mother was travelling was shot at. Those who went to complain about this and to register a first information report were beaten up by the police.

Are these threats the handiwork of the Pakistani establishment as such or a single individual, Asif Ali Zardari?

I cannot say that. But Asif Ali Zardari is still an accused on the allegations raised by me and he can very well employ any means against me. Moreover, he is at present the President of Pakistan and is very powerful.

You are a vehement critic of social networking siteFacebook. Why is it so?

Facebookintrudes into our personal life and can easily produce all our details at a click of a button to any agency around the world. This is not good for a civil society. However,Youtube and messaging are excellent.Facebookalso intrudes the websites we visit.

Facebookhowever gave inspiration for the Jasmine revolution (2010-2011 Tunisian Revolution). Didn't it play a good role?

Of course. Other than Facebook other social networking sites, mobile messages and Youtube too have been used well. I do say that as freedom is ultimate, people are welcome to use anything that they like, but there is skepticism about Facebook,as it can provide any information it has to anyone or any country.

Do you feel that Pakistan is a failed state?

No, never. Pakistani people have self determination. Our country is rich and abundant in oil, minerals, gold, rice and other agriculture produce, and the people have the will to work. Around 60 per cent of the population is under 30 years of age. The handiwork of one or two corrupt and power-hungry individuals who run the country as their fiefdom is creating problems. So I think Pakistan has a good future and that it will rise to its potential and abundance.

What is the situation of the minorities in Pakistan?

The minorities do have their problems in Pakistan as they have in India. However, the nature of the difficulties varies from place to place. There are mandirs and churches in the Sindh area, but may be in other parts it is not seen much. The problems being faced by the minorities of Pakistan is the one faced in other countries also. Just before this visit I had entered the Swami Narayan Temple in Karachi and did not face any problems.

What about the situation in Balochistan?

Baluchistan is one of the areas of our country that is rich in mineral wealth. There are issues in Balochistan and there are thoughts that it is the handiwork of foreign powers. If the Baluch people are naturally uprising for their rights, then there is no wrong in it, but if there are foreign powers involved in it, then we have to know what their motive is.

There were uprisings in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya recently. Your comments on this?

The revolution in Egypt and Tunisia has been organic and from the locals. We know that students had taken to the streets in these countries to overthrow corrupt rulers and administrations.

In Libya, the situation is different. We don't know who is behind these forces who have led the movement. Is it the Al-Qaeda, is it some other forces? It is interesting to note that the American embassy has issued a notification that there is huge oil wealth in Libya.

You come from the famous Bhutto family. In India there is the noted Gandhi family. Do you find anything in common between these two families, as both have ruled their respective countries and there have been tragedies in both the families?

I can't say that there is anything in common between these two families. I am of the opinion that one should not enter into politics one fine morning claiming to be from a family which has political history and lineage. This is not the right thing to do in politics.

Any new book in the offing?

Yes, I am planning a book on Karachi. However, it will take time as I am presently in a tour to promote my new book Songs of Blood and Sword throughout the world.

Source: http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-people-of-india-pakistan-not-enemies-fatima-bhutto/20111003.htm

Kovalm Literary Fest 2011: Pakistan, Peace And Prose

Fatima Murtaza Bhutto mirrors as well as hugs her homeland in her writings and seeks nothing less than peace as an absolute solution to the Indo-Pak cold war. Shameem Faruque in an exclusive chat with Fatima

She is not just a beautiful author, she is also an author who is beautiful. Totally at ease answering our questions, comfortable as she ties up her tresses, the liberal voice from Pakistan that she is, she is an intellectual and someone who is genuinely seeking peace between her beloved country and India.

Her pedigree is impeccable. Benazir Bhutto for an aunt, Murtaza Bhutto her father and her grandfather the very charismatic Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Yet this bold and the elegant Fatima is an author in her own right – truly an individual to reckon with. She means it when she says that “violence can never be the solution. Peace is the only way out.” She recognises that the countries that were born out of each other, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh face more or less the same problems which can be easily dealt with if they care to help each other out. She can’t fathom why both India and Pakistan refuse to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty when so many countries have.

Fatima Bhutto

Yentha caught up with the 29 year old Fatima after she had just delivered the 6th Annual K C John Memorial Lecture at the 4th Kovalam Literary Fest. She authored the poetry 'Whispers of the Desert' (written when she was 13) '8.50 a.m., 8 October 2005' (the accounts of Pakistan earthquake victims) and the ‘Songs of Blood and Sword’, a daughter’s memoir (published in April 2010).

When asked whether the memoir was a daughter’s gesture of repaying her father, Fatima says, “It is actually my promise to my father. I gave him my word that I will write this. This is what my father asked of me just a few hours before he was killed. He cannot bring one out like this when he is alive, he said. He told me to write after he is gone. And that is the memoir.”

