He is the most pro-China president among all Pakistani leaders. During his tenure, he strongly supported the establishment of an all-weather China-Pakistan strategic cooperative partnership. He proposed to use Gwadar Port as an important starting point for the "Belt and Road" policy, so he is also known as the founder of the "China-Pakistan Economic Corridor". He once treated the relay of the Beijing Olympic torch with the highest courtesy, and he also mobilized the whole country to wholeheartedly rescue the Wenchuan earthquake. This kindness is still remembered by many people. Who is such a heroic figure as
? Can you guess it? He is the former President of Pakistan, Musharraf.
Musharraf had been fighting for Pakistan for more than 40 years, but after his hero's twilight years, he was accused of many groundless crimes and finally left the country he loved so much. From "iron-blooded president" to "treasonous criminal" , Musharraf's life has been full of ups and downs.
"The friendship between China and Pakistan is higher than the Himalayas and deeper than the Indian Ocean."
This familiar saying simply and directly reflects the depth of China-Pakistan friendship. We like to affectionately call Pakistan "Pakistan", which means that China and Pakistan are "iron buddies" and "good brothers".
Pakistan has also treated China with the highest courtesy on many occasions and expressed the hope that the friendship between the two sides will last forever. I don't think any country can give up the "C bit" on the promotional banner to the leaders of other countries during a visit to a friendly country to show respect, but Pakistan has done such a thing. The relationship between China and Pakistan can be so good, and Musharraf, the former president, played a big role.
Give a few examples to prove what Lao Bai said is true: In 2008, two things happened in China that are still unforgettable: the Wenchuan earthquake and the successful hosting of the Olympic Games. The former is great sadness, the latter is great joy.
The Wenchuan earthquake was the most destructive earthquake that occurred since the founding of New China. This natural disaster resulted in nearly 70,000 deaths and more than 300,000 injuries. On the day after the earthquake, Musharraf, then president of Pakistan, walked into the embassy and directly told the Chinese ambassador to Pakistan:
Whatever you need, we will do our best to give it to you.
This is not just a joke. Pakistan donated 22,260 tents to China in this aid, some of which were whole.. Pakistan's economy is not developed, and these things directly emptied Pakistan's preparedness materials for facing disasters. In order to avoid economic damage to friendly countries, the Chinese Embassy proposed to buy them in lieu of donations and send them to Sichuan, but Pakistan decisively rejected them.
At that time, Pakistan's only four transport planes were all used for this tent donation. Later, in order to get more supplies to China quickly, Musharraf removed all the seats on his special plane and stood all the way there. China.
When the Beijing Olympic torch was delivered to Pakistan's Islamabad , everyone in Pakistan paid great attention to it. Musharraf even participated in the route planning of the torch relay to ensure nothing went wrong. The President and Prime Minister greeted them at the starting point and saw them off together at the end. The two leaders received each other together, which is the highest courtesy of Pakistan.
Later, in an interview with Chinese reporters, Musharraf highly praised the preparations for the Olympic Games. When referring to the doubts at home and abroad at that time, he said on behalf of Pakistani officials that these accusations were groundless and they would He will use the harshest words to condemn those with bad intentions.
Due to its special geographical location, Pakistan plays a very special role in the "Belt and Road" policy. The construction of Gwadar Port has confirmed China's determination in Pakistan, and both sides look forward to this matter further strengthening China-Pakistan friendship and cooperation. At that time, the United States, which prided itself as the "world policeman", clearly knew the importance of the Gwadar Port project to China. Therefore, the United States began to exert pressure on Pakistan in various aspects at the same time. However, Musharraf ignored this , resist life and death.
Musharraf answered in an interview with "21st Century Business Herald": There are now seven miracles in the world. He feels that China and Pakistan can unite to create the eighth miracle - linking the roads of the two countries and realizing the economic development between the two countries. Integration.
