Bhutto's Husband, "Mr 10 Percent"
May 22, 1999 - 0:0
KARACHI Outside Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari is best known as the husband of embattled former prime minister Benazir Bhutto. Inside the country, though, he is often referred to as "Mr 10 percent" by those who accuse him of taking a cut on government contracts during Bhutto's two terms as prime minister. Both of Bhutto's periods in power ended with her being sacked over allegations of mass corruption, charges she and her husband say were motivated by politics.
Allegations of corruption, and murder, have dogged Zardari ever since his wife was fired for the second time in late 1996. On Friday, Zardari was in a Karachi hospital recovering from injuries that Pakistan People's Party officials say were the result of police brutality but which police say were self-inflicted in an attempt to avoid questioning about a double murder in 1996. Bhutto's PPP has accused the police of beating Zardari, and say a police claim that he tried to commit suicide on Tuesday was also to cover up torture.
On Wednesday, the U.S. State Department expressed concern over reports Zardari might have been mistreated, and the PPP said Bhutto had sent a letter to President Bill Clinton asking for his help to ensure the safety of her husband. The letter said Zardari's life was in "imminent danger". Zardari, who will turn 46 in July, has been in jail since November 1996 on charges of murder and corruption and this week's events occurred a month after he and his wife were sentenced to five years in jail and fined $8.6 million on charges of taking kickbacks from a Swiss company hired to fight customs fraud.
The murder allegations include charges of conspiracy involving the mysterious Karachi street shooting of Bhutto's brother Murtaza in 1996, which police say Zardari arranged because of a family feud. He and his wife deny any involvement. Zardari and Bhutto were married in 1987 in a match arranged by Bhutto's mother. Bhutto has said the arrangement was one of the prices she had to pay for the political life she led.
"An arranged marriage was the price in personal choice I had to pay for the political path my life had taken," Bhutto wrote in her autobiography, "Daughter of the East". Zardari at the time was known for being a polo-loving playboy from a minor landholding family with political connections -- his father was a former national assembly (lower house) member. His image did not improve once Bhutto swept to power for the first time in December 1988. With his trademark handlebar moustache, Zardari was often seen roaring around the capital Islamabad in his Mercedes-Benz. Zardari has been widely accused of corruption involving the handing out of government contracts, especially during his wife's second stint as prime minister from 1993 to 1996 when she made her husband investment minister.
The couple occasionally called each other "darling" during cabinet meetings. On a personal level, the marriage is said to be a success. The couple have three children aged six to 11 living in Dubai, where Bhutto was until she returned to London on Wednesday. (Reuter)
Allegations of corruption, and murder, have dogged Zardari ever since his wife was fired for the second time in late 1996. On Friday, Zardari was in a Karachi hospital recovering from injuries that Pakistan People's Party officials say were the result of police brutality but which police say were self-inflicted in an attempt to avoid questioning about a double murder in 1996. Bhutto's PPP has accused the police of beating Zardari, and say a police claim that he tried to commit suicide on Tuesday was also to cover up torture.
On Wednesday, the U.S. State Department expressed concern over reports Zardari might have been mistreated, and the PPP said Bhutto had sent a letter to President Bill Clinton asking for his help to ensure the safety of her husband. The letter said Zardari's life was in "imminent danger". Zardari, who will turn 46 in July, has been in jail since November 1996 on charges of murder and corruption and this week's events occurred a month after he and his wife were sentenced to five years in jail and fined $8.6 million on charges of taking kickbacks from a Swiss company hired to fight customs fraud.
The murder allegations include charges of conspiracy involving the mysterious Karachi street shooting of Bhutto's brother Murtaza in 1996, which police say Zardari arranged because of a family feud. He and his wife deny any involvement. Zardari and Bhutto were married in 1987 in a match arranged by Bhutto's mother. Bhutto has said the arrangement was one of the prices she had to pay for the political life she led.
"An arranged marriage was the price in personal choice I had to pay for the political path my life had taken," Bhutto wrote in her autobiography, "Daughter of the East". Zardari at the time was known for being a polo-loving playboy from a minor landholding family with political connections -- his father was a former national assembly (lower house) member. His image did not improve once Bhutto swept to power for the first time in December 1988. With his trademark handlebar moustache, Zardari was often seen roaring around the capital Islamabad in his Mercedes-Benz. Zardari has been widely accused of corruption involving the handing out of government contracts, especially during his wife's second stint as prime minister from 1993 to 1996 when she made her husband investment minister.
The couple occasionally called each other "darling" during cabinet meetings. On a personal level, the marriage is said to be a success. The couple have three children aged six to 11 living in Dubai, where Bhutto was until she returned to London on Wednesday. (Reuter)