MGPK02: SITREP 4: BHUTTO'S FUNERAL FOLLOWED BY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 005390 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PK PREL AEMR ASEC AMGT CASC PINR MARR KFLO SUBJECT: MGPK02: SITREP 4: BHUTTO'S FUNERAL FOLLOWED BY NIGHT OF WIDESPREAD UNREST REF: A. ISLAMABAD 5380 ¶B. ISLAMABAD 5359 ¶1. (U) SUMMARY. Countrywide protests, violence and widespread arson followed the December 28 afternoon interment of Benazir Bhutto. Today has brought greater calm in many areas with most businesses closed and light traffic on the streets, but unrest continues in some cities, especially Karachi. The official three day mourning period for Bhutto concludes tomorrow, December 30, and mourners continue to descend on Larkana, the site of her ancestral home and family mausoleum. A memorial service is scheduled for 1000 December 29 near Larkana. Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Vice Chairman Faheem told Ambassador there will be a PPP meeting tomorrow to decide the way forward on elections; personally, he supports having elections proceed as scheduled on January 8. (Note: The PPP's election decision will be taken a day earlier than we have reported and briefed.) Embassy and Consulates Lahore and Peshawar are operating normally; Consulate Karachi continues on reduced staffing. END SUMMARY. GOVERNMENT SEEKS TO MAINTAIN ORDER ¶2. (U) Pakistan continues to grieve the death of Benazir Bhutto and many are venting their anger in public demonstrations often devolving into vandalism and arson. The government continues to respond to the public's outrage in a steady and low-key manner, providing additional law-enforcement and military support as needed. Chief of Army Staff Kayani and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Majid condemned Bhutto's assassination and made public statements offering condolences to her family and friends. INITIAL RESULTS OF INVESTIGATION ¶3. (U) The Ambassador attended a December 29 briefing of the diplomatic corps at which the Interior Ministry presented the initial findings of the investigation into the December 27 assassination of Bhutto. (septel) The government's announcement that Bhutto died, not from a bullet wound, but from striking her head on part of her vehicle in the midst of the attack, has received constant press coverage. POLITICS AND ELECTIONS ¶4. (U) The government decided December 28 to convene a conference of all the political parties for consultations on general elections scheduled for January. The date for such a conference not yet known. ¶5. (U) PPP President Makhdoom AMIN Faheem told the Ambassador that PPP leadership would hold a party meeting tomorrow, December 29, in Larkana following the 10 am morning memorial service for Bhutto. Faheem said his personal recommendation would be to hold elections as scheduled on January 8. This decision will be taken a day earlier than we anticipated and have previously reported. ¶6. (U) Nawaz Sharif announced that if the government went forward with elections in January, it would destroy both the government and the country. He called for a new caretaker government with no involvement by President Musharraf. Nawaz visited Larkana today to pay a condolence call on the family. ¶7. (U) The Punjab government denied permission to Aitzaz Ahsan, currently under house detention, to attend Bhutto's funeral. CG Lahore spoke with Ahsan today and reported that the GOP is blocking Ahsan's access to international and land phone service. Ahsan confirmed that he is not a candidate to replace Bhutto as the PPP's leader; as a Punjabi, he would not be an appropriate leader for this Sindh-based political party. PROTESTS ¶8. (U) In Karachi, the Army has deployed in two neighborhoods, the Malir and Bin Qasim (where Port Qasim is located),areas just east of the airport which are considered PPP strongholds. Many parts of the town are silent, but CG Karachi reports continuing sporadic violence in some areas, and adds that about 20 people were killed and at least 80 ISLAMABAD 00005390 002 OF 002 wounded in past 36 hours. Businesses remain closed following wide-spread arson and vandalism. At least 600 vehicles have been burned and more than 20 buildings, including Karachi's Edhi Center, headquarters for Pakistan's largest welfare organization. ¶9. (U) CG Karachi is on reduced staffing and providing safehaven to local employees unable to return home due to unrest in the streets. LARKANA ¶10. (U) CG Karachi reports that many mourners in Larkana went on a rampage after Bhutto's burial, torching stores, government buildings, a train station and numerous vehicles. Mourners chanted anti-Musharraf and anti-U.S. slogans. Grieving crowds continue to control the road between Larkana and Shikarpur, but people continue to arrive to pay their respects, many on foot because roads are either closed or impassable. Sunday, December 30 marks the third and final day of the official mourning period for Bhutto. SINDH PROVINCE ¶11. (U) The Army has taken control of the streets in many cities in Sindh, including Sukkur, Larkana, Badin, and Hyderabad. Domestic flights, train service and bus transportation remain suspended throughout the Sindh province. Fuel for vehicles is in short supply as stations remain closed and tankers are unable to travel the roads. Basic goods, including food, are also in increasingly short supply as blockaded roads and attacks on trucks have halted shipping for the time being. ¶12. (U) In Sukkur, roughly 100 government buildings and more than 20 other buildings were burned. In Ghotki, the telephone exchange and circuit house were burned. According to Pakistan Telecom Company Ltd, the damage to the telephone exchange has resulted in difficulties with international calls. PESHAWAR ¶13. (U) CG Peshawar reports relative calm today. A demonstration blocked roads this morning but there were no further reports of vandalism or violence. Police are out in force, especially at major intersections. Very few businesses are open (just small kiosks) and traffic is light. LAHORE ¶14. (U) Although there were also overnight reports of vandalism and arson throughout cities in the Punjab, CG Lahore reports that Lahore is also calm today. Businesses are closed and there is little traffic. AMERICAN CITIZEN SERVICES ¶15. (U) Embassy and Consulates issued a warden's message at midnight December 29 cautioning American citizens to avoid travel to Pakistan during the official mourning period for Benazir Bhutto, which ends tomorrow December 30. Also, the Mission has received no reports of injuries or deaths of American citizens. Pakistan's Ministry of the Interior has advised foreign nationals to restrict their movements and avoid large gatherings. INTERNATIONAL RESPONSES ¶16. (U) According to media reports, India has put its border forces on a "high state of vigil" and suspended cross-border bus and train links for at least a day. ¶17. (U) President Karzai has ordered Afghanistan's flag to be flown at half-mast in honor of Bhutto. The flag will remain at half-mast until 0930 December 30. Karzai met with Bhutto hours before her death and called her death "an immense loss for Pakistan and the Muslim world." PATTERSON