She is a Bhutto - the most popular political family from Pakistan. Was she compromised when introduced as the niece of Benazir Bhutto? “I am listened to and I receive a warm welcome wherever I go,” quite diplomatically giving the question a skip. She has seen four of her family members assassinated but she still lives in her home at Karachi. As a woman how secure and free does she feel especially in a conservative society like the one in Pakistan? Her reply was quick “Where in the world is a woman safe, for that matter? Women, being the minority, have to face their insecurities in whichever part of the world they live. The same applies to Pakistan too. But I don’t change for the sake of the society in which I live. I remain the way I am.” The turmoil has not deterred this lady from being the crusader for her homeland, if we can call her one.

Under the umbrella of the Kovalam Literary Fest, two authors stand out not only for their books but also for opening doors to their homelands - Basharat Peer for Kashmir through his ‘Curfewed Nights’ and Fatima Bhutto for Pakistan through her memoir ‘Songs of Blood and Sword’. To the question whether she could be considered as a goodwill ambassador of her country, she smiles “Living in Pakistan, I see a side of the country which people normally do not see. So I try to bring that side in front of the world.”

She intently listens to your words as the cameras capture her various moods. Obviously she is gifted with a lot of charisma but she has an excellent educational background. A BA degree in Middle Eastern Studies from Columbia University, New York and a Masters in South Asian Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London have made her dwell deeper into the socio-political as well as economic metamorphosis of not just her country but also countries around the world.

Fatima in conversation with Shameem

Basharat Peer talks about a new generation growing up in Kashmir ‘who have become far too intimate with war and fear’. Is the same happening in Pakistan? Fatima Bhutto nods, “What the youth see are the generals and today’s rulers. So there is a chance of the same happening there.” Pakistan is mired in controversies. But aren’t there people, alive, who are fit to guide Pakistan? She catches the pun quickly and pat comes her answer, “Sure, there are quite a few fascinating personalities in Pakistan, Muhammad Hussain for one.”

Fatima Bhutto

I just got time to thank this strong lady before Fatima was frisked away by the organizers. The room falls silent. An emptiness that seemed too serene to be ignored. I pick up my notepad and notice that I have hardly written a word. Words get imprinted in your heart sometimes that you hardly need to write anything. I wonder what impact her written words would have on me …

Source: http://www.yentha.com/news/view/4/13986

‘In Pak, it’s impossible to escape politics’

October 2, 2011 By Ayyappan Ramachandran

Fatima Bhutto, writer-niece of Benazir Bhutto who became embittered with her aunt following suspicions of her regime's role in her father’s assassination, is in Thiruvanant-hapuram for the Deccan Chronicle Kovalam Literary Festival. She talks to Ayyappan Ramachandran

What does it feel like to be a Bhutto? Does it bring a sense of responsibility towards your country? For how long can you keep politics at bay? Is some of your writing aimed to secure that end?

This is a point I’ve always tried to make. It doesn’t matter what one’s last name is; it should be the content of your work, your character, your ethics and principles that count. Thankfully, my brothers and I were raised to be sure that those were the things that defined us, not the six letters of our last name.
I genuinely believe that we serve our nations in many ways. Some may choose to do it through politics, others through art, through literature, through teaching. There's no proof in Pakistan that politics is the most progressive way to serve the country, or that it's the most positive way. I always wanted to be a writer. So the question of politics is urgent or looming in other people's minds, not mine.

Why do you think you memoir Songs of Blood and Sword has not yet been translated into Urdu?

It’s strange, though not surprising at all. Thousands of people read English in Pakistan, but millions read Urdu. It’s sad that the book has been translated into various other languages but has yet to find an Urdu version. But I hope that will change in time.

Being a vehement critic of the establishment, do you live in Pakistan for the most part, or abroad?

I don’t live abroad. I live in Karachi. I do travel a lot with Songs of Blood and Sword, speaking at festivals, and promoting it in the countries it’s been published. But Karachi is home. It’s always been risky to speak out against the establishment in Pakistan, but I do believe that silence is far riskier.
After the hugely successful memoir, what are you working on now?

A book on Karachi, but it’s still in very early stages.

A lot of good new writing in Pakistan is in English. Is there anything interesting happening in other languages — Urdu, Punjabi, Sindhi, Pashto, Baluch?

There's always been fascinating work published in Urdu - whether poetry or plays or satire. And the same goes for the other regional languages. Sindhis, one can tell immediately, are very attached to their language, for example. They make sure it is taught in provincial schools and that it is a living, breathing, language and not relegated to the back of bookshelves. But really, the problem in Pakistan is illiteracy. It’s a tremendous barrier and there are no efforts to change what is a dismally low literacy rate… the qualification for literacy is the ability to sign one’s name, so official numbers are grossly inflated.

Do you read your Pakistani contemporaries’ writing in English? What about Indian writers? Have you met any?

Yes, of course. There’s such wonderful work coming out of Pakistan, and, as you say, out of South Asia in general. A really good book that flew sort of under the radar a few years ago was Children of Dust by Ali Eteraz. I’d recommend it as it’s a rare offering of non-fiction. Indian writers — I’ve admired the work of Basharat Peer, Suketu Mehta and Tishani Doshi in terms of current authors.

