There is an appalling inevitability about the bomb blast in Karachi that left more than 130 Pakistanis dead and Benazir Bhutto reeling at the violence that greeted her homecoming. It was so predictable, indeed, that concerned observers could do no more than hope that Ms Bhutto’s repatriation would pass without the depressingly familiar scenes of death and destruction.

It seems likely that al-Qaeda, or one of its offshoots, is responsible for the slaughter. Ghulam Muhammad Mohtaram, the official in charge of security in Karachi, has already said that the attack bears the hallmarks of militants linked to the pro-Taleban warlord Baitullah Mehsud. He also indicated that Ms Bhutto’s Pakistan People’s Party must shoulder some blame because it failed to heed his warnings about the terrorist threat. The conspiratorial atmosphere in Pakistan is fertile ground for claim and counterclaim: Asif Ali Zardari, Ms Bhutto’s husband, went as far as to suggest that the attack was orchestrated by elements of Pakistan’s Establishment concerned that change could lose them power or influence. Taleban sources have denied involvement but perhaps they would. The cause of chaos and confusion is only enhanced if doubt about the perpetrators is allowed to fester.

If the bloodthirsty disregard for humanity shown by those dedicated to murderous disruption of ordered societies is defiant, so is the only appropriate response. Civilised people can only face the threats with gritty determination.

Some sort of calmness could come to Pakistan with a massive exertion of military might. But this would be expensive in human and financial terms and would rewind the Pakistani political clock to bad old days. Progress in recent months and years has been frustratingly slow. The country still has a dauntingly long way to go before it can rest easy with itself and its position in the world. But the democratic route, to which General Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s President, and his ruling elite, have subscribed, is the right route. It is only against backdrop of tolerant coexistence that meaningful development can take place. Relationships built on mutual economic interest entrench conciliation and dampen even the most deep-seated and agitated cultural rifts.

Bhutto was killed by bomb blast

The team from the Metropolitan Police’s Counter Terrorism Command have backed the claim that Benazir Bhutto was not shot

Multimedia

• Pictures: death of Benazir Bhutto

• Pictures: Pakistan

BACKGROUND

• Pakistan in turmoil as ‘martial law’ imposed

• Bhutto escapes as bombers kill 126

• Timeline: Pakistan's period of turmoil

• The man out to oust a President

• Internal crisis gives Pakistan reason for hope

Related Links

• Bhutto blames enemies within for suicide bombing

Meanwhile, the pacifying power of steadily improving living standards should not be underestimated. It takes great foresight and statesmanship to move on from confrontation. The elections now promised by President Musharraf and for which Ms Bhutto has returned form a corner-stone of what was always likely to be a painful process. They must be held on time just as each new atrocity must fortify the reformer’s resolve.