INSTEP Magzine


instep comment Our fascination with dynasty Dynasties should logically play no part in the politics of democracy, but they do... because we remain spellbound by them. By Muniba Kamal

Elections are nigh and the debates are on. One of the biggest issues raging since the PPP press conference after Benazir's assassination is that of how dynasties hinder the political process. This is the press conference in which Bilawal Zardari's name was amended to Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, where Asif Zardari announced that he too wished to be buried at Garhi Khuda Bux and the crowds at Naudero that day referred to him as Asif Bhutto in their slogans. They had to. After all naaras (slogans) are the essence of political activism in the country and 'Har ghar se Zardari nikle ga, tum kitne Zardari maro ge', does not have any resonance whatsoever. Hence it becomes important for the name Bhutto to continue, otherwise, the PPP will have to rewrite every slogan in the book and that is impossible to conceive. They have the most powerful slogans in the country and they are all derived from the legend of the Bhutto dynasty which became mythical after Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's execution. Benazir's assassination at the tail end of 2007 reinforced that myth with the fresh blood of reality.

After a suitable mourning period various commentators let lose on how wrong this was and how undemocratic it is. And while from an idealistic standpoint, one does agree, the power of dynasties cannot be denied. After all, even in the United Kingdom, where Margaret Thatcher became Prime Minister in 1979, it is still Lady Diana Spencer who has spawned more books. The People's Princess will always be a better sell than any people's Prime Minister in a country as progressive as the UK. The fascination with dynasty, with people who are larger than life is a universal phenomenon. And while one agrees that to have a monarchist set up is regressive in a democracy, it seems that the raging debates here at home and around the world belittle the power of dynasties, political or otherwise.

America, the bastion of democracy in the free world still dreams of Camelot, the Kennedy years have become the stuff of legend because of the progressive John F. Kennedy but largely because of the sublime touch that Jackie Bouvier Kennedy (and later Onassis) brought with her to the White House. For the first time America had a Preident and a First Lady that were more glamourous than any royal family in the world. They had in Jackie a First Lady who understood the power of culture and history and linked the two by setting up a White House fine arts commission, procured art, antiques and objects, revamped the Presidential residence and proceeded to give America a visual tour of their own history that was broadcast on three television channels. Jackie understood the power of television only to well and so did Jack, because he let her. And these gestures added value to the Kennedy years over and above Presidents who just gave the America speeches on matters of national interest. Ironically enough, it was the violent television images on November 22 1963 that ensured that the Kennedy myth lived on, of the couple cruising the streets of Dallas in a convertible, waving to cheering crowds, of shots being fired, Kennedy slumping down, Jackie stunned, with his blood spattered on her pink Schiaparelli suit. Those images are still remembered by people around the world and obviously resonate the most with the American people.

The closest parallel that we have to that moment in history is Benazir Bhutto's assassination. We saw her go down as she waved to the crowds in Rawalpindi. We felt the pall of inconceivable gloom come down all over our burning country. We saw her grave being dug next to her father's who was executed three decades ago. We saw people from all over Sindh making their way to Naudero. We waited with bated breath for the press conference and to know her will. We saw and felt for Bilawal, Bakhtawar and Asifa, indeed we grieved with them. And our hearts went out to their cousins Fatima and Zulfikar Bhutto who wept for their slain aunt in death even though they were not on talking terms in real life. Our emotions were compounded by the fact that we in touch with the Bhuttos by TV. Bilawal saying "Democracy is the best revenge," at the press conference held after his mother's soyem was as touching for Pakistan as the image of a three-year-old John Kennedy Jr saluting the hearse that carried his father was for America. Perhaps that was even more poignant because it was the silent salute of a toddler. Of course that gesture was carefully orchestrated by Jackie Kennedy who always had a flair for subtle drama.

