The edifice of an individual identity and self can be witnessed to be a bit exigent and

thorny. People have an innate oblige to appraise their own attributes and abilities, which
they do by comparing themselves with others. It is no longer possible for an identity to be
constructed merely in a small community and only be influenced by family. Differences
in perceived similarity between the self and a comparison standard can determine the
occurrence of contrast or assimilation in self-evaluation. Self is the understanding or
determination of one's own nature or basic qualities, one consciousness of own identity.
The self-concept is the accumulation of knowledge about the self, such as beliefs
regarding personality traits, physical characteristics, abilities, values, goals, and roles.
Identity can be defined as “what identifies somebody or something: the name or essential
character that identifies somebody or something or (Encarta English Dictionary) or
State of being a specified person or thing: individuality or personality… (Collins Gem
English Dictionary)”. Identity (also called sameness) is whatever makes an entity
definable and recognizable, in terms of possessing a set of qualities or characteristics that
distinguish it from entities of a different type. I accept as true that identity is somewhat
that is build over a period of time and can constantly be updated or changed completely.
An autobiography, from the Greek autos, 'self', bios, 'life' and graphein, 'write', is
information about one's own life written by that one person. In it, it tells what that
person's life is all about. An autobiography focuses on the "life and times" of the writer.
Through autobiography, a writer’s self-expression or self-representation ability can
convey extra undoubtedly defined sense of self into a superior sense of value for his/her
own life experiences and helps readers to understand writer’s “self” more clearly.
Biography of Benazir Bhutto
Benazir Bhutto, BB, (1953-2007), Pakistani political leader,
did not plan to be a politician, served as first female prime
minister of a Muslim country, she served for Pakistan from
1988 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1996. She was born at Pinto
Hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, on June 21, 1953. Her
mother, the former Nusrat Ispahani, is the daughter of an
Iranian businessman. Her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was a
member of one of Pakistan's wealthiest landowning
families, an Oxford educated lawyer, a cabinet minister and ultimately Prime Minister of
Pakistan. Benazir Bhutto was the first child of Zulfikar and Nusrat Bhutto. They had
three other children: Mir Murtaza, a son, born in 1954; Sanam, a daughter, born in 1957;
and Shah Nawaz, a son, born in 1958. Benazir Bhutto's early childhood was spent
primarily in Karachi where her father opened his law practice, and at Larkana at the seat
of the family estates, Al-Murtaza. she started nursery school when she was three,
attending the Lady Jenning's Nursery School in Karachi. At age five she was enrolled at
the Convent of Jesus and Mary School, run by Irish Catholic nuns. At boarding school, a
branch of the Convent of Jesus and Mary School in Karachi, Benazir Bhutto had to fend
for herself. In 1968, she completed her O’level exam and in April of 1969, at the age of
16 years, she was accepted to Radcliffe College, a part of Harvard University in
Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 1973, Benazir Bhutto graduated cum laude from Radcliffe,
which has since been absorbed by Harvard University. Benazir Bhutto entered Lady
Margaret Hall at Oxford College in the fall of 1973. After three years at Oxford she had
completed her second Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy, politics, and economics.
She then decided to stay on for another year to study international law and diplomacy and
to make another run for the presidency of the union. In December 1976, after a very
energetic campaign, Benazir Bhutto was elected president of the Oxford Union. She
served a three-month term which began in January 1977— the first Asian woman to serve
as president. Benazir Bhutto returned to Pakistan in 1977, after spending eight years
studying, first in the United States and then in England, Her intention was to find a job in
the foreign service of Pakistan she had moved into an office next to her father's office.
But soon, she witnessed her father's overthrow by a military coup and then she had to live
through the next year and a half of her father's persecution and imprisonment, which
ended with his execution on April 4, 1979. Five-and-a-half years of persecution and
incarceration ended, and Benazir Bhutto was finally truly free for the first time since her
arrest on September 29, 1979 when she was allowed to go abroad. She moved to England
in 1984. On July 18, 1985, the second male member of the Bhutto family died when
French authorities were able to determine that Shah Nawaz took the poison in a diluted
state. On December 30, General Zia lifted martial law. On April 11, 1986, she once again
returned to Pakistan. Prior to returning to Pakistan, Benazir Bhutto made three trips. She
visited Washington, Moscow, and made a religious pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
After her return to Pakistan, she got married with Asif Zardari, belonged to well reputed
Zardari landlord family, ran his family's construction company and played on his own
polo team, the Zardari Four. A seven-pound baby boy was born on the morning of
September 21, 1988, by cesarean section. The happy parents named their new son
Bilawal, which means "one without equal." She married a wealthy landowner, Asif Ali
Zardari, in Karachi on December 18, 1987. The couple had two daughters: Bakhtawar
and Aseefa. General Zia's death in a mysterious airplane crash in August of 1988
