Marching Towards Democracy

POLITICS OF THE PEOPL

M a r c h i n gT o w a r d s D e m o c r a c y

Marching TowardsDemocracy

A collection of articles, statements and speeches

1970-1971By

ZULFIKAR ALI BHUTTO

Reproduced in pdf form bySani Panhwar

INTRODUCTION

Ayub Khan left as he came—in chaos. He wrote to General Yahya Khanon March 25, 1969 that he was resigning and asked him to do his constitutionalduty. Under his own Constitution of 1962, Ayub Khan should have addressed hisletter of resignation to the Speaker of the National Assembly. Instead, he choseto send it to the Commander-in-Chief of the Pakistan Army. General Yahya Khantook this as a mandate not only to restore law and order but also to take over thecountry. He was soon to say that he was wearing four caps, those of theCommander-in-Chief, the Chief Martial Law Administrator, the SupremeCommander and the President. The Supreme Court was later to declare that hewas a usurper. But this was too late. He had already brought disaster toPakistan, resulting in its dismemberment.In this third and last volume of

Politics of the People,

the text of Zulfikar AliBhutto's speeches literally speak for themselves. They show how he acceleratedthe march of the people towards democracy, how he articulated his party'selectoral manifesto, how he exposed the old-style politicians and frustrated theirattempts to mislead the people once again by presenting themselves either asthe sole interpreters of Islam or as the custodians of the ideology of Pakistan.Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's style was new. He presented to the people a programme thatwas directly connected with their living conditions. In an idiom they couldunderstand, he explained to the people the substance of his socio-economicreforms. He made an issue of Islamic Socialism which Quaid-i-Azam himself haddeclared as his programme for the people's welfare, an issue that had been keptcarefully under the covers by politicians acting as self-appointed custodians ofboth Islam and Pakistan's ideology.Despite the Yahya regime's opposition to the Pakistan People's Party,Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's partymen swept the polls in West Pakistan. Because of thesubstance and style of the presentation of the party programme, and the fact thatthe successful candidates were drawn from all classes, instead of the traditionalfeudal or propertied urban classes, the result in effect was a revolution funnelledin through the polls.This volume contains many of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's campaign speeches. Itreally is a volume of record because each branch of the Pakistan People's Party,which organised meetings where the Party Chairman spoke, wanted to beproperly represented in

Marching Towards Democracy.

We have tried toaccommodate as many as possible, fully aware that by so doing we wereallowing much repetition to filter through the editorial sieve. But then this is abook of record. And repetition for Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was necessary because inhis case the campaign was conducted largely by word of mouth. He had nonewspapers that would cover his speeches without distorting them. Televisionand radio was barred to him. The only way out was to go from place to place,

explain his programme in the context of local conditions, expose theinconsistencies of his opponents, arguments, and expound his views on thesituation as it developed from day to day.This task was as heavy as it was hazardous. He compaigned tirelesslyand fearlessly. There were attempts at assassinating him. He took them in hisstride. From the icy cold of the hills to the scorching heat of the deserts ZulfikarAli Bhutto went to meet the people face to face and to talk about their problems;and in turn to be seen and sized up by the people. It was also a programme ofpolitical education. One of the main lessons was that the people were sovereign,that they should vote not on the basis of tribal ties but for political programmes,not for their traditional masters but for those who would serve the common man.This message carried conviction. The voters discerned its sincerity and theirresponse was to vote overwhelmingly in favour of the Pakistan People's Partyand Zulfikar Ali Bhutto himself was returned to the National Assembly from noless than five constituencies.