The presidency of Pervez Musharraf helped bring the
liberal forces to the national level and into prominence, for the first time in the
history of Pakistan. On political fronts, Musharraf faced fierce opposition from the ultra-conservative alliance, the MMA, led by clergyman
Maulana Noorani.
Foreign policy Support for the war on terror in Islamabad, March 2006. Musharraf was an ardent support of Bush's
war on terror following the
September 11 attacks, abandoning his support for the
Taliban-led
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Musharraf allied with the United States against the
Taliban in
Afghanistan after
9/11. before allying with the U.S. and declaring to stamp out extremism. He was, however, criticised by
NATO and the Afghan government of not doing enough to prevent activities by Taliban and
al-Qaeda militants in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region. U.S. President
George W. Bush encouraged the two leaders to unite in the war on terror during a trilateral meeting. Violence in the
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa escalated in the late 2000s amid fighting between militants and Pakistani forces backed by the U.S.
Relations with India in
New Delhi, April 2005. Musharraf was described to have had a "
love–hate relationship" with
India during his presidency and throughout his life. Early into his rule, Musharraf's relationship with India was tense due to his role in instigating the 1999
Kargil War, as well as India's allegations of his involvement in the hijacking of
Indian Airlines Flight 814 in the same year. After the
2001 Gujarat earthquake, Musharraf expressed his sympathies to Indian Prime Minister
Atal Bihari Vajpayee and sent a plane load of relief supplies to India. Musharraf described this move as a major factor in the
détente that occurred between the two countries shortly after, and his first official visit to India. The two leaders held several rounds of one-to-one talks to address and resolve the decades-long
Kashmir conflict alongside other areas of contention such as accusations of
cross-border terrorism by both sides, the risk of nuclear war, and the release of
prisoners of war from
previous wars and conflicts. A few months after the summit, Musharraf presided over a brief
standoff with India caused by the
2001 Indian Parliament attack, which India blamed on Pakistan. India began a large-scale mobilisation of military personnel and assets along the Pakistani border, which it codenamed
Operation Parakram. Musharraf responded with a mobilisation of the Pakistani military, deploying 300,000 personnel to the
Line of Control. However, tensions were defused in January 2002 after Musharraf vowed to act against terror infrastructure located in Pakistan. In 2004, Musharraf began a series of talks with India to resolve the
Kashmir dispute on the sidelines of the 12th
SAARC summit in Islamabad. That same year, the two sides agreed to a ceasefire along the Line of Control.
Relations with Saudi Arabia In 2006, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia visited Pakistan for the first time as King. Musharraf honoured King Abdullah with the
Nishan-e-Pakistan. Musharraf received the King Abdul-Aziz Medallion in 2007.
Domestic affairs Musharraf instituted prohibitions on foreign students' access to studying Islam within Pakistan, an effort that began as an outright ban but was later reduced to restrictions on obtaining
visas. In December 2003, Musharraf made a deal with
MMA, a six-member coalition of hardline
Islamist parties, agreeing to leave the army by 31 December 2004. With that party's support, pro-Musharraf legislators were able to muster the two-thirds
supermajority required to pass the Seventeenth Amendment, which retroactively legalised Musharraf's 1999 coup and many of his decrees. Musharraf reneged on his agreement with the MMA On 1 January 2004, Musharraf had won a
confidence vote in the
Electoral College of Pakistan, consisting of both houses of Parliament and the four provincial assemblies. Musharraf received 658 out of 1170 votes, a 56% majority, but many opposition and Islamic members of parliament walked out to protest the vote. As a result of this vote, his term was extended to 2007.