Why does so much of the Pakistani writing have to do with politics, indirectly or directly? Are there historical or social novels, or novels about love, chiclit, in Pakistan? Are good short stories and plays being written?

It’s impossible to escape politics — the best art thrives under difficult political situations. People don’t have a lot of forums open to them — they don’t have political spaces where they can express themselves. Those spaces are shut off except to the very few. So you find that people’s writing becomes an outlet for political thought. There’s also people’s art, some really fascinating and really brave art is being created in Pakistan at the moment, especially by women.
I think artists like Faiza Butt and Sana Arjumand in the art world are tremendous because they don’t shy away from difficult issues. Your question seems critical of the presence of politics, but I think it’s urgent and necessary and very inspiring to witness. Imran Aslam is a great playwright in Pakistan. He’s very witty and very political again, he’s a big favourite of mine.

How do you feel when you visit India? Does it seem like Pakistan, or different? Have you been initiated into the charms of Bollywood?

I am always very happy to come to India, it feels like home. The people are very warm, very friendly, and really I can’t say I feel as welcome as a Pakistani anywhere else. There are so many things that are similar to Pakistan - we’re the same people, we have the same attitudes, the same language, the same culture, the same history. There are differences of course, but what defines India for me is its warmth. That is true for Pakistani people too. I wish it was easier for people to have access to each other, to travel freely to each other’s countries. It would break so many barriers and be so powerful to see the two countries work in harmony together.

What stops Pakistan from being friendly with India? What do you think should be Pakistan’s priorities?

That’s a two-way street. I think when it comes to Pakistan-India relations, priorities of both our nations must urgently centre on peace. We are sibling countries, we are far stronger together than we are against each other. Our destinies are linked, the three of us — India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, and my generation has had no part in the hostilities that has defined South Asia. We want peace, we want to connect with each other, we want openness. We must stand strong when it comes to those values, to the values of non-violence, and of solidarity with each other. I hear it all the time in Pakistan, and I hear it whenever I am in India too.

Source :

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/editorial/op-ed/%E2%80%98-pak-it%E2%80%99s-impossible-escape-politics%E2%80%99-807

I want to establish as a writer : Fatima Bhutto

Thiruvananthapuram: Noted Pakistani writer Fatima Bhutto said she did not want to enter politics, but would like to establish herself as a writer. She is here to attend the two-day long "Kovalam Literary Festival".

Fatima, granddaughter of former Pakistan Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, told reporters dynastic politics in her country had not produced anything progressive in the last 30 years and it was important for the Bhuttos to be kept out of politics.

She said she did not subscribe to the view that her country is a 'failed nation', though governance was a failure.

"Pakistan is not a small or failed nation. But the system of governance there is a failure. It has nothing to do with people in Pakistan," Fathima said.


"People in Pakistan aspire for hundred per cent democracy and there should be fair elections," Fatima said.

Fatima, 29, who has penned three books including collection of poems "Whispers of Desert" and "Songs of Blood and Sword", said "the question of 'why I did not become a politician' is just like why I did not become a dentist."

Fatima, also the niece of slain Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, said she had good memories about her aunt before she had entered politics. "She was a courageous woman" who stood for some values and standards.

On freedom of expression in Pakistan, Fatima said she had written books and columns in newspapers. But she had to stop her columns since 2008 when the new government came to power.

Her book "Songs of Blood and Sword" was published in India and they were later circulated in Pakistan. "A large number of good literary works and films come from Pakistan these days and the"difficult conditions there have produced a major chunk of them," she said.

A best-selling author, Fatima said her new book would be on Pakistan and Karachi. It would not be a story about herself, but about a 'misunderstood place. "I visited Mumbai and Delhi before.Now I want to see another side of India and learn more about south India. That's why I have come to Kerala. People here are warm and welcoming," she said. Asked about 'accumulation' of arms by Pakistan, she said not only Pakistan, but none in the world should do so.

Source:
http://english.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/MMOnline.dll/portal/ep/contentView.do?contentId=10162195&tabId=18&channelId=-1073865025&BV_ID=%40%40%40

Fatima Bhutto draws road map for India-Pakistan peace

By IANS,

Thiruvananthapuram : The road to peace between India and Pakistan will have to be mapped by building on the shared heritage and the common social malaise confronting the two nations. And the onus of the task lies on the youth, author and peace activist Fatima Bhutto said here Saturday.

"We (people of India and Pakistan) are the same."

"You are like me. We need more people-to-people contact to promote peace. Our destinies as countries are inextricably linked as our past were... Justice is within the borders and not outside it," the Karachi-based writer said.

She was delivering the sixth K.C. John Memorial Lecture on "India and Pakistan: Road to Peace" at the Kovalam Literary Festival 2011. The two-day festival began Oct 1 at the Kanakakunnu Palace, a former summer retreat of the erstwhile rulers of Travancore, in the capital.

"Despite being separated at birth and shared heritage, India and Pakistan have created enormous gulf between their people. They cannot visit each other's country without going through enormous official procedures," Fatima said.

