Daughter takes mantle from slain Pakistan governor

NEW YORK: The daughter of the slain governor of Punjab refuses to be cowed by extremism and is taking up the cause that killed her father.

"I think I have an important story to tell: my father was assassinated in Pakistan six months ago because of his opposition to the misuse of a Pakistani law," 22-year-old Shehrbano Taseer told AFP in New York.

Her father was one of the most moderate voices in the main ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and personified the progressive elite.

His was the most high-profile political killing in Pakistan since former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was assassinated in December 2007.

It was followed two months later by the assassination of another vocal opponent of the law, Minorities Minister Shahbaz Bhatti.

"I'm here to tell my story, to tell what happens and why it happens, to inform the public and maybe prevent new cases in the future," Taseer told AFP in an interview at a Manhattan hotel.

Like her father, Taseer uses the social networking site Twitter and public appearances to speak out boldly against the law, and she vows not to back down despite threats to her life.

Taseer, who graduated from Smith College in Massachusetts and is now a journalist based in Lahore, told AFP that Pakistan had reached a critical juncture and must choose between extremism or moderation.

"We are at a difficult point in our history," she said, condemning " extremism" and the "cancer of terrorism."

"Right now it's difficult because as Pakistanis we are very much watching what is happening to our country and we feel very helpless about how to be a part of the solution."

Taseer said some progressive-minded politicians like her father were attempting to drive the moderate cause forward but admitted there was a long way to go.

"I don't think there is any solution possible in Pakistan in the short-term," she said. "We don't need any more blame."

But the governor's daughter is not out for revenge, nor does she believe conspiracy theories that seek to link the killing to terror groups.

"We have a confession, we have videos, we have photographs, we have forensic support, autopsy, we have the murder, we have the weapon, witnesses. I mean it should be finished."

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011