TORONTO: Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in a … hard hitting speech told a cheering crowd of Pakistanis here that he will never allow any individual or party to dismember Pakistan. The [PM] was speaking at a meeting described as the biggest-ever … of Pakistanis in Toronto where nearly 12,000 Pakistanis live. … Mr Bhutto also replied to the demand for the publication of the Hamood ur Rahman Commission Report, indicating that the report had been critical of Pakistan’s Armed Forces and Foreign Policy. He said that its publication at this stage would not be in the interest of the country’s security. Moreover, the present Bangladesh Government wished to establish closer relations with Pakistan and forget the past.

We cannot throw this report in their face. I do not say I will never publish the report, but this is not the time to do so. Moreover, my self-respect does not allow me to publish criticism of those who had fought for the defence of the country. [He] replied … to the criticism … of his policies … by Opposition leaders… . He traced the history of their treachery against Pakistan and the conspiracies they hatched against the State… . — News agencies

Published in Dawn, February 27th, 2026