Fatima harked back to the 5,000-year-old civilisational roots of the people of India and Pakistan along the Indus Valley to emphasise the need to hammer out common policies to battle hunger and underdevelopment.

"India and Pakistan over the centuries have shared something hopeful, peaceful - a joint heritage that modern day hostilities could not erase," she said.

"But there is lack of coordination," she lamented. "We could develop policies together... But we don't do that - instead we feed the world when the hungry in our country starve."

Analysing the areas of serious conflicts, Fatima said there were "three countries in the world that did not sign the nuclear non-proliferation treaty - India, Pakistan and Israel."

"India and Pakistan are still suspicious of each other while the Israel government has managed to get itself out of it," she said.

And the suspicions were very elementary, she added.

Fatima is the grand-daughter of slain Pakistan prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and the niece of Benazir Bhutto, the country's first woman prime minister, who was killed in 2007. Fatima's father Murtaza Bhutto was gunned down in a political battle in 1996.

Fatima said "India and Pakistan have the largest migration history in the world with the biggest displacement... When we parted, the world shook".

"The freedom movement was iconic but the only problem was that we quickly turned on ourselves. What Pakistan did to India, Bangladesh did to Pakistan. Punjab was almost a holocaust," she said.

She said Bangladesh and Pakistan have one of the uncertain food policies and "terror has displaced millions of people who are hungry".

"But nearly 50 percent of the world's hungry are in India," she said identifying the problems endemic to both the nations.

"Trade between India and Pakistan is a fraction of the trade that we do with strangers. Trade between the two countries was much larger and we should be giving 40 billion dollars in trade. Many other arch rivals have better trade ties," she said.

The young Indians and Pakistanis had made peace a reality, she said. Clad in one of her grandmother's saris, Fatima stole the show with her appeal for lasting peace across the border.

Fatima is the author of three books, including a new biography of the Bhutto clan.

Source:

http://twocircles.net/2011oct01/fatima_bhutto_draws_road_map_indiapakistan_peace.html

Kovalam Literary Festival inaugurated by Fatima Bhutto

The fourth edition of the popular Kovalam Literary Festival was inaugurated on Saturday by Fatima Bhutto, the author of Songs of Blood and Sword.

Bhutto, in her inaugural speech, said that both India [ Images ] and Pakistan have a common heritage and nothing can separate that rich legacy.

The world shook when Pakistan and India were divided, said Bhutto, adding that this happened again when Bangladesh broke away from Pakistan in 1971.

India and Pakistan shared a rich cultural background and the unified strength of the two countries could beat the world, she said.

Noted writer Paul Zachariah and Binoo K John, director of the Kovalam Literary festival, were present among the audience.

Bhutto's address was followed by a detailed discussion on Binoo K John's book Last Song of Savio De Souza with journalist and writer Suresh Menon and the author.

Aswhin Sangi spoke about his work Chanakya's Chant and shared his experiences with the audience.

Sri Lankan writer Shehan Karunathilake spoke about his book Chinaman that is based on cricket.

Authors Mohammed Haneef [ Images ], Meena Kandaswamy and Paresh Mehrotra are expected to participate in the festival on Sunday, the last day of the festival.



Source: http://www.rediff.com/news/report/kovalam-literary-festival-kicks-off/20111001.htm

Kovalam Literary Festival: Fatima Bhutto Unplugged

Hailing from arguably the most powerful political family in Pakistan, Fatima Bhutto sees her visit to God's own country as a learning experience | By Yentha

Trivandrum: The fourth edition of the Kovalam Literary Festival is sure to be highlighted across the world with some help coming from the latest emerging name from the Bhutto family – 29 year old Fatima Bhutto. Unlike her predecessors this young and talented woman has earned her name through her prowess in transforming words to grasp the imagination of literature loving people from around the globe. In a glittering ceremony held at Hotel South Park, Fatima Bhutto was introduced to the media by Binoo K John, founder, Kovalam Literary Festival.

Talking to the media, Fatima Bhutto said that this was her first time in Kerala and that she was excited to be here. “There are not many South Indians who have visited Pakistan, and there aren't many from Pakistan who have visited this part of the world. So I see this as a learning experience and expect some cultural exchange. Kerala has a great culture and equality among its various religions. It has a high rate of literacy and of course you have great food.”

As a recognisable name in contemporary world literature, Fatima Bhutto holds high regard for Indian literature. “Everybody reads Indian novels nowadays,” she noted.

Belonging to the younger generation in the world of literature, Fatima Bhutto raised many eyebrows with her candid remarks on her dislike of Facebook. “Facebook intrudes into people's privacy and the people willingly surrender themselves to this intrusion. As a person who respects privacy, I am not a fan of Facebook.”

Talking about her view point on the political legacy of the Bhutto family, this young Bhutto opined that it was time for the Bhuttos to restrain from politics
“Bhuttos need to be outside politics to let the field to open up in Pakistan. As for me, I have not envisioned politics as an option in my career anytime.”

She also answered questions regarding the current state of chaos prevailing in the political and social scene in Pakistan.

