Pervez Musharraf, Pakistan’s former president and army chief, has died in Dubai after a prolonged illness at Dubai American Hospital. He was 79.
He was suffering from amyloidosis – a rare disease that causes organ damage.
Musharraf, who led a reluctant Pakistan into aiding the U.S. war in Afghanistan against militants, survived numerous assassination attempts. “I have confronted death and defied it several times in the past because destiny and fate have always smiled on me,” Musharraf once wrote. “I only pray that I have more than the proverbial nine lives of a cat.”
Man of war and peace
From leading the Kargil war in 1999 to preparing a peace plan for Kashmir with India in 2006, Musharraf has carved a niche in history, as both a man of war and peace.
He introduced the concept of basic democracy, allowed free media and injected a new life into Pakistan’s electronic media, and familiarized transparency in government decisions, but at the same time subverted democracy, and dismissed an elected government.
“The good news is that the demonstrated strength of institutions that brought Musharraf down — the media, free elections and civil society — also provide some hope for Pakistan’s future. It was these institutions that ironically became much stronger under his government” wrote Anne Patterson, the U.S. ambassador, at the time. “Musharraf’s resignation is a sad yet familiar story of hubris, this time in a soldier who never became a good politician.”
Military ruler to president
Musharraf, a former special forces commando, became president after he seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999. He stepped down in 2008 while facing possible impeachment.
Later in life, Musharraf lived in self-imposed exile in Dubai to avoid criminal charges, despite attempting a political comeback in 2012. In March 2014, Musharraf was indicted for suspending the Constitution on November 3, 2007. In 2019, he was sentenced to death in absentia for alleged high treason. The ruling was later overturned.
Pervez Musharraf’s life
1943 – Born in Delhi, British India
1961 – Joined Pakistan Military Academy
1999 – Musharraf seized power in Pakistan in a bloodless military coup in October 1999. He became president two years later
2001 – Under his leadership, Pakistan joined the war on terror with the U.S. and its allies
2008 – After ruling the country for nine years, President Musharraf resigns from office and goes into self-imposed exile
2014 – Charged with high treason