instantly thrust Bhutto to political center stage. As per announcement of Zia, the national
elections would be held on Wednesday, November 16, 1988, with the provincial elections
to be held on Saturday, November 19, 1988. In spite of split mandate, on December 1,
1988, President Ishaq Khan invited Benazir Bhutto to become prime minister and to form
a new government. The assemblies was dissolved by President Ishaq Khan due to
corruption allegation and Bhutto was defeated in the 1990 elections, and found herself in
court defending herself against several charges of misconduct while in office. She
continued to be a prominent focus of opposition discontent, and won a further election in
1993 but was replaced in 1996 as again assemblies were broke up – this time by president
Farooq Ahmad Lagari, The last male member of Bhutto, her brother, Murtaza, died in
1996 (while his sister was in power) in a gun battle with police in Karachi. In self-
imposed exile in Britain and Dubai, she was convicted in 1999 of corruption and
sentenced to three years in prison. She continued to direct her party from abroad, being
re-affirmed as PPP leader in 2002. Bhutto returned to Pakistan on October 18, 2007,
after President Musharraf granted her amnesty on all corruption charges, opening the way
for her return and a possible power-sharing agreement. Bhutto's homecoming rally after
eight years in exile was hit by a suicide attack, killing 136 people. She only survived after
ducking down at the moment of impact behind her armored vehicle. Bhutto said it was
Pakistan's "blackest day" when Musharraf imposed a state of emergency Nov. 3 and
threatened to bring her supporters on to the streets in mass demonstrations. She was place
under house arrest Nov. 9. Bhutto called for his resignation four days later. Emergency
rule was lifted Dec. 15. Bhutto was killed when an assassin fired shots and then blew
himself up after an election campaign rally in Rawalpindi on Dec. 27. The attack also
killed 28 others and wounded at least another 100. The shooting and bombing attack on
the charismatic former prime minister plunged Pakistan into turmoil.
Benazir Bhutto, beautiful and charismatic, the daughter of one of Pakistan’s most popular
leaders, has been mentioned as "The world's most popular politician" in the New
Guinness Book of Record 1996. The "Times" and the "Australian Magazine" (May 4,
1996) have drawn up a list of 100 most powerful women and have included Benazir
Bhutto as one of them.
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) came into being in Lahore on November 30 – December
01, 1967, with four cardinal principles i.e. Islam is our faith, democracy is our polity,
socialism is our economy and all power to the people. Bhutto was determined to bring
down the dictator who had betrayed the nation. To achieve this goal, he needed a political
organization and a political platform. When Ayub resigned in March 1969, an interim
military government took over and announced elections for December 1970, PPP
contested these elections on the slogans of "ROTI, KAPRA AUR MAKAN" (bread,
clothing and shelter) and "all power to the people." In poll, party received masses
response and won the elections. From Dec. 20, 1971 to July 5, 1977, the PPP government
made significant social and economic reforms that did much to improve the life of
Pakistan's impoverished masses. In March, 1977, when Bhutto called elections, as per
spirit of constitution, nine opposition parties made a alliance “Pakistan National Alliance
(PNA)” with the slogan "Nizam-I-Mustafa" (Islamic system). PPP amended its manifesto
and publicly promised for the same. PNA’s incomprehensible ideology fueled the success
of PPP in elections once again. Rigging and fraud charges gave a free rein to crusade of
violence and openly called for the military to take over the government. This agitation
paved the path of dictatorship and military led by General Zia-ul-Haq theatrical
overthrow and seized power on July 5, 1977. Immediately following the coup, the
Martial Law regime let loose a baseless campaign against the PPP and its leaders and its
founder was framed on a murder-conspiracy charge and executed. During Martial Law,
PPP faced rigorous temptations from army authorities, several workers were put to death,
thousands were lashed and tens of thousand suffered long imprisonments and detention in
jails and torture cells. At last, Benazir Bhutto liberated and rebuilt the party from scratch,
leading an epic movement for the restoration of Democracy and led the party as
chairperson of party. After the tragic death of Zia, PPP took part in elections, announced
by Zia in his life, held in November 1988 and PPP emerged as a single largest party. PPP
government was dissolved by Ghulam Ishaq Khan, and party faced defeat in interim
elections held in 1990. After the dismissal of Nawaz Sharif’s Government in 1993, PPP
won the fore coming elections in November, 1993. This time again, PPP government was
dismissed by Farooq Lagari, President of Pakistan. In the consequences of the 1997
elections won by Nawaz Sharif, PPP and its leaders faced political victimization, and BB
adopted self imposed exile. General Pervaiz Musharraf took over on Oct. 12, 1999 by
removing corrupt and inept Government of Nawaz Sharif. PPP took part in the elections
announced by Musharraf in 2002 with new party name Pakistan People Party
Parliamentarian (PPPP) headed by Makhdoom Amin Faheem - at that time PPP
leadership was not in the country. PPP "egalitarian democracy” objective came into
existence when BB returned from exile and she decided to go for election on February
2008, but the realization of this objective was came into after the assassination of BB,
when General Pervail Musharraf announced his resignation.
Benazir Bhutto:
Development of Identity and self and projection though pen (Medium)

