News & Current Affairs

July 19, 2009

Court in Pakistan acquits Sharif

Court in Pakistan acquits Sharif

Nawaz Sharif

Mr Sharif is one of the most popular politicians in Pakistan

Pakistan’s Supreme Court has acquitted opposition head Nawaz Sharif of hijacking charges, removing the final ban on him running for public office.

Mr Sharif was found guilty of hijacking then army chief General Pervez Musharraf’s plane in 1999, when he ordered it to be diverted.

Mr Sharif was then toppled as prime minster in a coup led by Gen Musharraf.

He was convicted by the Sindh High Court but he has always maintained that the charges were politically motivated.

Mr Sharif’s government had ordered officials to divert Gen Musharraf’s plane away from Karachi and to a smaller city in Sindh.

While he was imprisoned, Mr Sharif agreed to go into exile under a deal with Gen Musharraf who had taken over as Pakistan’s president.

Mr Sharif ended his exile ahead of the 2008 elections but was prevented from contesting due to the court conviction.

Pakistan’s president and prime minister were swift to congratulate Mr Sharif on the court ruling.

Mr Sharif’s acquittal will be viewed as a positive development which helps strengthen democracy.

It also puts Mr Sharif on an even keel with President Asif Ali Zardari of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). Charges against him were withdrawn from court by the earlier Musharraf government in the name of “national” reconciliation.

But the court verdict restores to the political stage a potentially formidable opponent to Mr Zardari, correspondents say.

Mr Sharif has held office previously and can point to substantial political support across the country.

‘Set aside’

In its ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court said there was no evidence to support the charge of hijacking and acquitted Mr Sharif.

A judgement given by a kangaroo court nine years ago has been nullified by an independent and sovereign apex court
Siddique-ul-Farooq, PML-N spokesman

“Looking at the case from any angle – the charge of hijacking, attempt to hijack or terrorism – does not stand established against the petitioner,” news agency AFP quoted from the Supreme Court ruling.

“The conviction and sentence of the appellant are set aside and he is acquitted,” the order said.

The “petitioner had neither used force nor ordered its use and undisputedly no deceitful means were used,” it added.

The five-judge court headed by Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani heard the petition in June, but initially reserved judgement.

Mr Sharif’s Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) party has welcomed the order.

“A judgement given by a kangaroo court nine years ago has been nullified by an independent and sovereign apex court in the light of the constitution, law and evidence on record,” PML-N spokesman Siddique-ul-Farooq was quoted by AFP as saying.

In May, the Supreme Court had overturned a ban that prevented Mr Sharif and his brother Shahbaz from running for political office.

The ruling meant that Mr Sharif would be able to stand in elections due in 2013 or a parliamentary by-election before then.

The former prime minister and leader of the PML-N party is one of the most popular politicians in the country.

August 17, 2008

Musharraf ‘running out of time’

Musharraf ‘running out of time’

Anti-Musharraf protests in Multan, Pakistan (13 August)

Analysts say Musharraf’s best way out would seem to be a dignified exit

Pakistan’s foreign minister has said President Pervez Musharraf must stand down in the next two days or face impeachment proceedings.

“Musharraf is running out of time”, said Shah Mahmood Qureshi, of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) – a major partner in the governing coalition.

Draft charges against the president include violation of the constitution and gross misconduct, officials said.

Mr Musharraf’s office has said he will not resign and will defend himself.

The impeachment campaign was launched last week by leaders of the PPP and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), led by former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.

A PML-N official said: “There is a long list of charges against him… we will file them, by the latest, by Tuesday.”

If Mr Musharraf chooses not to quit, he would be the first president in Pakistan’s history to be impeached.

Weighing up options

A spokesman for the Pakistan Muslim League-Q, a pro-Musharraf party, said that the president’s advisers were considering his options.

STEPS TO IMPEACHMENT
Impeachment proposers need 50% majority in Senate or National Assembly
President given notice of impeachment, and has three days to respond
Joint session of Senate and Assembly must be held between 7 and 14 days later to investigate charges
If resolution presented, joint session must approve with two-thirds majority

Nawaz Sharif, who was toppled in the 1999 coup, said he was opposed to any deal which would give his old rival a “safe passage”.

He has said the president should be tried for treason, which carries the maximum sentence of the death penalty.

But the PPP, the party of assassinated former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, says the decision of whether to put the president on trial should be left to parliament.

Information Minister Sherry Rehman, said the PPP “never indulges in the politics of revenge as it wants a stable Pakistan and a sustainable democracy in the country”.

Support for the president in a recent vote of confidence in the provincial assemblies has almost entirely collapsed.

Mr Musharraf’s best way out would now seem to be a dignified exit before parliament meets to debate the impeachment, our correspondent says.

Talks are going on behind the scenes.

The ruling coalition parties will have to decide where the former army chief, a key ally in Washington’s war on terror, is allowed to live and what protection he will receive, our correspondent says.

Mr Musharraf came to power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

He gave up control of the army last year and his allies were defeated in February’s elections but he retains the power to dissolve parliament.

But his public standing suffered a huge setback in 2007 when he sacked Pakistan’s chief justice and nearly 60 judges to prevent them from overturning his re-election as president.

But analysts say the president is still thought to have heavy influence over the military and its reaction will remain crucial.

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