'Inconsolable' Bilawal meets well-wishers

Dubai: Bilawal Bhutto fought back tears as friends and family streamed in to offer their condolences on the death of his mother, Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto.

Clad in a black kurta and shalwar, Bilawal, 19, the eldest of the three Bhutto children, received condolences from residents at his family home in Emirates Hills.

This was his first solo meeting with the community, without his mother beside him as had often been the case.

The siblings returned to Dubai after the funeral of their mother, who was assassinated in Pakistan on December 27, on Tuesday.

Close family sources requested that Gulf News not ask Bilawal any questions, saying he is not allowed to make any political statements.

"He is not allowed to talk to the media. Try to understand that he is in mourning and just came back from Pakistan," said the family source.

Bilawal went indoors after nibbling on his lunch. He was joined by his cousin Zulfikar.

Bilawal is currently reading history at Oxford University, his mother's alma mater. Glyn Kilsby, principal of the Rashid School for Boys in Dubai, where Bilawal studied, described him as someone who gave generously.

An example for others

"He studied with us from grade 8 to grade 13. He was an excellent student and lead from the front. He set an example for the rest of the pupils," Kilsby said.

Although the school is currently in recess, Kilsby, accompanied by Andrew Hatcher, a history teacher, yesterday met Bilawal and offered their condolences to the teenager.

"The school grooms its students for leadership but nobody imagined that Bilawal would be tested so soon. We are meeting him for the first time after his mother's death. He never used his family or his status while at school.

"As I remember, he was an easy student who took his studies seriously. He has a humorous side to him as well. He was the vice-president of the school student council. He was not a shy school boy," said Kilsby.

"We have to view things separately - the death of his mother and what has happened to him now," he added.

When asked by his school principal whether he would be going back to Oxford soon, Bilawal said 'Yes'.

Hatcher stood watching his student from a distance. He said: "He saw me on December 16. He was telling me about his term in Oxford, the type of hard work he had to do. He was just coming to terms with his new life in Oxford."

Residents who gathered at the residence were full of praise for the young leader and said that although he was being groomed by his mother to carry on the Bhutto legacy since his childhood, it was only in the last couple of years that they actually saw Bilawal accompanying his mother to party meetings and social gatherings.

Recollecting his protective nature towards his two younger sisters, the family source said: "I have seen him being protective about his sister, especially towards the youngest, Asifa, 14.

"It was heartbreaking for me to see the three children sitting at the airport lounge waiting for their flight to take them to Pakistan soon after their mother's assassination. Bilawal hugged me and was inconsolable - so were his siblings."