“I had faith in myself.

I had always felt that I could become Prime Minister if I wanted.”

Benazir Bhutto (BB), extraordinarily a most charismatic woman and former Prime
Minister of Pakistan, wrote her autobiography in mid eighties. Many of people have
asked BB to put in writing not about her father’s experiences and achievements but about
herself but she was ambivalent to write about herself, because she was combating the
most imperative political battles and also for her, writing a book is very easier said than
done and it breathe life into the pain of the past However, a sole proclamation had
transformed her mind: "What is not recorded is not remembered” and she had made her
mind up to put the events and experiences on papers. She experienced the glory of her
father’s regime, the heartbreaking assassination of her father, the ominous years of
Martial Law, soreness of exile, cataclysm deaths of two brothers and mixed feeling of
being elected and ruling out from government twice – first Muslim woman Prime
Minister who lead a post-colonial Muslim state. “Daughter of East” is an autobiography
of BB but it has the inherent qualities of a history – a history that is all time relevant. This
is also stated by BB in the preface of her autobiography;

“This is my story, events as I saw them, felt them, reacted to them. It is not
an in-depth study of Pakistan, but a glance into the transformation of a
society from democracy to dictatorship. Let it also be a call for freedom.”

Zia ul-Haq, BB’s father's purportedly loyal army chief of staff, had well thought-out his
soldiers in the mid night to remove her father from power, sent him behind bars,
sheathing a cynical allegation, took unanimously recommendation of death sentence by
Supreme Court and finally hanged in the early morning hours of April 4, 1979, inside
Rawalpindi District Jail. This unpleasant incident had left an un-forgetful impression that
she felt completely empty and that her life had shattered.

“How could I go on? In spite of our efforts, we had failed to keep my

father alive. I felt so alone. I just felt so alone. "What will I do without you
to help me?" I had asked him in his death cell. I needed his political
advice. For all that I held degrees in government from Harvard and
Oxford, I was not a politician. But what could he say? He had shrugged
helplessly.”

After the execution of her father, everyone thought that Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)
would boycott the elections proclaimed by Zia, but BB had showed believe in herself and
hope which was deep rooted in her soul. After few weeks of her father’s death, in a
general meeting of her party she augmented; "By continually changing the rules, Zia has
lost his confidence". "We must not lose ours. We swept the local bodies elections and we
will sweep the general election, too". This courageous statement impacted a lot and
elections were postponed and she was remained in detention numerous times over the
subsequent years at her home and even in jail. She was in detention for three years before
being allowed to depart the country in 1984. She settled in London, along with her
mother and two brothers. She tried to reunion herself, brushing the plant of hope and
courage which her father bowed in her. Her father, with intent, guided her daughter on
numerous occasions when he was in power or in imprisonment. In her last meeting in
death cell with her father before the execution of death statement, the words of fathers
had made a notion:
 "The world is beautiful and I want to leave it clean." ……….. "Tonight I
will be free," he says, a glow suffusing his face. "I will be joining my
mother, my father. I am going back to the land of my ancestors in Larkana
to become part of its soil, its scent, its air. There will be songs about me. I
will become part of its legend." He smiles.

