Bhutto: returning hero?

Benazir Bhutto should receive a warmer welcome than did her fellow exiled former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif when she arrives back in Pakistan on Thursday.

She will be greeted as a returning hero in her home province of Sindh rather than being deported on arrival. She need not fear arrest on corruption charges made against her years ago; a 'National Reconciliation Ordinance' agreed with President Pervez Musharraf ensures against that.

Bhutto and Musharraf have put aside their differences in a bid to share power. Yet their deal is deeply unpopular, and divisive within their own parties. Bhutto faces serious challenges that may undermine aspirations to resume the premiership. Her party is vulnerable to splits, and her conspiratorial association with an unpopular military ruler has tainted her reputation. She has Washington's backing, but this is a poisoned chalice given the fervent anti-US sentiment in Pakistan. All in all, it may not prove to be the homecoming she hopes for.