News Analysis: Musharraf's high treason trial stirs controversy in Pakistan

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News Analysis: Musharraf's high treason trial stirs controversy in Pakistan

By Muhammad Tahir (Xinhua) 18:34, November 20, 2013

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ISLAMABAD, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistani government's decision to initiate treason proceedings against former military president Pervez Musharraf has stirred up a controversy as some critics have viewed the move as a means to divert attention from serious domestic problems.

The government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has taken the decision amid rumors that Musharraf would be allowed to leave the country under a deal.

Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan announced on Sunday that the government has decided to try Pervez Musharraf for high treason for abrogating the country's constitution when he imposed emergency rule in 2007.

A day later, the country's Supreme Court accepted the government's request to establish a special court for the trial of the former military chief who had dismissed the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999. The Chief Justice, Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, quickly forwarded the names of five judges of the high court to the government.

Prime Minister Sharif late Tuesday has approved the names of three judges for the special tribunal, his office said. The most senior judge, Justice Faisal Arab of the High Court in southern Sindh province, will head the special tribunal.

Musharraf will be the first military ruler in Pakistan's 66- year history to be tried for high treason, a crime punishable by the death or life imprisonment, according to the legal experts.

Musharraf had taken over the government in a bloodless coup when he dismissed the then government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999. His imposition of emergency rule and suspension of the Constitution in 2007 were viewed as treason. Prime Minister Sharif has first announced the filing of high treason charges against Pervez Musharraf in his speech to the parliament in June this year.

The decision has deeply divided the people and critics have raised many questions including the timing of the trial when the country is facing a serious challenge from the Taliban militants.

Some have argued that the Pakistani government must focus on improvement of the security and in solving the country's worst energy shortage and fragile economy.

The government, however, has insisted that it is its responsibility to try the man who had abrogated the constitution.

Leaders of some opposition parties have said that the government's sudden announcement was aimed at diverting attention from the sectarian tensions caused by Friday's bloody clashes in the garrison city of Rawalpindi which claimed 11 lives.

The attackers torched a mosque, a religious school and nearly 100 shops of majority Sunnis during the annual procession of Shiites Muslims.

The government's decision surprised many as Pakistan was in the grip of strong speculations that Musharraf is likely to go abroad after courts granted him bail in three high-profile cases including the 2007 assassination of two-time Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

Musharraf has already asked the court to lift his travel ban to go abroad to inquire about the condition of his ailing mother.

Some political leaders have shown serious concerns that Musharraf's trial could upset the country's powerful army at a time when the armed forces are still fighting the Taliban militants.

Information Minister Pervez Rashid has however has dispelled the impression and said that the military has been consulted before the decision was made.

In spite of a divided opinion over Musharraf's high treason trial, the government's decision enjoys a widespread backing among the Pakistani public who have experienced successive military coups in Pakistan. Half of Pakistan's history has been spent under military rule and the treason is seen as an effort to stop the practice of military takeovers, analysts said.