Throughout history, it is rare that the friendship between countries can be as strong as that between China and Pakistan. The relationship between the two parties has always been very good. On December 17, when they heard that Musharraf was sentenced to death again for "treason", many people were puzzled as to what the reason was. , let this decisive and friendly former president be constantly accused and impeached?
First of all, I don’t know if you know this, but Pakistan is a very complicated country. Due to the conflict between Western influence and local culture, the differences between the upper and lower classes are extremely serious. There is a widely circulated saying among Pakistani people: was abandoned by the whole world in the 1970s, except China.
Internationally, Pakistan has a lot of conflicts. Due to various frictions in the Kashmir region, their relations with India, Iran, and even the United States and Russia are not good, and they almost became a pawn in the game between great powers. . Domestically speaking, after World War II, the United Kingdom promulgated the "Mountbatten Act" . Shortly after the implementation of the "Partition of India and Pakistan" policy, civil strife broke out in East and West Pakistan. Since the rights of Pakistan are basically in the minority In the hands of the West Pakistanis, East Pakistan ceased to exist. They demanded autonomy and would make trouble if it was not given. This went on for a long time.
Faced with such an unfavorable situation, Musharraf rose to the challenge and controlled the turbulent situation in the country, allowing Pakistan to begin a more stable development. By promoting national and social reform internally and vigorously developing diplomacy externally, the country's economy has grown by about 50% in eight years, and the average income of the people has increased by about 25%. This made the people of Pakistan very happy, so Musharraf was very popular among the people during that period.
Musharraf's political courage is inseparable from the environment in which he grew up. On August 11, 1943, Musharraf was born in New Delhi, the capital of India. At that time, India was a British colony, and the entire society was in chaos. His father was one of the first diplomats to immigrate to Pakistan after the "Partition of India and Pakistan" . Musharraf was influenced by his father and determined to change the social status quo. Therefore, in 1961, Musharraf, who had just turned eighteen, Sharaf was admitted to Pakistan's Kakul Military Academy. After completing his studies, he naturally entered the national army.
He has served in many military services such as self-propelled artillery regiments, special operations battalions, and armored division artillery units, and participated in two Pakistan-India wars. Due to his outstanding performance in the war and many meritorious services, he won the "Excellence", "Crescent" and other medals.
In the second year of his enlistment, Musharraf was stationed near Punjab. Punjab, as a military important area, often experiences conflicts. Musharraf is brave and fearless. He always rushes to the front line in the face of war. He was quickly promoted to an officer and became the best among his peers. In 1995, Musharraf, as an army lieutenant general, served as commander in the military important state of Punjab.
Three years later, he was ranked third in the army promotion list and had no hope of promotion. However, he unexpectedly won the favor of the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who appointed him Army Chief of Staff and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and was promoted to general at the same time. Sharif wittily said
Musharraf was the only person who did not curry favor with him for this position.
Although Sharif's statement sounds like a joke, it also shows Musharraf's uprightness. Here, Lao Bai is making a mistake, please don’t be angry and read it patiently. There is a saying in history that many things always like to appear in cycles.In the 1970s, Pakistani President Ali Bhutto chose to appoint his "confidant" Zia Haq as the Chief of Army Staff for the sake of military power. Similar to South Vietnam President Ngo Dinh Diem , Bhutto was also gullible. His "confidant" was later sent to the guillotine by Huck.
Sharif encountered the same problem as Bhutto. They both had political conflicts with the Army Chief of Staff. The rift between the military and the government continued to expand. The key issue still lies in the Kashmir region that has been shrouded in war for many years. And the US military forced the Pakistani government to order the troops to withdraw from the Kargil area. Although the two often broke up on bad terms, they were getting along well on the surface. Until October 1999, Musharraf and his wife visited Sri Lanka to participate in activities commemorating the 50th anniversary of the founding of the army. On their way back, Sharif The "first shot" of the coup was fired.
