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| Pervez Musharraf and his fist in beautiful Islamabad, Pakistan [2013 photo: AP] |
Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has been sentenced to death for treason. He was charged in 2013 and found guilty.
Musharraf has been living outside the country and was sentenced in absentia on Tuesday on charges of high treason after his decision to get rid of the nation's constitution and detain judges in 2007.
According to Salman Nadeem, a law officer, he told Reuters that Musharraf was found guilty of Article 6 “for violation of the constitution of Pakistan.” The three-person court ruled in favor of the sentence 2-1.
“For the first time in the history of Pakistan... a military dictator has been punished by a court of law," Hamid Ali Khan, a senior Supreme Court lawyer, said following the verdict.
“For the first time in the history of Pakistan... a military dictator has been punished by a court of law," Hamid Ali Khan, a senior Supreme Court lawyer, said following the verdict.
The Democrats are hoping to do the same to President Trump but it isn't going so well for them at this time.
Akhtar Shah, one of Musharraf's attorneys, said they will appeal the decision.
“Musharraf today sent me a message, saying he is ready to come to Pakistan but his doctors are not allowing him to travel," Shah told The Associated Press following the ruling. He added that Musharraf offered to give a statement to the court through a video link but the request was denied.
Musharraf has been living in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, and is said to be very ill and unlikely to travel home to face the sentence. That would apparently be suicide in more ways than one.
Akhtar Shah, one of Musharraf's attorneys, said they will appeal the decision.
“Musharraf today sent me a message, saying he is ready to come to Pakistan but his doctors are not allowing him to travel," Shah told The Associated Press following the ruling. He added that Musharraf offered to give a statement to the court through a video link but the request was denied.
Musharraf has been living in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, and is said to be very ill and unlikely to travel home to face the sentence. That would apparently be suicide in more ways than one.
Pakistan and the UAE have no extradition treaty and Emirati authorities are unlikely to arrest the former wannabe dictator. If he were to return, however, Musharraf would have the right to challenge his conviction and sentence in court.
The weasel came to power in 1999 from a coup, much like the Democrats are trying to exercise in the United States. He was forced to relinquish his golden throne in 2008 and was charged in 2013. But due to his medical condition he was allowed to leave Pakistan on bail in 2016 and seek medical treatment abroad.
In his notorious purge in 2007, Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and placed several key judges under house arrest in the capital, Islamabad, and elsewhere in Pakistan.
However, his move to suspend the constitution backfired, leading to widespread protests by the country's powerful legal community. Musharraf read the writing on the wall and fled the country.
Musharraf was hospitalized again last week in Dubai but the state of his health or a specific reason for this hospitalization has not been made public.
In his notorious purge in 2007, Musharraf imposed a state of emergency and placed several key judges under house arrest in the capital, Islamabad, and elsewhere in Pakistan.
However, his move to suspend the constitution backfired, leading to widespread protests by the country's powerful legal community. Musharraf read the writing on the wall and fled the country.
Musharraf was hospitalized again last week in Dubai but the state of his health or a specific reason for this hospitalization has not been made public.
Two weeks ago he released a video message saying he was ready to record his statement about the charge of treason for the court, but said he was unable to travel to Pakistan.
During the video Musharraf looked like crap. He claimed the treason charges were baseless and that he served Pakistan for ten years.
During the video Musharraf looked like crap. He claimed the treason charges were baseless and that he served Pakistan for ten years.
“I have fought for my country,” he says in the video. “This is a case in which I have not been heard and I have been victimized."
Like the judges he detained.
Mehrene Malik Adam, the secretary-general of Musharraf’s small opposition party All Pakistan Muslim League, also denounced the trial that led to the death sentence, just in case the shoe was ever on the other foot.
“Legal requirements were not met and our lawyers were not given the opportunity to present their case," she said.
Mehrene Malik Adam, the secretary-general of Musharraf’s small opposition party All Pakistan Muslim League, also denounced the trial that led to the death sentence, just in case the shoe was ever on the other foot.
“Legal requirements were not met and our lawyers were not given the opportunity to present their case," she said.
Perhaps they were detained.
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