“It would be absurd to term Pakistan a failed nation. But the system of governance we have there has certainly been a failure. The country is called a democratic state because public elections are held every five years. But it is only when these elections are conducted in a fair manner that the nation can be truly called a democratic nation. Also, there is the need for peace both in the national and international scene for the development of a country. I am against the accumulation of weapons by anyone anywhere in the world.”

When asked about her next book, the young Bhutto replied that all though she is yet to begin work on it, the book will be 'about Pakistan, about Karachi, about a place that's highly misunderstood by the rest of the world.'

The Kovalam Literary Fest is to commence at Kanakakunnu Palace grounds on Saturday, October 1. Fatima Bhutto will be delivering a lecture on politically relevant subjects between India and Pakistan at 10 in the morning. The festival is open to public and will also have book reading sessions by renowned authors like Shehan Karunatileke (Chinaman) and Mohammed Hanif (Our Lady Of Alice Bhatti). The festival will be inaugurated by the Union Minister of New and Renewable energy, Dr. Farooq Abdullah.

Source: http://www.yentha.com/news/view/1/13985

Pakistan not failed state: Bhutto

Pakistan is now lorded over a by a man Fatima Bhutto calls 'my aunt’s oleaginous husband', but she insists the country is not a failed state.

The moment Asif Ali Zardari took over the reins of Pakistan her column in The Nation was discontinued, but Bhutto says Pakistani aspirations have always been democratic.

“Governments might have failed, systems might have failed. But Pakistan is a country that could be immensely rich,” she says.

Bhutto is in Kerala to inaugurate the fourth edition of Deccan Chronicle Kovalam Literary Festival on October 1.

“Don’t mistake what you see in Pakistan today as democracy. The country is notorious for its corruption and mismanagement. While the country is reeling from the onslaught of two consecutive floods, the government has the gall to put out a $3-million advertisement in The Wall Street Journal. You can’t call this democracy,” she says.

Politics seems to repel this young Bhutto. “I don’t see politics furthering anything progressive. I never wanted to be a politician. I always wanted to be a writer,” she says.

Bhutto keeps Face-book, too, at an arm’s length. “The intrusion is tremendous. Amid all the fun, people willingly surrender their privacy. Facebook is not my favourite medium,” she says.

Bhutto’s memoir Songs of Blood and Sword might not have been translated to Urdu, but it can be found in Hindi. Among Indian writers in English, she loves Rushdie and Naipaul.

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/kochi/pakistan-not-failed-state-bhutto-618

Govts have failed, not Pak: Fatima

Pakistan is now lorded over a by a man Fatima Bhutto calls “my aunt’s oleaginous husband” but she insists that Pakistan is not a failed state. The moment Asif Ali Zardari took over the reins of Pakistan her column in the Nation was discontinued but Ms Bhutto says that Pakistani aspirations have always been democratic.

“Governments might have failed, systems might have failed. But Pakistan is a country that could be immensely rich,” said Ms Fatima Bhutto on Friday. She is here to inaugurate the fourth edition of the Deccan Chronicle Kovalam Literary Festival on October 1. “Don’t mistake what you see in Pakistan today as democracy. The country is notorious for its corruption and mismanagement. While the country is reeling under the onslaught of two consecutive floods, the government has the gall to put out a three million dollar advertisement in the Wall Street Journal. You can’t call this democracy,” she said.

Politics seems to repel this young Bhutto. “I don’t see politics furthering anything progressive. I never wanted to be a politician. I always wanted to be a writer,” she said. She keeps Facebook, too, at an arm’s length. “The intrusion involved is tremendous. Amid all the fun, people willingly surrender their privacy. Facebook is not my favourite medium,” she said.
Fatima has her differences with Benazir Bhutto but she still harbours soft feelings for her aunt. “She was a courageous woman who held steadfastly to certain values. It is these memories of her that I treasure the most,” she said. She has a special place for India, too. Her memoir Songs of Blood and Sword might not have been translated into Urdu but it can be found in Hindi. Among Indian writers in English, she loves Rushdie and V.S. Naipaul.

And on the day, Ms Bhutto was found flaunting the most Indian of symbols: a blazing red bindi. “It’s is the first time I am applying one. The staff at the hotel where I stay did this,” she said.

Source: http://www.asianage.com/india/govts-have-failed-not-pak-fatima-196

I started writing poetry when there was fear, says Fatima Bhutto

In times of trouble, children find their own ways to cope and come to terms with it. Fatima Bhutto who always loved the written word, sought poetry.

As a 14-year-old, she had hidden in a windowless room, shielding her little brother when there was shooting outside her home in Karachi. Her father Murtaza was murdered that day. It cost her dearly to be Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s granddaughter and niece of Benazir Bhutto, former prime ministers of Pakistan.

“I started writing poetry at a time when there was a lot of fear in the city that I lived in. Karachi was a city on fire in the early 1990s,” says Fatima.