The bravery and optimism are distinguishing attributes of Bhutto’s family inherited in BB
and polished by her father. BB’s family was directly descended from the famous tribal
chief of the Bhuttos, Sardar Dodo Khan – branch of Bhutto tribe, one of the largest in
Sindh. BB’s grandfather, Mir Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto, courageously stood in front of
colonel and whipped him severely and tied up in his office when Murtaza Bhutto was
warned by colonel to stay away from British women because he was very handsome and
women took interest in him – his family and friends urged him to escape as British could
kill him but he didn’t .
BB’s father made every effort to train her daughter since her childhood. He tried to give
responsibilities to run house and care her brothers and sister as he along her wife,
remained away from home due to extreme traveling. He gave confidence as a female by
relating the examples like Bibi Khadijah, Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) wife, ran her own
business; Umm-e-Umara fought alongside the men in the Muslims' early battles against
their enemies; Chand Bibi, the female ruler of the South Indian state of Ahmadnagar,
defeated the Moghul emperor Akbar and Noor-Jehan, the wife of Emperor Jehangir, was
famous for her skill in the field of administration. Her father always encouraged her to
feel part of the greater world and had believed that equal opportunity should be given to
both sex. BB said that her father taught how to stand against the wrong traditions if you
had believe in your own:

"I don't want the boys to marry their cousins and leave them behind our
compound walls any more than I want my daughters buried alive behind
some other relative's compound walls," he said to my great relief. "Let
them finish their educations first. Then they can decide what to do with
their lives."

BB’s father not only trained her daughter at home on every aspect of life but also gave
the flavour of international politics, dictatorship and democracy. He wrote letters during
his imprisonment in Yaya Khan Regime, when she was studying O’level in native
country and then went abroad for higher studies. During her stay at Oxford and Harvard,
with the counsel and aspiration of her father, she joined different societies especially
Oxford Union to get hold the power of oratory, to build up debating abilities, to work
under stress and pressure as a lot writing is required for these societies. BB said that she
had learned the lesson of acquiescence versus defiance when my father was addressing
UN Security Council. He said:

"There is no such thing as a neutral animal. You take positions," "You

(Britain and France) have to either be on the side of justice or on the side
of injustice, you have to be either on the side of the aggressor or the
aggressed. There is no such thing as neutrality."

BB’s first international appearance was Simla, June 28, 1972, a summit between her
father, the president of Pakistan, and Indira Gandhi, the prime minister of India. The
future of the entire subcontinent depended on its outcome. BB had attended all meetings
as an observer and took spur-of-the-moments of negotiation styles, diplomatic dialogues
and ceremonial gestures. She spectacled proceedings of five intensive negotiable days
and comprehended the realization of Simla Accord. How to keep ‘identity’ alive at a
place where one did not want to stay but for most important principle, a person
convincingly execute it in opposition to the force, like my father did. She said:

"When I was in India with my father during the negotiations with Indira
Gandhi, my father refused to sleep in his bed but slept on the floor," I
called out in my own contribution to my prepared speech. "'Why are you
sleeping on the floor?' I asked him. 'I cannot sleep in a bed in India,' he
answered, 'when our prisoners of war have nothing to sleep on in the
camps but the ground.'" And the roar rose.

Native country was always remained in mind and she always thought about it. She never
really contemplated not returning to Pakistan during her stay at Oxford and Harvard. Her
heart was there. She always worried about Pakistanis. Sometimes small events can
produce impact on an individual self. Alike impact is expressed by BB in her small
dialogue with an officer at Britain airport. She expressed like as:

"Where are you planning to stay in England?" the immigration officer

asked me, studying my passport.

"Oxford," I replied politely. "I'm a student there."

 "Oxford?" he said sarcastically, raising his eyebrows. Fighting irritation,
I produced my student identification.

"Bhutto. Miss Benazir Bhutto. Karachi, Pakistan," he said in a

contemptuous tone. "Where is your police card?"

"Right here," I replied, producing the up-to-date police card all foreigners
were required to carry in England.

"And how do you plan to pay your bills at Oxford?" he said with
condescension. I resisted quipping that I had brought pencils and a tin
cup with me. "My parents send funds to my bank account," I said, showing
him my bank account.

Still the nasty little official kept me standing there, going over my papers
time and again, looking up my name, which he obviously didn't recognize,
in a big, fat book.

"How can a Paki have enough money for an Oxford education?" he finally
said, pushing my documents back to me.

I was furious as I turned on my heel and strode out of the airport. If that
was how immigration officials were going to treat the daughter of the
prime minister, how were they going to treat other Pakistanis, who were
not as fluent in English as I was or who were not as aggressive?

