Garth Rattray

The December 27, 2007, gruesome assassination of Ms. Benazir Bhutto and the murder of the people that surrounded her motor car were appalling she formerly left office under suspicion of corruption, this two-time ex-president of Pakistan emerged from a nine-year self-imposed exile in Dubai to challenge General Pervez Musharraf for the presidency. She appeared to have the moral advantage as she proclaimed her resolve to defeat the iron-fisted Musharraf and her mission to crush al-qaida.

A serious attempt was made on her life when she arrived in Pakistan (October 18, 2007). She narrowly escaped injury but well over 100 people were killed or maimed. Benazir Bhutto chose to put her life at risk for the sake of her beliefs. It was said that the Musharraf government withdrew (at least some of) her security personnel. She unwisely stood in the sunroof of her partially armour-protected motor car and fell victim to bullets and/or shrapnel from a suicide bomber. Sadly, one minute this vibrant (seemingly) idealistic and patriotic female icon was alive and waving to her many Pakistani People's Party supporters and the next she was a corpse being transported through the streets by throngs of wailing mourners.

Normal

It was in this light that my brother-in-law offered his condolences to a Pakistani gas-station operator as we filled up for one of our several journeys during my visit to the U.S.A. over the holidays. To our shock, the Pakistani gentleman flippantly asked what he was talking about. When my brother-in-law explained, the Pakistani gentleman said in a thick accent, "Oh! Dat's narrrmal!" He vociferously opined that Ms. Bhutto had been less than honest, ran off and now wanted to return to power for her own selfish reasons (I'm paraphrasing out of respect for the dead). He said that Musharraf warned her not to talk so much. He felt no pity or sadness for her brutal killing or for those that died in the attack on her life - in fact, he appeared to be saying that it served her right! What seemed brutal and sad to us was "normal" (expected and deserved) for him and others of like mind.

Stop barbarism

Jamaicans can learn a lot from Ms. Bhutto's murder. Here, as in Pakistan, there are many who will justify the taking of human life. In many communities, it is considered 'normal' (expected and perhaps even deserved) for people to be killed if they report on who and/or what they saw. It is 'normal' for those who stand up to extortionists, murders and dons to be wiped out. It is 'normal' for some policemen and angry citizens (mobs) that have lost faith in our system of law and order to dispense their version of justice and kill suspected criminals.

Whenever someone like Benazir Bhutto is killed, we say that they are assassinated or even martyred. Their deaths are never in vain - something positive always comes out of their (intentional or unintentional) sacrifice. However, we have martyrs here too. Many of our innocent brothers and sisters are murdered because they chose to remain true to their beliefs and to the laws of the land. Who will make their silent cries for justice heard? Will no one give their lives the honour that they deserve? Are we going to make their lives inconsequential? Are the murders of simple folk just statistics that chart our social decline?

We must never view any murder under any circumstance as normal (expected or deserved). We must halt our march towards barbarism.