“It was a time and place that was, as it is now in many similar ways, ruled by violence and by overwhelming fear. Poetry was a way of looking at it from a distance, all the while knowing how close it was. I suppose our way of expressing things that we'd rather hide shifts as we are constantly moving and adapting. Then it was poetry, now it’s prose.”

It would seem her poems, written years before she was even aware of the intense political atmosphere and tensions in the family, had sensed the tragedies that awaited her. Her first book of poems — Whispers of the Desert — was published when she was 15.

Fatima wrote again after observing the wreck caused by an earthquake in Pakistan’s northern areas in 2005 in 8.50 a.m. 8 October 2005.

She says, “As a writer you want to examine what moves you, what frightens you, what is most perplexing to you. I’m most attracted to a subject when I feel there's a disconnect between how the subject — whether it was the earthquake in Pakistan in 2005, the war in Lebanon in 2006, or violence in Pakistan — is reported and how it is lived.”

Her third book, Songs of Blood and Sword tells the story of ‘four generations of a family defined by a political idealism that would destroy them’.

The 29-year-old writer who will be visiting Kerala to attend the Deccan Chronicle Kovalam Literary Festival 2011, loves quite a few Indian writers.

“I think some of the best writing at the moment is coming out of the subcontinent — out of India and Pakistan. As for Indian authors, Suketu Mehta, Aravind Adiga, Basharat Peer are all contemporary writers I admire and enjoy reading. Agha Shahid Ali is one of my favourite poets of all time and Naipaul and Rushdie are classics I keep returning to. It’s a hard list to narrow down!”

Source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/tabloid/all-rounders/i-started-writing-poetry-when-there-was-fear-says-fatima-bhutto-630

Bhutto to be star attraction at Kovalam litfest

Fatima Bhutto, a Pakistani poet and granddaughter of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, will be the star attraction of the fourth Deccan Chronicle-Kovalam Literary Festival to be held at the Kanakakunnu Palace here on October 1 and 2.

Fatima will deliver the sixth annual K.C. John Memorial Lecture and will also read from her latest book ‘Songs of Blood and Sword,’ which narrates the trouble-torn history of the Bhutto family.

Apart from her, a heady mix of writers from India and outside is taking part in the festival which will be inaugurated by the former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister, Dr Farooq Abdullah.

“This is the first time Fatima is visiting Kerala,” said Binoo K. John, author and founder director of KLF. “We also have two major Israeli writers, Metti Lerner and Savyon Liebrecht, taking part in the festival.”

Further, noted writer David Davidar will read from his latest book ‘Ithacca’ and will interact with the audience.

Lovers of literature will also get to hear Anuradha Roy reading from ‘A Folded Earth,’ Ashwin Sanghi from ‘Chanakya’s Chant’ and Shehan Karunatileke from ‘Chinaman’.

Mohammed Hanif, the Pakistani writer who attracted much attention in the last instalment of the KLF, will present his latest work ‘Our lady of Alice Bhatti’ and Basharat Peer will draw the attention of the audience to the sorrows of Kashmir by reading from his ‘Curfew’d Night’.

Other writers slated to attend the festival are Kanika Dhill, poet Meena Kandasamy, Palash Mehrotra, and Suresh Menon.

Source:
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/kochi/bhutto-be-star-attraction-kovalam-litfest-059

'Poetry was a way of making sense of madness'

Blood, sword and suffering are the heartbeat of Fatima Bhutto's literary soul. And it was fear that propelled her poetry, says the heir to Pakistan's tragedy-scarred Bhutto family.

An accomplished poet, Fatima, 29, captures love, loss and the solitude of her circumstances in her verses.

"I have not written poetry for a very long time, but poetry like prose is ultimately a means of expressing what seems difficult otherwise," Fatima, who will be in India for the Kovalam Literary Festival from Oct 1-2, told in an email interview from Karachi.

"Kovalam will be my first visit to South India. And I'm looking forward to seeing more of the country and interacting with new audiences and opening bridges between our cities and stories."

She won't be reading out just from her poetry. Fatima has authored ' Whispers of the Desert' , an anthology of poetry, as well as ' 08.50 am ', an account of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake, and 'Songs of Blood and Sword' , a searing document of the turbulence that had ripped her family apart on her native turf.

Born in 1982 in Kabul to Murtaza Bhutto, the son of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, Fatima carries the illustrious and violent lineage on her young shoulders.

Her grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was hanged to death in 1979. In 1996, Fatima's father Murtaza was gunned down in Karachi by the police during the tenure of 'aunt' Benazir Bhutto. Eleven years later, Benazir Bhutto met with a similar fate in Rawalpindi in 2007 when she was shot dead at a rally.

Fear propelled her to poetry, Fatima said.

"It (fear) was a strong emotion. I started writing during a very violent time in Karachi's history. And it was a way of trying to make sense of the madness around," Fatima said.

Poetry helped. She railed at the rage that tore through Pakistan in the 1990s and defined in words the affection she harboured for 'papa' Murtaza.

"To my darling papa, with all the love in the world...this is our story...," she penned in an ode to Murtaza Bhutto in the 'Whispers of the Desert'.