After winning the election and elected as President, BB’s father selected a most favorable
army chief (Zia) over six most senior army officers believing that “In our culture, one
does not betray one's benefactor.” During that period BB had completed her studies and
she was returning home with an aim to join foreign office – an inclination of BB. At that
step, she said, my father again had given the direction for new endeavor:

"Let us make a pact to understand each other. You are a motivated

person. How can a motivated person want the desert to be without heat or
the mountains to be bereft of snow? You will find your sunshine and your
rainbow in your values and in your inner morality. It will turn out to be
perfect. Both of us will work together for a laudable achievement. You bet
we will make it."

MMB always visualized her father as a role model and a source of inspiration. She said
the: “My father's imprint on me, however, keeps me going. Endurance. Honor. Principle.
The Bhuttos always won a moral fight.” Due to inspiration, BB got lot of courage and
build herself so strong that she can face any challenge and remove any hurdle. After one
year of her father’s death, when dictatorship’s clouds remained dark and military
marched her house many times, but she always showed determination: "If I am the only
person left resisting the tyranny of the regime, then so be it". When she talked with army
men or Marshal Law administrators’ personnel, she was cleared in mind what stance
must be taken. For her:

"Islam is the submission before the will of Allah, whereas Martial Law is
submission before the army commander. A Muslim submits only before
the will of Allah.”

Although BB had faced brutal circumstances of Marshal Law; she had faced restriction,
detention and exile but she never be unable to find the hopelessness for democracy:
"Violence only breeds violence," ……… "That kind of struggle cannot deliver anything
lasting to the people. Any permanent change must come peacefully and politically
through elections, backed by the mandate of the people."
When she came back after her exile, people of Pakistan welcome her with great passion
and at that moment few politicians advised BB to leave politics and few warned that
following this track she could meet the fate of her father and brother. But the self-
assurance she gained through continuous training by her father made her rock solid. The
fact that woman’s identity adds to the insecurity of her position. Many on Pakistan's
religious right feel that women should be restricted to activities within the home. She said
“My answer to all of them was that I know that Pakistani political arena was not for
women, my party workers will protect me from danger. I have willingly taken the path of
thorns and stepped into the valley of death."
The self-confidence, audacity, hope and strength of mind of BB was at pinnacle when she
was addressing a crowd comprising of 99% male audience. She said:

"People think I am weak because I am a woman," ……….. "Do they not

know that am a Muslim woman, and that Muslim women have a heritage
to be proud of? I have the patience of Bibi Khadija, the wife of the
Prophet, Peace Be Upon Him. I have the perseverance of Bibi Zeinab, the
sister of Imam Hussein. And I have the courage of Bibi Aisha, the
Prophet's favorite wife, who rode her own camel into battle at the head of
the Muslims. I am the daughter of martyr Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the sister of
martyr Shah Nawaz Khan Bhutto, and I am your sister as well. I challenge
my opponents to come and meet me on the field of democratic elections."
The identity she had developed over a span of long struggle of thirty three years, alike her
father, she positioned unbreakable against traditions at the time of her marriage and asked
groomed: “I chose to keep my own name. I had been Benazir Bhutto for thirty-four years
and had no intention of changing my identity.” – a tradition girl put her husband’s name
after her own name after marriage.
On December 2, 1988, at thirty-five, Benazir Bhutto was sworn in as the youngest heads
of state in the world and the first woman to lead a Muslim nation. In her first speech as
prime minister, Benazir Bhutto said:
"We will choose the path of love. We will eradicate hunger and poverty. We will provide
shelter for the homeless. We will provide employment for the unemployed. We will
educate the illiterates." She went on to promise that women will be given full partnership
in Pakistan.”
BB updated her autobiography, The “Daughter of East” (1953-1988), in 1997 and new
chapters are added covering the events of BB’s removal from power, 2nd term as Prime
minister, death of her brother Ghulam Murtza Bhutto, her exile and events till her
assassination. The revised edition of autobiography is not available, so the impact of
these events on her self and identity are not presented her.
Due to insufficiency of material in early edition of her autobiography, I tried to capture
few occasions, where the reflection of BB’s self and identity can be envisioned. Here I
am quoting few thoughts of BB taken from an interview given on October 27, 2000,
London, England:

“In life there are challenges, but I think leadership is very much
predicated on the capacity to absorb defeat and overcome it. Now, after
having been in politics for more than two decades, I have come to the
strong conclusion that the difference between somebody who succeeds
and somebody who fails is the ability to absorb a setback. Because on the
road to success there will be setbacks, and there are those who give up,
and those who say that, "No, we are going to go on." So it's that capacity
to absorb a failure.”