Nuclear scandals From September 2001 until his resignation in 2007 from the military, Musharraf's presidency was affected by scandals relating to nuclear weapons, which were detrimental to his authoritative legitimacy in the country and in the international community. In October 2001, Musharraf authorised a sting operation led by
FIA to arrest two physicists
Sultan Bashiruddin Mahmood and
Chaudhry Abdul Majeed, because of their supposed connection with the
Taliban after they secretly visited
Taliban-controlled Afghanistan in 2000. The local Pakistani media widely circulated the reports that "Mahmood had a meeting with
Osama bin Laden where Bin Laden had shown interest in building a
radiological weapon;" In December 2001, Musharraf authorised security hearings and the two scientists were taken into the custody by the
JAG Branch (JAG); security hearings continued until early 2002. and he personally approved Khan's appointment as
Science Advisor to the Government. In 2004, Musharraf relieved Abdul Qadeer Khan from his post and initially denied knowledge of the government's involvement in nuclear proliferation, despite Khan's claim that Musharraf was the "Big Boss" of the proliferation ring. Following this, Musharraf authorised a national security hearing, which continued until his resignation from the army in 2007. According to Zahid Malik, Musharraf and the military establishment at that time acted against Abdul Qadeer Khan in an attempt to prove the loyalty of Pakistan to the United States and Western world. The investigations backfired on Musharraf and public opinion turned against him. The populist ARD movement, which included the major
political parties such as the
PML and the
PPP, used the issue to bring down Musharraf's presidency. The debriefing of Abdul Qadeer Khan severely damaged Musharraf's own public image and his political prestige in the country. Musharraf's long-standing ally, the
MQM, published criticism of Musharraf over his handling of Abdul Qadeer Khan. The ARD movement and the political parties further tapped into the public anger and mass demonstrations against Musharraf. The credibility of the United States was also badly damaged; While Abdul Qadeer Khan remained popular in the country, Musharraf could not withstand the
political pressure and his presidency was further weakened. He handed over the case of Abdul Qadeer Khan to
Prime minister Aziz who had been supportive towards Khan, personally "thanking" him: "The services of Dr. Qadeer Khan are unforgettable for the country." On 4 July 2008, in an interview, Abdul Qadeer Khan laid the blame on President Musharraf and later on Benazir Bhutto for transferring the technology, claiming that Musharraf was aware of all the deals and he was the "Big Boss" for those deals. Khan said that "Musharraf gave centrifuges to North Korea in a 2000 shipment supervised by the armed forces. The equipment was sent in a North Korean plane loaded under the supervision of Pakistan security officials." After Musharraf's resignation, Abdul Qadeer Khan was released from house arrest by the executive order of the Supreme Court of Pakistan. After Musharraf left the country, the new Chairman of the
Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee General
Tärik Majid terminated all further debriefings of Abdul Qadeer Khan. Few believed that Abdul Qadeer Khan acted alone and the affair risked gravely damaging the Armed Forces, which oversaw and controlled the nuclear weapons development and of which Musharraf was Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff until his resignation from military service on 28 November 2007.
Women's rights The National Assembly voted in favour of the "
Women's Protection Bill" on 15 November 2006 and the Senate approved it on 23 November 2006. President General Pervez Musharraf signed into law the "Women's Protection Bill", on 1 December 2006. The bill places rape laws under the penal code and allegedly does away with harsh conditions that previously required victims to produce four male witnesses and exposed the victims to prosecution for adultery if they were unable to prove the crime. However, the Women's Protection bill has been criticised heavily by many for paying continued lip service and failing to address the actual problem by its roots: repealing the
Hudood Ordinance. In this context, Musharraf has also been criticised by women and human rights activists for not following up his words by action. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) said that "The so-called Women's Protection Bill is a farcical attempt at making Hudood Ordinances palatable" outlining the issues of the bill and the continued impact on women. His government increased reserved seats for women in assemblies, to increase women's representation and make their presence more effective. The number of reserved seats in the National Assembly was increased from 20 to 60. In provincial assemblies, 128 seats were reserved for women. This situation has brought out increase participation of women in the 1988 and 2008 elections. In March 2005, a couple of months after the rape of a Pakistani physician, Dr. Shazia Khalid, working on a government gas plant in the remote
Balochistan province, Musharraf was criticised for pronouncing Captain Hammad, a fellow military man and the accused in the case, innocent before the judicial inquiry was complete. Shazia alleged that she was forced by the government to leave the country. In an interview given to
The Washington Post in September 2005, Musharraf said that Pakistani women who had been the victims of rape treated rape as a "moneymaking concern", and were only interested in the publicity to make money and get a Canadian visa. He subsequently denied making these comments, but the
Post made available an audio recording of the interview, in which Musharraf could be heard making the quoted remarks. Musharraf also denied Mukhtaran Mai, a Pakistani rape victim, the right to travel abroad, until pressured by US State Department. The remarks made by Musharraf sparked outrage and protests both internationally and in Pakistan by various groups i.e. women groups, activists. In a rally, held close to the presidential palace and Pakistan's parliament, hundreds of women demonstrated in Pakistan demanding Musharraf apologise for the controversial remarks about female rape victims.
Assassination attempts Musharraf survived multiple assassination attempts and alleged plots. In 2000
Kamran Atif, an alleged member of
Harkat-ul Mujahideen al-Alami, tried to assassinate Musharraf. Atif was sentenced to death in 2006 by an
Anti Terrorism Court. On 14 December 2003, Musharraf survived an assassination attempt when a powerful bomb went off minutes after his highly guarded
convoy crossed a bridge in Rawalpindi; it was the third such attempt during his four-year rule. On 25 December 2003, two
suicide bombers tried to assassinate Musharraf, but their
car bombs failed to kill him; 16 others died instead. Musharraf escaped with only a cracked windshield on his car.
Amjad Farooqi was an alleged mastermind behind these attempts, and was killed by Pakistani forces in 2004 after an extensive manhunt. On 6 July 2007, there was another attempted assassination, when an unknown group fired a 7.62
submachine gun at Musharraf's plane as it took off from a
runway in
Rawalpindi. Security also recovered two
anti-aircraft guns, from which no shots had been fired. On 17 July 2007, Pakistani police detained 39 people in relation to the attempted assassination of Musharraf. The suspects were detained at an undisclosed location by a joint team of
Punjab Police, the Federal Investigation Agency and other Pakistani intelligence agencies.
