nawaz sharif

LAHORE, Pakistan (AFP) — Nawaz Sharif, the Pakistani prime minister ousted in a coup eight years ago, returned from exile Sunday to a nation under emergency rule and a raucous welcome from supporters.

A special plane lent by Saudi King Abdullah touched down at Lahore airport carrying Sharif, family members and some of his closest aides at 6:25 pm (1325 GMT), an AFP reporter witnessed.

Television footage showed Sharif, accompanied by his brother Shabaz, beaming and waving to a chanting crowd in the arrivals lounge.

Thousands of other supporters, chanting "Long live Sharif!" and waving flags and banners, massed outside the airport and along the road into the heart of this eastern city to give him a festive welcome home.

"Nawaz Sharif's plane has landed," Mohammad Iftikhar, a senior official at Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport, told AFP.

State television also announced the arrival of the premier whom President Pervez Musharraf, his then army chief, ousted in a coup in 1999 and exiled to Saudi Arabia a year later.

It is Sharif's second return -- his first, on September 10 this year, ended just four hours later when he was unceremoniously deported back to Saudi Arabia.

"Lahore will accord a rousing welcome to Nawaz Sharif, mark my words," his nephew Hamza Shabaz told Dawn television outside the airport earlier.

Sharif flew home this time with the government's acquiescence, upping the pressure on military ruler Musharraf who has been condemned around the world for refusing to lift the state of emergency he imposed three weeks ago.

Security was tight, with more than 6,000 police at the airport and on the route into the city, manning barbed wire barricades and curbing access.

About 100 Sharif supporters broke through the security cordon and reached the glass doors leading to the arrivals hall. Police tried to push them back.

A further 1,500 supporters massed in the car park outside.

Workers decorated the streets with banners, posters and portraits. Crowds lined the route from the airport to the city. Loudspeakers on cars boomed out music and youths waved victory signs as they blared horns.

"The lion is returning," said a supporter, Yasin Butt, "and when the lion roars, dictators and political turncoats disappear."

Party officials complained hundreds of workers had been arrested. A police official admitted arresting "potential trouble-makers" to stop any "untoward situation" arising.

Last month bombers targeted the homecoming parade of another exiled former premier, Benazir Bhutto, killing 139 people and wounding hundreds in Karachi.

Sharif's motorcade was to travel through Lahore's congested centre before stopping for a homage at a shrine to the city's guardian saint.

Musharraf has until December 1 to swear himself in as a civilian president for another five years after a compliant Supreme Court -- stripped of most of its previous judges -- confirmed his victory in a poll last month.

For that he must first step down as head of the army, which former deputy information minister Tariq Azim said is likely to be on Tuesday or Wednesday, allowing him to take office a day later.

Azim, who is close to Musharraf's circle, predicted the emergency would be lifted before general elections set for January 8.

Sharif's return will likely energise an opposition that is split over its role, with many arguing that contesting the vote would legitimise Musharraf's tactics.

Bhutto, whose party is Pakistan's largest opposition group, is thought to favour joining the election, but her credibility has been hit by having held power-sharing talks with Musharraf before her return.

She has been in touch with Sharif about drawing up an agreed strategy and their decision is crucial as to whether any boycott will work.

Bhutto filed her nomination papers in her port city stronghold of Karachi, ahead of Monday's deadline to register for the election. "We should not leave the field empty," she told reporters.

She earlier welcomed Sharif's return, saying it would accelerate the push for political change.
Nawaz Sharif
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Nawaz Sharif



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14th, 16th, 20th Prime Minister of Pakistan
In office
17 February 1997 – 12 October 1999
President Farooq Leghari
Wasim Sajjad
Preceded by Malik Meraj Khalid
Succeeded by Pervez Musharraf
In office
06 November 1990 – 18 April 1993
President Ghulam Ishaq Khan
Preceded by Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi
Succeeded by Balakh Sher Mazari
In office
26 May 1993 – 18 July 1993
President Ghulam Ishaq Khan
Preceded by Balakh Sher Mazari
Succeeded by Moeenuddin Ahmad Qureshi

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Born December 25, 1949 (1949-12-25) (age 57)
Lahore, Pakistan
Political party Pakistan Muslim League (N)
Religion Sunni Islam
Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif (Urdu: میاں محمد نواز شریف ) (born December 25, 1949 in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan)[1] is a Pakistani politician belonging to a well established Kashmiri business family. His wife Kulsoom is the grand-niece of world famous Kashmiri wrestler the Great Gama. He was twice elected as Prime Minister of Pakistan, serving two non-consecutive terms, the first from November 1, 1990 to July 18, 1993 and the second from February 17, 1997 to October 12, 1999. His party is the Pakistan Muslim League N (Nawaz group). He is best known internationally for ordering Pakistan's 1998 nuclear tests in response to India's nuclear tests[2], and the abrupt end of his final term in a dramatic coup by General Pervez Musharraf.

