KARACHI, 23 December 2004 — Asif Ali Zardari, the husband of Pakistani opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was freed from house arrest yesterday, a day after he was detained for failing to attend a court hearing.
Zardari had been freed on bail on Nov. 22 after spending eight years in jail on charges of corruption, murder and drug smuggling. His rearrest on Tuesday followed his nonappearance at a bail hearing in a murder case against him at an anti-terrorism court in Karachi.
The high court in the southern province of Sindh, sitting yesterday, ordered his release on 300,000 rupees ($5,000) bail. “I have brought the court order,” Ashraf Ali, superintendent of Karachi Central Prison, told Reuters outside Zardari’s house. “He is now free.”
Zardari’s rearrest initially appeared to dim hopes of reconciliation between Benazir Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party and President Pervez Musharraf, current military leader and key ally of Washington in the war on terror.
Some analysts said, however, that the rearrest might have been orchestrated by figures in the military government worried about losing influence should the reconciliation process move forward.
“It’s to do with local ambitions and local politics,” said newspaper editor and political commentator Najam Sethi. “I don’t think Musharraf had a hand in that.”
Zardari praised the court decision when contacted earlier about its ruling. “I thank God,” he said. “The courts are waking up and will help in the restoration of democracy in the country.”
Zardari was detained at Islamabad Airport on Tuesday as he arrived to meet supporters who had planned celebratory rallies.
Police lobbed tear gas to break up a crowd of about 500 supporters who tried to enter the airport to greet him and detained dozens.
In television interviews overnight, Benazir, who lives in self-imposed exile to avoid arrest herself in corruption cases, appeared conciliatory and blamed opponents of reconciliation for Zardari’s detention.
“We didn’t expect any hurdle to be placed in my husband’s travel to Islamabad,” the Daily Times quoted her as telling CNN.
“I hope it doesn’t mean that the regime is changing its view on national reconciliation and I hope the people trying to stop the reconciliation process will not succeed.” Benazir said her party understood Pakistan was a key ally in the US-led anti-terror war, but added that domestic stability depended on dialogue with popular political forces and called on the international community to support this.
“We have argued that stability in Pakistan depends on resolving problems between Gen. Musharraf and the opposition,” she said. “We have always offered dialogue as a way to resolve issues with Gen. Musharraf.”
The move against Zardari came after Musharraf announced on Friday he would stay on as army chief after Dec. 31, going back on a promise to give up his dual role by the end of the year.
Benazir has long demanded Musharraf give up his army post, but the president said this would damage his efforts in the anti-terror drive.