Suspension of the Chief Justice On 9 March 2007, Musharraf suspended Chief Justice
Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and pressed corruption charges against him. He replaced him with Acting Chief Justice Javed Iqbal. Musharraf's moves sparked protests among Pakistani lawyers. On 12 March 2007, lawyers started a campaign called Judicial Activism across Pakistan and began boycotting all court procedures in protest against the suspension. In Islamabad, as well as other cities such as Lahore, Karachi, and
Quetta hundreds of lawyers dressed in black suits attended rallies, condemning the suspension as unconstitutional. Slowly the expressions of support for the ousted Chief Justice gathered momentum and by May, protesters and opposition parties took out huge rallies against Musharraf, and his tenure as army chief was also challenged in the courts.
Lal Masjid siege in 2017, a decade after the
2007 siege of the mosque. The
Lal Masjid mosque in Islamabad had a religious school for women and the
Jamia Hafsa madrassa, which was attached to the mosque. A
male madrassa was only a few minutes drive away. This development led to a standoff between police forces and armed students. Mosque leaders and students refused to surrender and fired at police from inside the mosque building. Both sides suffered casualties.
Return of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif On 27 July, Bhutto met for the first time with Musharraf in the UAE to discuss her return to Pakistan. On 14 September 2007, Deputy Information Minister Tariq Azim stated that Bhutto will not be deported, but must face corruption charges against her. He clarified Sharif's and Bhutto's right to return to Pakistan. On 17 September 2007, Bhutto accused Musharraf's allies of pushing Pakistan to crisis by refusal to restore democracy and share power. Bhutto returned from eight years exile on 18 October. Musharraf called for a three-day mourning period after Bhutto's assassination on 27 December 2007. Sharif returned to Pakistan in September 2007 and was immediately arrested and taken into custody at the airport. He was sent back to Saudi Arabia. Saudi intelligence chief
Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud and Lebanese politician
Saad Hariri arrived separately in Islamabad on 8 September 2007, the former with a message from Saudi King Abdullah and the latter after a meeting with Nawaz Sharif in London. After meeting President General Pervez Musharraf for two-and-a-half hours discussing Nawaz Sharif's possible return. On arrival in Saudi Arabia, Nawaz Sharif was received by Prince Muqrin bin Abdul-Aziz, the Saudi intelligence chief, who had met Musharraf in Islamabad the previous day. That meeting had been followed by a rare press conference, at which he had warned that Sharif should not violate the terms of King Abdullah's agreement of staying out of politics for 10 years.
Resignation from the army On 2 October 2007, Musharraf appointed General
Tariq Majid as the
Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and approved General
Ashfaq Kayani as
Vice Chief of the Army Staff on starting 8 October. Musharraf resigned from the military on 28 November 2007, appointing Kayani as
Chief of the Army Staff.
2007 presidential elections In a March 2007 interview, Musharraf said that he intended to stay in office for another five years. A nine-member panel of Supreme Court judges deliberated on six petitions (including Jamaat-e-Islami's, Pakistan's largest Islamic group) for disqualification of Musharraf as a presidential candidate. Bhutto stated that her party may join other opposition groups, including Sharif's. On 28 September 2007, in a 6–3 vote, Judge
Rana Bhagwandas's court removed obstacles to Musharraf's election bid.
2007 state of emergency On 3 November 2007, Musharraf declared
emergency rule across Pakistan. He suspended the
Constitution, imposed a state of emergency, and fired the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court again. In Islamabad, troops entered the Supreme Court building, arrested the judges and kept them detained in their homes.
2008 general elections General elections were held on 18 February 2008, in which the
Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) polled the highest votes and won the most seats. On 23 March 2008, President Musharraf said an "era of democracy" had begun in Pakistan and that he had put the country "on the track of development and progress". On 22 March, the PPP named former parliament speaker
Yusuf Raza Gilani as its candidate for the country's next prime minister, to lead a coalition government united against him.
Impeachment movement By August 2007, polls showed 64 per cent of Pakistanis did not want another Musharraf term. On 7 August 2008, the Pakistan Peoples Party and the
Pakistan Muslim League (N) agreed to force Musharraf to step down and begin his
impeachment.
Asif Ali Zardari and Nawaz Sharif announced sending a formal request or joint charge sheet that he step down, and impeach him through parliamentary process upon refusal. Musharraf refused to step down. A charge-sheet had been drafted and was to be presented to parliament. It included Mr. Musharraf's first seizure of power in 1999—at the expense of Nawaz Sharif, the PML(N)'s leader, whom Mr. Musharraf imprisoned and exiled—and his second in November 2007, when he declared an emergency as a means to get re-elected as president. The charge-sheet also listed some of Mr. Musharraf's contributions to the "war on terror". Musharraf delayed his departure for the Beijing Olympics, by a day. On 11 August, the government summoned the national assembly.
Corruption issues When Musharraf came to power in 1999, he promised that the corruption in the government bureaucracy would be cleaned up. However, some claimed that the level of corruption did not diminish throughout Musharraf's time. ==Exile==