She was also responsible for the myth of 'Camelot' which the Kennedy years were known as. After Kennedy's death, Jackie gave an interview to Theodore White, a reporter with Life magazine, when she recalled that President Kennedy's favourite record had been of the musical Camelot, the theme song of which went 'Don't let it be forgot, That once there was a spot, For one brief shining moment That was known as Camelot.' "There'll never be another Camelot again," she said in that interview. The power of the imagery she evoked was such that the word 'Camelot' came to represent the three short years she and her husband were in the White House.

In an interview Theodore White recalled:"So the epitaph on the Kennedy Administration became Camelot – a magic moment in American history, when gallant men danced with beautiful women, when great deeds were done, when artists, writers and poets met at the White House and the barbarians beyond the walls were held back." Of course, this is looking at the Kennedy years through rose tinted glasses, but it's still better than the rather insidious dynasty currently in power in the States – that of the House of Bush. With Bush Sr the ex-CIA chief becoming President, the first Iraq War, the suspiciously 'rigged' Florida ballot and Bush Jr and the second war in Iraq – indeed makes many an American long for Camelot. Despite their faults, the Kennedys kept the American dream alive and came to represent it. The trials, tribulations and tragedies of the Bhutto family are similar in that they are the stuff legends are made of and hence their enduring legacy. The case is the same across the border with the Nehru dynasty. The Indian nation was horrified first with the assassination of Indira Gandhi by one of a her own Sikh bodyguards after the Indian forces stormed the Golden Temple the holiest of Sikh shrines killing almost 500 Sikhs. Then, the tragedy was repeated with the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi carried out by Dhanu, a female suicide bomber sent by the Tamil Tigers. The nation wept and the largest political party in India suffered as Sonia Antonia Maino Gandhi shunned politics after seeing her husband so brutally murdered. The popularity of the Congress began to dwindle and they lost the 1996 elections. Eventually, Sonia Gandhi decided to answer the call of duty and rejoined the Congress in 1997. The flame of the Nehru dynasty was lit again – so what if the woman holding it aloft was a Roman Catholic of Italian origin? Such is the power of a dynasty known and loved by the people. The Congress won the next elections and Sonia Gandhi made a politically astute decision by nominating Dr Manmohan Singh as the Prime Minister. But she is widely regarded as the most powerful woman in India, which is why when she visited China recently, she was given the welcome accorded to any head of state, despite not holding an office. With elections round the corner, much is being made of the Bhutto dynasty and how it should not play a part in the democratic process. And ultimately, the most poignant comment has come from Fatima Bhutto. "The idea that it has to be a Bhutto, I think, is a dangerous one," she told the Times in London after Bilawal was named Benazir's heir apparent. "It doesn't benefit Pakistan. It doesn't benefit a party that's supposed to be run on democratic lines and it doesn't benefit us as citizens if we think only about personalities and not about platforms." While her reasoning is faultless, the fact that Fatima 'Bhutto' made those comments is what made waves around the world. Other columnists have also said the same, they haven't spawned headlines. The Bhuttos have a grip on our collective imagination and that is perfectly natural. Pakistan saw a fiery Zulfikar Ali Bhutto come into power. His speeches and his tenure is still remembered for good and bad. His untimely death made him larger than he had been in life. And then our attention focused on Benazir and Murtaza - the prodigal daughter and the son who became known as the Terrorist Prince. We witnessed their rise, their differences, their eventual fall from grace and their resurrection. And the memory of three lives cut short is so strong. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto executed in the still of the night. Murtaza Bhutto gunned down in Clifton under the most dubious circumstances. Benazir Bhutto who succumbed to the second assassination attempt while waving to the crowds that would vote for her. Each death gives new life to the memory of the ones before. No wonder then that the bonds that tie our imagination to the Bhutto dynasty run deep, as deep as India's fascination with the Gandhis and America's with the Kennedys. I don't think it is the martyr syndrome, as some say it is. I believe it is the thought of what could have been... and was never given a chance. The beginning of all myths is a possibility that was never realized.