Contents
1 Prime Minister
1.1 Second term
1.2 Relations with the military
1.3 Pakistan's nuclear tests
1.4 The Lahore Declaration
1.5 Kargil Conflict and aftermath
2 Alleged meetings with Osama bin Laden
3 Military Coup
3.1 Charges
3.2 2007 Return to Pakistan
3.3 Return from exile in November 2007
4 References
5 External links



[edit] Prime Minister
Sharif first became Prime Minister on November 1, 1990, running on a platform of conservative government and an end to corruption. His term was interrupted on April 18, 1993, when President Ghulam Ishaq Khan used the reserve powers vested in him by the Eighth Amendment to dissolve the National Assembly and appointed Mir Balakh Sher Mazari as the caretaker Prime Minister. Less than six weeks later, the Supreme Court overruled the President, reconstituting the National Assembly and returning Sharif to power on May 26, 1993. Sharif resigned from office along with President Ghulam Ishaq Khan on July 18, 1993, after his feud with the president, who had accused him of corruption. Moin Qureshi became caretaker prime minister, and was succeeded shortly thereafter by Benazir Bhutto, who was elected to office on October 19, 1993.


[edit] Second term
Sharif returned to power in February 1997 with such a huge majority that the result was immediately questioned by Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party. Sharif won by a huge 90 percent of the national vote. Doubts against the authencity of national elections always persist and are nearly always contended by Pakistan's losing party. Tony Blair stated in a Januray interview that he "believed the election was true".

One of Sharif's first acts during his second term was to orchestrate the scrapping of Article 58-(2)(b) through another Amendment to the Constitution - an exercise in which Sharif's party was joined by all the other political parties in the National Assembly and Senate. The Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Pakistan was passed so that the President could no longer dismiss the Prime Minister; and the Fourteenth Amendment imposed strict party discipline on members of Parliament. This allowed party leaders to dismiss any of their legislators if they failed to vote as they were told and made it nearly impossible to dismiss a prime minister by a motion of no confidence. In effect, the two amendments removed nearly all checks on the Prime Minister's power, since there was virtually no way for him to be legally dismissed. The Supreme Court was stormed on November 28, 1997, Chief Justice, Justice Sajjad Ali Shah, widely respected for his independent mindedness and integrity, was also Dismissed, after the judges revolt against him, orchistrated by Shrief's Younger Brother and the Chief Minister of Punjab, Shahbaz Sharif and Justice Rafiq Tarar, a bearded Tabligi. on this issue he fell out with the President Farooq Ahmed Khan, who without the powers to do any thing to Sharif also resigned. Sharif now payed back Rafiq Tarar by Appointing him as President of Pakistan.

Nawaz Sharif's downfall coincided with his secular actions such as abolishing Friday holidays, distancing him from the conservative religious right wing establishment without endearing him to secular opposition, which preferred the PPP of Benazir. Even now his frequent assurance to the west about continued cooperation is diminishing his popularity at home in conservative circles who are looking for an alternative candidate to counter the secularism of Musharraf-Benazir in the next elections.

On the development front, Nawaz Sharif completed the construction of Southwest Asia's first
motorway, the 367 km M2, linking Lahore and Islamabad. The motorway, which was initiated during Nawaz Sharif's first term, was inaugurated in November 1997 and was constructed at a cost of Rs 35.5 billion.

The peak of Sharif's popularity came when his government undertook nuclear tests on 28 May 1998 in response to India's nuclear tests two weeks earlier. However, after these tests, matters started going downhill. He suspended many civil liberties, dismissed the Sindh provincial government and set up military courts when the stability of the government was threatened.


U.S. Defense Secretary, William S. Cohen, with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, at the Pentagon, December 3, 1998.
[edit] Relations with the military
During his first term as prime minister, Sharif had fallen out with three successive army chiefs: with General Mirza Aslam Beg over the 1991 Gulf War issue; with General Asif Nawaz over the Sindh "Operation Clean-Up" issue; and with General Wahid Kakar over the Sharif-Ishaq imbroglio.

It was under Wahid Kakar that Nawaz Sharif along with the then President of Pakistan Ghulam Ishaq Khan were forced to resign in 1992-93.

