Politics & Law
A legendary life
Benazir Bhutto
21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007
Pakistani stateswoman who became the first woman elected to lead a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country.
Her story
A life that changed history
Benazir Bhutto led the Pakistan People's Party and served as prime minister from 1988 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1996. Both governments were dismissed before completing their terms amid institutional conflict and corruption allegations, although a major conviction was later overturned because of evidence of governmental interference. After years in exile, she returned to Pakistan in 2007 and was assassinated while campaigning for parliamentary elections.
“We set as our focus reconciliation, not retribution.”
Address to a Joint Meeting of the United States Congress, 7 June 1989