Shimla Accord was a 'triumph' for Zulfikar Ali Bhutto
London, PTI:
''... it was quite a triumph for Prime Minister Bhutto because he was dealing with an extremely weak hand yet managed to negotiate peace without having to recognise Bangladesh or accept a no-war clause with India," Bhutto said.
The Shimla Accord of 1972 was "quite a triumph" for her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as it enabled the return of lost territory to Pakistan without having to recognise Bangladesh or accept a no-war clause with India, slain Benazir Bhutto said in her last book published today.
"I was present when my father (Zulfikar Ali Bhutto) negotiated the Shimla Accord with Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1972 to return Pakistani territory lost in the western wing, repatriate the 90,000 prisoners of war, and save 5,000 people threatened with trial by a war crimes tribunal as well as seek a peaceful resolution of disputes between India and Pakistan," she wrote in her book "Benazir Bhutto - Reconciliation, Islam, Democracy & the West".
"Actually, it was quite a triumph for Prime Minister Bhutto because he was dealing with an extremely weak hand yet managed to negotiate peace without having to recognise Bangladesh or accept a no-war clause with India," Bhutto said.
She completed writing the book shortly before she was assassinated in Rawalpindi on Dec 27, 2007.
"The Simla Accord also called for resumption of trade, overflights, and communications between the two states. It established the Line of Control in Kashmir (a de facto border), made possible the immediate return of lost territory to West Pakistan," she wrote.