At the end of General Waheed's three-year term in January 1996, General Jehangir Karamat was appointed army chief. His term was due to end on January 9, 1999. In October 1998, however, true to form, Sharif fell out with General Karamat as well, over the latter's advocacy of the need for the creation of a National Security Council in what Sharif believed was a conspiracy to return the military to a more active role in Pakistani politics.Before that Sharif dismissed the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Mansur Ul Haq.

Jehangir Karamat was much later appreciated by Nawaz as a gentleman. Karamat later served as Pakistan's ambassador to USA under Musharraf . He like other eminent personalities as Tariq Aziz of national security council , Manzoor Watoo a former chief minister of Punjab and Rawalpindi corp commander who stormed Hafsa share families which have some members influenced by a religious movement in later 1800 in Punjab, none of the above claim to be belonging to that movement personally.

In October 1998 General Karamat resigned and Sharif appointed General Pervez Musharraf as army chief. General Jehangir Karamat was seen as many a straight person whom compromised himself and stood for the wishes of the Prime Minister. Sharif would later regret appointing Pervez Musharraf to the Chief of Army position, as Musharraf would lead a coup to topple Sharif's government.

Both Nisar Khan , a Nawaz league leader whose brother was defense secretary and Shehbaz sharif claim they arranged Musharraf's appointment. Nisar was later interned.


[edit] Pakistan's nuclear tests
It was during this term that Pakistan carried out its successful nuclear tests on May 28, 1998, in response to the Indian detonation of five nuclear devices roughly two weeks before. The Nawaz Government justified the tests on national security grounds, as they demonstrated Pakistan's nuclear deterrent capabilities against an armed Indian nuclear program. Under Nawaz Sharif's leadership, Pakistan became the first Islamic country having Nuclear Power and became the 7th nation to become a Nuclear Power.

The Nawaz Government proclaimed an emergency on May 28, 1998; the day these nuclear tests were conducted. All fundamental rights were suspended and all the foreign currency accounts in Pakistani banks were frozen to minimize the effects of economic sanctions. This move was not welcomed by all sections of depositors and further deteriorated the investors and peoples confidence. The foreign exchange reserves fell even further.

His appointments in realms of foreign affairs, finance and several other fields like Musharraf later were not the best stuff available but were political as is tradition .


[edit] The Lahore Declaration
In order to normalize relations between India and Pakistan, Nawaz Sharif undertook a major initiative in February 1999. This initiative culminated in a visit by the Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to Lahore via bus, across the Wagah border, in 1999. Nawaz Sharif met him at the Wagah border and a joint communique, known as the Lahore Declaration, was signed between the two leaders. The Lahore Declaration spelled out various steps to be taken by the two countries towards normalizing relations.


[edit] Kargil Conflict and aftermath
The Kargil War in 1999 came to haunt the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. It was an international embarrassment and he came under American pressure to withdraw his troops after they intruded into Indian held territory backed by a few Kashmiri militants. India reacted strongly and ordered its troops to oust the intruders which resulted in heavy casualties for both sides, especially for Pakistan. After India threatened to widen and escalate the scope of the conflict and move into Pakistani territory, Nawaz Sharif under pressure from Bill Clinton withdrew his troops unilaterally. Some believe that Sharif was responsible for initiating the intrusions -- though he claimed that Army chief Pervez Musharraf was the brain behind the operation. (Information gleaned later showed that Musharraf was instrumental in planning the Kargil and due to American and world pressure was forced to the ultimate withdrawal.) In a recent interview, he admitted he 'let down' Vajpayee on Kargil conflict and also regretted for not having taken an action against Musharraf.[3]The retreat was not welcome in Pakistan and Sharif would later reveal that Pakistan had suffered more than 4,000 casualties. Growing fiscal deficits and debt-service payments, mainly due to American sanctions, led to a financial crisis. The government narrowly avoided defaulting on its international loans. With the country suffering from frequent power blackouts, Sharif directed the army in early 1999 to take control of the Water And Power Development Authority (WAPDA) of Pakistan, which had the adverse effect that many active and former military personnel were deployed as heads of civilian agencies. This trend continues to this day.


