Zardari to address Benazir Bhutto death anniversary event

Former Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on Tuesday will address an event commemorating slain leader Benazir Bhutto's ninth death anniversary, his first major public appearance after returning from an 18-month self-imposed exile.

He will appear at the event in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh, a village that contains the family graveyard of the Bhutto family in Sindh province alongside his son and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Dawn News reported.

Tricolour party flags, banners and life-size portraits of Benazir Bhutto, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and Asif Ali Zardari adorn the venue of the public meeting as well as the route to the village.

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah along with his cabinet members arrived at Bhuttos' mausoleum and held a meeting with party leaders and acting provincial police chief Mushtaq Mahar to review security arrangements.

Among the participants was a group of 10 cyclists who had pedalled all the way from Rajanpur in Punjab to pay homage to their slain leader.

The group was led by Azizullah Anjum, President of Peoples Youth Wing, Rajanpur.

Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan's 11th Prime Minister and PPP leader, was assassinated at a poll campaign rally on December 27, 2007. She was married to Asif Ali Zardari from 1987 until her death.

--IANS

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