For Fatima, poetry still touches the subcontinent's young sensitivities despite the proliferation of prose.

"I don't think youngsters are shying away from poetry. Tishani Doshi is a fascinating poet from the subcontinent and is part of a young generation of writers who seem to be able to do both - poetry and prose," Fatima said.

But there is nothing wrong with a focus if there is one on story-telling, Fatima said.

"Remember that for hundreds of years during colonial rule we were not allowed to tell our own stories here in the subcontinent," the writer said.

Fatima is currently writing a book on Karachi. "I am still in very early pages at the moment," she said.

Source: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-09/books/30134379_1_fatima-bhutto-poetry-murtaza-bhutto

Fatima Bhutto attacks dynastic politics in Pakistan

The details can be viewed at the following link:

http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/fatima-bhutto-attacks-dynastic-politics-in-pakistan-131231

Karachi street eats

One of Pakistan’s most famous daughters, Fatima Bhutto, says her country’s best food is found at the road-side stalls of her home town.

Most of the images the world sees of Pakistan are of political unrest and violence, but this incredibly rich and spirited country is made of so much more than its recent and accursed reputation as a home base for terrorism, corruption and Al Qaeda retirement opportunities. It is a country of myriad languages, ethnicities and religions… and exquisite food.

Karachi is Pakistan’s feistiest city, its most multi-ethnic, its most tolerant, and the capital of its Sufi culture. It’s where the nation’s artists are freest, where the adventurous can mix in a city whose boundaries were always fluid, and where the irreverent can always be assured safe passage. And it’s where you will find some of Pakistan’s best eating.

Sydney may have groovy Argentinean grills and grand art deco steak houses, as I discovered on my recent visit, but Karachi can’t be beat when it comes to its road-side offerings. Let’s call it our version of dude food. There are plenty of restaurants serving fussed-up tikkas and paltry mimics of home-style curries, but to eat well in Karachi you have to head to the streets.

Bun kebab, the jazzed-up Pakistani version of the burger, is the stuff from which food dreams are made: minced meat (most likely mutton) is spiced with black cumin and red chillies, and comes with a fried egg, onions, a coriander and mint chutney spiked with green chillies, and sometimes lentils, all served between charred buns. If red meat isn’t to your liking, you can opt for the vegetarian version, the aloo bun kebab (made of potato, and without the egg), or perhaps a paratha chicken roll. Chicken smeared in ginger, garlic paste, turmeric and mustard is necklaced with pungent white onions and then rolled into an oily and deliciously chewy paratha. It’s impossible to eat just one: order three. At more upscale establishments, these rolls come with modern affectations such as melted cheese, Thai green curry and aïoli. And consider yourself warned: there is a divide between bun kebab and chicken roll aficionados. Only the greedy claim to be both.

Not so hungry? Try the roasted corn, doused with lime juice and red chillies, sold on the cob or in little serving dishes fashioned out of old newspapers. Or perhaps pakoras, dipped into a sweet runny ketchup. These bite-sized vegetables fried in a batter of chickpea flour, coriander seeds, salt, coriander and red chillies are a favourite during the holy month of Ramadan. You can choose potato, okra, onion, spinach… just about anything can be made into a pakora.

Crunchy round golgappas (or pani puris) stuffed with potatoes and chickpeas and floating in liquid flavoured with cumin, black pepper, red chilli powder and tamarind are another city favourite. Karachi’s golgappas are legendary.

If you’ve a sweet tooth, avoid the ghee- and sugar-laden sweets – trust me, most South Asians can’t stomach them either, unless obliged to eat them at weddings and ceremonial functions – and satisfy the need for pudding discerningly.

The pick of the bunch is jalebi, curly fermented knots made from semolina flour and curd, deep-fried until they are golden, then dipped in a sugar and saffron syrup (sometimes rosewater or cardamom are added to the mix). Falsa, a fruit not unlike the blackberry, is great with mango in shakes and juices. And gola gundas (ice slushies), with or without condensed milk, are the perfect summer cooler.

So, what are you waiting for? Make Karachi your next food destination. I’ll see you there – we’ll do lunch.

Source: http://www.gourmettraveller.com.au/Content.aspx?id=10654&mch=snlink&cmp=art_10654

The Artist of Disappearance - reviewed by Fatima Bhutto

You can find the review at the following

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/a865aa7a-bcf6-11e0-bdb1-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1UFfk6nQO

Why Karachi's violence shouldn't define city by Fatima Bhutto

Author Fatima Bhutto's latest book is "Songs of Blood and Sword," a memoir of dynasty and politics in Pakistan. She is a member of the Bhutto family: her grandfather Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was Pakistan's first democratically elected head of state; her aunt is the late Pakistani premier, Benazir Bhutto. Fatima Bhutto lives and writes in Karachi, Pakistan. Visit her website and follow her on Twitter @fbhutto

Karachi, Pakistan (CNN) -- Karachi has long been the face Pakistan wished to show to the world. The port city, one of the largest cities in the world -- placed sixth or seventh, depending on whom you ask, with a population of more than 18 million -- once represented the ideal of what Pakistan ought to have been.

