Stella Pinewood
Pakistan’s former President General Pervez Musharraf has passed away in Dubai after a prolonged illness. He was 79 years old. There have been tributes and condolences from Pakistan’s prime minister Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistani politicians as well as senior military officials on the passing of the General.
He has lived in self-imposed exile in Dubai since 2016, when he seized power in 1999 from former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Shehbaz Sharif’s older brother, Pervez Musharraf, remained commander of the army while he became president. He remained president of Pakistan until 2008.
Assassination attempts were made against him twice during his term in 2003. It was during this period that he declared a state of emergency, suspended the constitution, replaced the chief judge, and blacked out independent television stations in Pakistan.
Musharraf became an ally of the United States after the 9/11 terror attacks. In spite of this, he was accused of widespread human rights abuses and oppression during his time in power.
His stated reason for doing so is to stabilize the country and combat Islamic extremism on the rise. Several democratic advocacy groups and the United States condemned the action. A large number of Pakistanis called for his removal openly.
In February 2008, Musharraf lifted the state of emergency in response to pressure from the West. His party did poorly in the elections.
Following an impeachment attempt by the governing coalition, he stepped down in August 2008.
A year later, Musharraf returned to Pakistan to run for the country’s national elections. The court cases relating to his tenure unraveled his plans instead.
His death sentence for high treason was handed down in absentia in 2019. There was a subsequent overturn of the ruling.
As of March 2016, Musharraf had been living in Dubai, where he sought medical treatment after Pakistan’s Supreme Court lifted his travel ban.
He left behind a wife, Sehba Musharraf, and two children.
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Source: Omanghana.com/SP
