Fatima Bhutto

Fatima Bhutto (

Fatima Bhutto (Urdu: فاطمہ بھٹو‎) born, Fatima Murtaza Bhutto (Urdu: فاطمہ مُرتضیٰ بھُٹّو‎) on 29 May 1982, is a Pakistani poet and writer.^[1] She is granddaughter of former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the niece of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and daughter of Murtaza Bhutto.

She came to public note after the publication of her first book, a collection of poems, "Whispers of the Desert". She received notable coverage for her second book, "8:50 a.m. 8 October 2005".^[2][3][4] She is active in Pakistan's socio-political arena,^[5] supporting her stepmother Ghinwa Bhutto's party the Pakistan Peoples Party (Shaheed Bhutto), but has no desire to run for political office.^[6] Fatima Bhutto was ranked 26th on Desiclub.com’s list of the 50 Coolest Desis of 2008. She also writes columns for Pakistani and international newspapers and other publications.

 

Personal life

Background

Bhutto was born on 29 May 1982 to Murtaza Bhutto, the son of former Pakistani president and prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and an Afghan Pashtun mother, Fauzia Fasihudin Bhutto, the daughter of Afghanistan's former foreign affairs official.^[4] in Kabul, while her father was in exile during the military regime of general Zia-ul-Haq. Her parents divorced when she was three years old and her father took Bhutto with him moving from country to country and she grew up effectively stateless. Her father met Ghinwa Bhutto, a Lebanese ballet teacher in 1989 during his exiled in Syria and they married. Bhutto considers Ghinwa to be her real mother and political mentor.^[4][7] Her father was killed by the police in 1996 in Karachi during the premiership of his sister, Benazir Bhutto, and her mother unsuccessfully attempted to gain parental custody of Bhutto.^[4]

She lives with her stepmother, and her half-brother Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Jr.^[8] in Old Clifton, Karachi.^[4]

Education

Bhutto completed her B.A. degree in Middle Eastern studies^[9] from Barnard College, Columbia University ^[2][10] in Manhattan, USA, after receiving her secondary education at the Karachi American School. She received a master's degree in South Asian Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.^[11]

Politics

Following the assassination of her aunt, Benazir Bhutto, her entrance into politics has been speculated. In interviews, she has stated that for now she prefers to remain active through her activism and writing, rather than through elected office^[4] and that she has to "rule a political career out entirely because of the effect of dynasties on Pakistan" referring to the Bhutto family dynasty and its ties to Pakistani politics. Although Bhutto is politically active, she is not affiliated with any political party.^[12] She also expressed great sadness at her estranged aunt, Benazir Bhutto's death.^[13]

Publications

The title of Bhutto's book 8.50 a.m. 8 October 2005 marks the moment of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake; it records accounts of those affected. She has also written a book of poetry, Whispers in the Desert. A memoir, Songs of Blood and Sword, was published in April 2010.^[14]