Karachi was and still is the nation's most ethnically diverse, carrying a reputation for being generously accepting and accommodating; a city that opened its doors to refugees, to migrants, to traders, artists and business communities who sought a harbor from which to connect to the outside shores. With communities as varied as Zoroastrians whose philanthropy built much of the city, Jews at one time, Baha'is and Hindus amongst many others, Karachi is undoubtedly the most religiously tolerant of its fellow cities. But this is no longer the face of Karachi that the world can see.

It is a city now plagued by internecine violence, targeted killings and lawlessness. Karachi has become the battleground, as it always has been, for the country's inept and corrupt political elements. Even though 70% of the total annual tax revenue collected by Pakistan's government comes from Karachi -- the country's stock exchange is here, and it is the commercial pulse of Pakistan -- the government has been content to let the carnage in Karachi fester.

While Karachi, like all big cities, has always had its fair share of crime, the violence here mutates and constantly changes form. At times it is gang-related as it is now, the bloodshed mercilessly fought out between powerful criminal mobs with high-level political patronage from the ruling parties. At other times it has been more outward looking, and embassies and foreign fast-food franchises have been the target of ire against the War on Terror, a war most Pakistanis see as unjust and illegal.

And then there have been brutal suppressions of democratic protests here -- movements against martial law, various dictators and politically oppressive dictates have been cruelly put down by state forces in the city.

But we are not a city that operates under religious extremism. Karachi's violence has nothing to do with Islam, with Islamic fundamentalism or the ugly manifestations of religious violence. In fact, it is a city that in recent years has largely managed to hold itself away from this growing trend. The Danish cartoon riots in the city were less enthusiastic than in other parts of the country. The recent violence against the blasphemy laws was almost totally confined to the Punjab province, and religious parties in Karachi have traditionally been viewed with a mixture of antipathy and disinterest.

It's not Islam. Our violence has to do with politics.

The ruling Pakistan People's Party -- under its current leadership nicknamed the Permanent Plunder Party or the Pakistan People's Problem by the more creatively frustrated -- have been fighting their coalition partners the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, an ethnic Muhajir party based largely in Karachi, almost since the start of their tenure in power.

Just this month, the PPP's senior provincial minister Zulfiqar Mirza fueled deadly protests in Karachi after he attacked the MQM, referring to it as being a party of "criminals, target killers and extortionists." The name-calling prompted the MQM to label the comments as hate speech, and Mirza apologized. A week later it was the MQM that accused Mirza of running "killing brigades," staging a walkout from the National Assembly with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) in protest. The prime minister has ordered an investigation --- one of the many he has ordered this year in the face of growing outrage over his government's mishandling of the law-and-order situation in Karachi.

Two weeks ago Karachi saw a death toll of some 100 people killed in just about five days, casualties in a turf war waged between activists from political parties. Perhaps one shouldn't be surprised. In the mid-1990s, when the PPP and the MQM last formed a coalition government the two also fought a war on Karachi's streets; some 3,000 people were killed during what's known as "Operation Clean Up."

Meanwhile, the MQM is attacking the Pushtoon-based Awami National Party for control over the city's transport routes, an economic turf war that has been increasingly bloody. When the violence becomes inflamed, as has happened this July, the MQM threatens to walk out of the government, sometimes does, and then duly returns a few days later. And so the cycle continues, although leaders of the three parties met this week and agreed to work toward peace in the city.

The violence, which reared its head in 2008, has seen bodies dumped on roadsides in gunnysacks, riots that paralyze the city, journalists killed, and hundreds upon hundreds of innocents killed and maimed. Political activists saw a high death toll last year; as many as 237 were killed as were 300 other civilians in the city, according to the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan has calculated that 1,100 people have been murdered in the first half of this year, a murder rate that matches that of Cuidad Juarez, Mexico's infamously dangerous city caught in a brutal drug war. Juarez, however, has seen its homicides and violent crimes decline in recent months, while ours is escalating.

The Pakistan Institute for Peace Studies claims that overall violence in Karachi last year rose by 288% from the previous year, thanks to sectarian and political violence, crime and lawlessness. The government has responded to the violence by issuing orders for Karachi's paramilitary Ranger forces to shoot on sight armed men. But that's it for political solutions to our city's bloodshed: more bloodshed.

But Karachiites still hold on to a view of their city that is untarnished by this violence. Businesses open their shutters every day and run their trade without electricity -- cut for hours in the hot summer months and hours more in the winter. Couples still stand on Netty Jetty Bridge, built at the time of the Raj to connect the port to the rest of the city and make wishes into the salty sea.

We are aware of the many problems this city must face because we know that this violence doesn't define our city. It is imposed upon us, but it is not of us. Drive around the streets from Saddar to Korangi, and you'll see amongst the ubiquitous political sloganeering painted Urdu paeons to Karachi. This is a survivor's city.

Source: http://edition.cnn.com/2011/OPINION/07/28/bhutto.karachi/index.html?hpt=hp_c2