Bhutto's death anniversary to be marked today

The opposition Pakistan People's Party (PPP) which has been preparing for a show of strength on the death anniversary of its founder, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto today, complained yesterday that quite a large number of its workers were prevented from proceeding to the market town of Larkana, where the late leader has been resting since his execution in 1979.

Quite a large number of them were arrested, but officials said they will be released later. Ever since Bhutto was buried there, party workers and supporters had been converging at the place annually in a bid to pay home to the departed soul but invariably had to face resistance from the administration.

This year also, the party wanted to organise a rally at the tomb of its leader, and had asked its rank and file from all over the country to converge at the place by this morning to offer their homage and a possible telephonic address from Benazir Bhutto, who inherited the party leadership from her illustrious father.

A senior police official, however, reminded the press that processions, or rallies were banned since the last two and half years.

The PPP not only knew this, but was conveyed in clear terms that processions, or motorcades will not be permitted because it will create administrative problems.

Maintaining security on the long route of over 350 miles from Karachi to upper Sindh will entail innumerable difficulties.

"We had told that clearly that people can proceed to Larkana as individuals. There was no bar on them, but congregations and assemblies will not be permitted. They still wanted to organise a motorcade from Karachi Press Club to the Larkana. Quite naturally, permission was denied to them. Police had to do what it was supposed to do - implement government policy," said a police officer.

The PPP's information secretary for Sindh, Munawwar Suhrawardy, however, contested the official viewpoint. He told this correspondent that plans for workers to travel in a caravan had been drawn long ago. The administration was aware of that. Yet the police carried out raids on the houses of PPP workers during the night in Karachi and other parts of Sindh.

"They arrested hundreds and hundreds of them, and (yesterday) morning offloaded a large number of party workers and supporters from buses, which were ready to proceed to Larkana".

When contacted, a staff member at Bilawal House, the private residence of Benazir, expressed inability to elaborate on that. He said that almost the entire first and second class leadership had gone to Larkana already.

The PPP will have a high command meeting of its top brass at Nau Dero, the ancestral house of the Bhuttos, 25 km from Larkana, to discuss the coming referendum, the impending elections in the country, and possible dates for the return home from exile of its leader Benazir.

Central working committee members from Punjab, the NWFP and Balochistan had converged in Larkana a day ahead of the scheduled date for the meeting in order to avoid arrest, said a party worker in Karachi.