For me idealism has been the motivation. I think power for itself is
useless. If it was just power, how could one -- politics is an obsession. You
cannot just be in politics -- or if you really want something -- it is not an
eight to five job. It's an around the clock job. So if it was just power I think
it would be very empty. I think idealism is very important. The need to
change, to bring about change.

"If you believe in something, go for it, but know that when you go for it
there's a price to be paid. Be ready to pay that price and you can
contribute to the welfare of society, and society will acknowledge you and
respect you for it. And don't be afraid. Don't be afraid."
References:
www.ppp.org.pk
www.bhutto.org
Benazir Bhutto, (1989), “Daughter of East” an autobiography. Simon & Schuster
UK Ltd, 1989.

Academy of achievements
http://www.achievement.org/autodoc/pagegen/index.html
 Index – (a) - Publications

Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto is the author of two books:

1. "Foreign Policy in Perspective" (1978)

2. "Daughter of the East" (1989), her autobiography.

Several collections of her speeches and works have been compiled which include:

 "The Way Out",

 Pakistan Foreign Policy,
 Challenges and Responses in the Post-Cold War era in "After the Cold War"
by Keith Philip Lepor
 Male Domination of Women offends her Islamic religion in "Lend Me Your
ears: Great Speeches in History" by William Saffire

She has also contributed to many periodicals and to the books:

 "Predictions for the Next Millennium" by Kristof and Nickerson

 "Book of Hopes and Dreams" published by Bookmaster Inc
 Index – (b) - Awards and Honorary Degrees

 Bruno Kreisky Award of Merit in human Rights, 1988.

 Honorary Phi Beta Kappa Award (1989), presented by Radcliffe College,
Harvard University.
 Highest Moroccan Award "Grand Cordon de Wissam Alaoui"
 Highest French Award "Grand-croix de la Legion Honneur" (1989)
 The Noel Foundation Award, 1990 (UNIFEM).
 Honorary Fellow of Royal College of Physicians - 1990
 The Gakushuin Honorary Award, Tokyo (1996)
 Award by the Turkish Independent Industries and Businessmen Association
(MUSAID) on account of providing assistance to the people of Bosnia.
 Golden medal Dragon of Bosnia awarded by President of Bosnia (1996)
 Key to the city of Los Angeles, presented by the Mayor of Los Angeles
(1995)
 Presidential Medal, Paul Nitze School of Advanced International Science
(1995)
 Medal by University of California at Los Angeles (1995)
 Honorary Doctorate of Law, L.L.D Harvard University (1989)
 Honorary Doctorate of Law (Honoris Causa), University of Sindh (1994)
 Honorary Doctorate from Mendanao State University, Philippines (1995)
 Honorary Doctorate of Law (Honoris Causa), Peshawar University (1995)
 Honorary Doctorate of Economics, Gakushuin University, Tokyo (1996)
 Honorary Fellowship by Lady Margaret Hall, University Oxford, (1989)
 Honorary Fellowship by St. Catherine College, University of Oxford,
(1989)
 Honorary Professor of the Kyrghyz State National University (1995)
Kyrghyzstan.
 Honorary Professor of Yassavi Kazakh Turkish University, Kazakh-Turkish
International Language University, Kazakhstan, 1995.
 Honorable Member of OHYUKAI, Alumni Association of Gakushuin,
conferred by OHYUKAI Tokyo (1996).
 Awarded the 2000 Millennium Medal of Honor by American Biographical
Institute, Inc. in November 1998.
 Awarded American Academy Award of Achievement in London, October
28, 2000
 Awarded “World Tolerance Award 2005” by Women World Awards in
Leipzig, November 29, 2005
 Awarded 'International Woman of the Year 2006' by the prominent
European Publishing House based in Dubai as part of "Emirates Woman Awards
2006'.
 Nominated Chair of "Muslim Women for Human Rights and Democracy"
Oslo, Norway, May 6-7, 2007
 Index – (c) –Keynote Addresses

 Joint Session of US Congress (1989)

 World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland (1994)
 French National Assembly (1994)
 Parliament, Republic of Ireland, (1994)
 UN Conference on Population Planning, Cairo (1994)
 UN Commission for Human Rights, Geneva (1994)
 Fortune Global Forum, Singapore (1995)
 Princeton University, USA (1995)
 School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University (1995)
 Women Conference, Beijing (1995)