Fatima Bhutto slams dynastic rule in South Asia
Jaipur, Jan 24 (UNI) Fatima Bhutto, niece of late former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, today slammed the dynastic 'political inbreeding' in South Asia, indirectly referring to the anointment of her cousin Bilawal to inherit the Bhutto legacy in Pakistan.
While consistent in her opposition to her aunt, Fatima said, she had no regret about what she wrote about her aunt and would have been more criticial if she had been alive.
Fatima, an accomplished writer in Pakistan, who was here to participate in the Jaipur Literature Festival, said, ''I am not repentant about what I said about my aunt even after her life was cut short by a tragic assassination.'' She said about 20 families in South Asia overshadowed the political space in these countries and at the moment she was happy being a writer, adding that she would think of joining politics when this dynastic system gave way to a more mature democracy in Pakistan.
''As
a
writer,
you
have
a
lot
of
freedom
to
write
what
you
feel
strongly
about,
while
in
politics,
you
have
several
constraints,''
she
said,
citing
another
reason
while
denouncing
politics.
When
asked
about
the
freedom
for
the
writers
and
intellectuals
in
Pakistan
under
military
dictatorship,
she
responded
by
saying,
''there
is
tremendous
amount
of
freedom
in
Pakistan
for
the
writers.''
When
asked
about
how
to
charter
Pakistan
on
the
path
to
democracy,
she
said,
''the
road
to
any
kind
of
salvation
lies
in
the
grassroot
and
the
people.
There
is
no
short
cut
and
the
people
are
the
real
agents
of
change.''
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