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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 October 1999 Issue No. 451 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 14 - 20 October 1999 Issue No. 451
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Books Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Sharif ousted
PAKISTAN'S Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was ousted in a lightning military coup on Tuesday. Gen Pervez Musharraf told the country early yesterday his troops acted as a last resort in a deteriorating and destabilising situation. Musharraf did not provide any details on the army's plans nor did he mention what would be done with Sharif who was being held under protective custody together with his brother, Shahbaz, chief minister of the Punjab province, and Lt Gen Ziauddin, named by Sharif on Tuesday as Musharraf's replacement, Reuters reported.
India's army was placed on alert but Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, speaking moments after being sworn into office for another term, said he was prepared to talk with any Pakistani regime if the right environment was created.
Pakistan's neighbours acted nervously, and with the US and the European Union expressed deep concern, calling for the restoration of democracy as soon as possible. A US State Department spokesman said it would not be business as usual unless democracy was restored promptly. The EU said it would not sign a cooperation accord with Pakistan, while Moscow expressed its own concerns. International financial institutions bankrolling Pakistan's halting efforts at economic recovery worried about the future of their loan programmes.
The general's speech came at the end of a chaotic -- but peaceful -- 10-hour period that began with a government announcement that Musharraf had been sacked while flying back from an official visit to Sri Lanka. The Pakistan international airline carrying Musharraf was refused permission to land at Karachi airport despite an acute shortage of fuel.
Troops moved fast, storming television centres, closing major airports, seizing other government buildings and surrounding Sharif's official residence and the homes of some cabinet members. Musharraf's plane later landed in Karachi airport where he met military officials and moved fast to establish order.
Bewildered Pakistanis reacted calmly, awaiting the next move by the military. A ban was imposed on large gatherings in the Punjab province, Sharif's birthplace, and a few shots were heard in an Islamabad suburb, but there was no confirmation of any clashes.
The showdown capped months of tension with the military because of what the army saw as Pakistan capitulation in the May-July conflict with India on Kashmir. Pakistan's fundamentalist Jammat-I-Islami Party had said Sharif's days in government were numbered.
