Opening a Pandora’s box?

So be it!

Trying a former military strongman guilty of squashing an elected civilian government under his jackboots is a first for Pakistan. Many an army chief in Pakistan’s checkered political past have been guilty of the same crime. But they – in quite a literal sense – invariably got away with murder.

Musharraf was hoist with his own petard. Thanks to his reckless nature, a mixture of bravado and naiveté lured him back to Pakistan from his self-imposed exile in London.

The self-styled messiah had surmised on the basis of millions of followers on his twitter account that his newly formed APML (All Pakistan Muslim League) would be able to sweep the May 11 general elections. As was evident from his dismal showing at the hustings, little did he realize that apart from the usual suspects who benefited during his regime, the teeming millions of the country had no love lost for him.

The past six months he has spent languishing in his palatial Chak Shahzad residence virtually unsung. Even the military under Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani has not lifted a finger to bail out its former chief.

In a hurriedly called press conference last Sunday, the interior minister Ch Nisar Ali Khan declared the intent to try Musharraf for high treason. The general perception amongst the commentariat was that this was a cynical move by the government to divert attention from the growing sectarian strife spinning out of control and claiming many lives.

Whatever the motivation, the government should be given due credit for venturing into erstwhile forbidden territory uncharted by its predecessors. The PPP that has suffered most at the hands of military dictators has historically pursued a policy of ambivalence towards it.

Under Zardari’s rule, Gen Kayani held full sway. In fact even blatant backdoor manoeuvrings by the military and the ISI under Gen Shuja Pasha was benignly tolerated in the name of peaceful coexistence.

Musharraf was sent abroad after receiving a guard of honour as soon as the PPP government was ushered in. Ironically as part of the PPP led coalition even the PML-N ministers reluctantly took oath of office from President Musharraf.

Paradoxically the PPP probably considered him its benefactor, perhaps because without the general’s largesse the controversial NRO (National Reconciliation Ordinance) would not have been possible.

A special court comprising of three high court judges has been constituted to try Musharraf for high treason, albeit nomination of some of its members is far from ideal. Nonetheless, the stage is now set to try the former dictator.

Political and legal circles are however engaged in a debate as to why is Musharraf not being tried for the original crime – sacking the elected government of Nawaz Sharif on October 12, 1999? Instead he is in the dock for suspending the constitution and declaring a state of emergency on November 3, 2007. It was through this device that Musharraf was able to get rid of the restored CJP Iftikhar Chaudhry, twice.

The reason for not making October 12 1999 as the focal point to try Musharraf is quite obvious. His unconstitutional action was not only sanctioned by the apex court but was also indemnified by the parliament.

The then Chief Justice of Pakistan Irshad Hasan Khan had the bravado to give Musharraf the right to amend the constitution without even his lawyers asking for it. Even the present CJP had no qualms in taking oath from Musharraf under the controversial PCO (provisional constitutional order) only to fall out with him later.

Hence, it is obvious that there is a lot of slip between the cup and the lip to try Musharraf for his original sin, as it is claimed he has immunity from prosecution under the law. And hypothetically speaking if tried for staging the coup d’etat on October 12 1999, he is bound to embroil those who gave him the fig leaf of legality.

Primarily Musharraf’s trial for high treason should be viewed as a source of introspection of the sordid history of frequent military interventions in Pakistan.

It is too premature to predict the fallout of the impending trial. Hopefully it will forever exorcise the ghost of Bonapartism from our body politic. The whole ambit of civilian-military relations is expected to come under close scrutiny as the trial proceeds.

The outcome of the case will also depend on the nature of charges filed by the government. According to media reports, the FIA has been frustrated in its probe owing to lack of cooperation from different stakeholders including the GHQ.

Despite this it is claimed that the four-member investigation team constituted last June has been able to gather concrete evidence implicating Musharraf. The wily Sharifuddin Pirzada, who has been advising military dictators since Ayub Khan on how to perpetuate themselves in power, has reemerged from the woodwork to defend Musharraf.

Another report claims that the then Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has already been exonerated by the investigative agency. Whatever the truth behind such reports, the PML-N government will have to walk the talk by preparing an ironclad case against Musharraf and his cohorts.

The attorney general has claimed that the government has a solid case against Musharraf and the FIA would be authorised to arrest the former dictator after a formal complaint in the special court is registered against him. If the government has a strong case what is stopping it from proceeding further?

The special court should also be tasked to examine the roleof the higher judiciary and pliable parliamentarians in legitimising patently illegal acts of dictators in the past. After all democratic institutions have no business indemnifying extra-constitutional interventions.

But this is how the cookie crumbles in the Islamic Republic. The nation is still suffering under the yoke of provisions inserted in the constitution by Gen Zia-ul-Haq. No subsequent elected civilian government had the gall to remove them.

Apologists of Musharraf –which are few and far apart these days – have warned that trying the former dictator will open a Pandora’s box. How? They fail to explain how.

Perhaps they mean that other institutions including the military and the higher judiciary will be implicated for their sordid role in legitimising the coup-maker. So be it. Heavens will not fall if there is a modicum of accountability of other institutions, apart from the hapless politicians.

Arif Nizami is Editor, Pakistan Today.