Insight with Benazir Bhutto: Pakistan on the Brink

Former prime minister of Pakistan and head of the Pakistan People’s Party talks about the future of her country – one of the West’s key allies in the “war on terror”.

The first woman to lead a post-colonial Muslim state, Bhutto became Prime Minister in 1988 and then again in 1993. She now faces corruption charges, which she fiercely denies, and was forced into exile in 1998.

Bhutto has nevertheless continued as the head of the Pakistan People’s Party and gained the highest number of votes and 62 seats in the national assembly in the October 2002 general elections.

She is rumoured to be preparing a return to Pakistan at the end of the year, after secret talks with government officials.

With the popularity of General Musharraf, the soldier-turned-president, at an all time low, we look at the the future of Pakistan and the role it will play in the ongoing struggle between the west and militant Islam.

Moderated by George Arney – former BBC Pakistan correspondent, journalist and presenter of the BBC World Service programme The World Today.