Sharif, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan, dismissed Musharraf from his post and claimed early retirement. His job would be replaced by Uddin, the then Director of the Inter-Services Intelligence Agency. At this time, Musharraf was still on the plane and did not know that he had left office. When he arrived in the sky above Karachi, he found that his plane was prohibited from landing at any Pakistani airport. The fuel on the plane could only last about 70 minutes of flight. Obviously, Sharif's purpose was that Musharraf would either leave Pakistan or crash directly.
Regarding this, Musharraf thought that he was not very old yet and was not very willing to put down his work now to take care of his old age. You don’t blame me for being unkind. Musharraf used the communication equipment on the plane to issue change orders to the troops loyal to him on the ground. Everyone on the plane was in panic, but Musharraf remained calm. Fortunately, the change was successful when the plane was forced to crash with 7 minutes left. He returned to the ground, not only saving his life, but also successfully becoming the CEO of Pakistan.
In June 2001, Musharraf replaced Rafiq Talal and became the fourth military president in Pakistan's history. "Military generals founded the country and civilians ruled it" . Although this statement is a bit biased, it still makes sense. Musharraf is different from previous military presidents. He allowed the military and civilian institutions to exist side by side in the name of mutual supervision and implemented " The military is in power and civilians govern” policy.
Although Musharraf has selflessly done many things for Pakistan, he has also worked hard to consolidate his power. He promulgated "Provisional Constitutional Order No. 1" , announcing the termination of the constitution, dissolving the parliament and cabinet. After that, Musharraf became the first person in the history of Pakistan to serve as president, chief executive, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army The four positions of chief of staff.
combined military and political power into one body, which violated Pakistan's traditional laws. Although Musharraf tried to initiate constitutional reform, he failed in the end. These multi-layered "vests" made the opposition dissatisfied, and the opposition filed a lawsuit with the Supreme Court. Even if the lawsuit was dismissed, the seed of "illegal" and was still deeply rooted in the hearts of many Pakistanis.
Forced to have no choice but to choose the latter from the military and political options, Musharraf took off the military uniform he had worn for 46 years and ended his military career. This was a rare big mistake made by Musharraf, but there was not much time left for him to think at the time.
Soon after he resigned as Army Chief of Staff, the opposition began to disintegrate his power in the military. Pakistan seemed to have always had a subtle antagonistic relationship between the military and the government. Faced with Musharraf's entry into the political arena, many people turned against him. No one is perfect, and no man is perfect. Musharraf, who was isolated and helpless, did not have smooth sailing in the political arena. The opposition quickly seized on his "little braid" and refused to let him go. Faced with the increasingly tight situation, Musharraf chose to resign in 2008 and went to the UK. After
, accusations against Musharraf continued to emerge in Pakistan.In 2013, he once thought about using his spare time to return to China to participate in the congressional election. However, he was arrested as soon as the plane landed. He refused to admit to all the charges, and after a monotonous and repetitive standoff After Musharraf was released .
has not had a happy birthday for a few days. On March 31, 2014, he was convicted of "treason" and was formally prosecuted . The court announced that Musharraf would be executed. He was the first person in Pakistan's history to be convicted of Leaders who suffered "treason" . Musharraf, who had set a national precedent, felt tired after many twists and turns. He went to the United Arab Emirates in the name of medical treatment in 2016.
This veteran who once dominated the political arena has completely given up. In September 2020, the former Prime Minister of Pakistan announced that former President Musharraf had absconded. After that, there was no news about him.
From the son of a diplomat to the iron-blooded president, from being loved by everyone to being exiled overseas, Musharraf is full of legends. When it comes to Pakistan's internal affairs, we should not say anything. Some people feel sorry for the loneliness of such a hero, but after all, this is their "family matter" and there is no need to say more.
I only hope that the friendship between China and Pakistan will last forever.
Reference:
Sohu "He is a president who is close to China. Why didn't he choose to come to China when he was in exile abroad? The reason is very heartbreaking"
Pudelion English excerpt "Pakistani President Musharraf - Musharraf's legendary presidential road"
China Jingwei.com "Newsmaker Musharraf: The iron-fisted president of Pakistan who left sadly"