[edit] Alleged meetings with Osama bin Laden
Khalid Khawaja, a retired officer of the Pakistan Air Force who was in the ISI in the late 80s, rejected a recent denial by the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) that its leader had ever met Osama bin Laden.[4] Muttahida Majlise Amal President Qazi Hussain Ahmed had said in a recent interview that Sharif had repeatedly met Bin Laden, who had offered him money to topple the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) government in 1990.[5]


[edit] Military Coup
See: 1999 Pakistani coup d'état
With the public and press openly speculating about the possibility of a military takeover, Nawaz became increasingly insecure. On October 12, 1999, he removed Musharraf as army chief. Musharraf, who was out of the country, boarded a commercial airliner to return to Pakistan. Sharif ordered the Karachi airport sealed off to prevent the landing of the airliner, and ordered it to land at Nawab Shah Airport, but Musharaf contacted top army generals who took over the country and ousted Sharif's administration. Musharraf assumed control of the government. The puppet Supreme Court (who took oath under the PCO issued by Pervaiz Musharaf. Judges who didnt took oath under PCO were put under house arrest and later dismissed) validated the coup on the grounds of Necessity. Thus ended Nawaz Shrief's second term, after dismissing a President, a Chief Justice, an Army chief And a Naval Chief, one of the most powerful Prime Ministers of Pakistan with a parlimentary majority, had to be stop some where to respect desent also.

Nawaz was thrown in prison and tried by Pakistan's Anti-Terrorism Courts, which sentenced him to a life sentence for hijacking in 2000. The military government agreed to commute his sentence from life in prison to exile in Saudi Arabia. His family moved with him. His wife and senior members of his party formed an anti-military coalition along with the Pakistan People's Party, previously the major opposition to Sharif's Muslim League. Nawaz and the PPP have only offered token resistance to President Musharraf's government. Efforts are mainly restricted to criticism through the media.


[edit] Charges
Nawaz Sharif's government was deposed from office by General Pervez Musharraf, who later declared himself the Chief Executive of Pakistan, effective Prime Minister -- as he did not dismiss the nation's then President Muhammad Rafiq Tarar but became President later after kicking Tarar too. Sharif was convicted in absentia of hijacking and terrorism after he blocked Pervez Musharraf from landing his plane in Karachi in lieu of dismissing him from his COAS post. The Supreme Court of Pakistan under oath of PCO declared Musharraf's dismissal unconstitutional, as the COAS as a constitutional appointee is afforded due process before dismissal.

The Supreme Court of Pakistan under the oath of PCO, upholding the position of the Army, disqualified Nawaz Sharif from holding any public office for 21 years, forbade his involvement in Pakistani politics, and fined him 20 million rupees. A plea bargain and intervention of the Saudi royal family spared Sharif from serving a prison term; instead he was exiled to the Saudi Kingdom, where he continues to live.[citation needed]

He resided in a palace in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where King Faisal used to live. He also had opulent residences in Mecca and Medina. As of August 2007 Nawaz Sharif has been residing at Mayfair, London. He and his brother own a flat there, alongside other Arab elites. Located across the street from Hyde Park.

Some view Nawaz's return as part of Saudi Arabia's new foreign policy initiatives independent of Washington, likening it to its initiatives regarding Palestine. However, the Saudis have denied such assumptions in a roundabout manner. Incidentally, they are Sunnis like Nawaz Sharif. Benazir Bhutto does not fit into the Saudi mantle.[citation needed]


[edit] 2007 Return to Pakistan
This section needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2007)

On September 7, 2007, Justice Shabbir Hussain Chatha ordered police to arrest Shahbaz Sharif, brother of Nawaz Sharif and produce him before the court, after the hearing in Lahore. The court ruled that "Shahbaz Sharif should be arrested (at) whichever airport he lands at." Nawaz Sharif also faced detention on the pair's planned return from exile to Pakistan on September 10, 2007, to challenge President Pervez Musharraf's 8-year military rule.[6]

On the 9th of September 2007 Nawaz Sharif boarded a Pakistan International Airline flight PK-786 for Pakistan. This decision of Nawaz Sharif was despite opposition by Saudi emissary and Saad Harriri as representatives of the Saudi government and independent emissary respectively , both to make a case for Musharraf that Nawaz should fulfil the term of exile of 10 years . The press conference by the two was not seen in good light in Pakistan in view of the matter being already decided by the Supreme court that he can return and government should facilitate his return. Nawaz finally, after several denies, retorted that Saad Hariri is telling half the story , the full story was that the exile was to be reduced to 5 years and that was the condition on which he signed the undertaking even though the signed agreement bears the "10 years" term instead of "5". Nawaz has been defiant of the agreement to the extent that his press conference on 7th September 2007 called Saad Hariri a liar in closed words.[citation needed]

On September 10, 2007, Nawaz Sharif arrived in Islamabad on a PIA flight from London but was prevented from leaving the plane as the authorities at the Islamabad Airport wanted to escort him to the arrival lounge, rest of the passengers on board were allowed to board out, and negotiations began with Sharif as he, along with his few supporters, did not want an escort and wanted to board out themselves.

Nawaz Sharif finally agreed to be taken out of the plane, and was taken to the arrival lounge and upon there he was approached by the National Accountability Bureau chief due to corruption charges against him and was issued a warrant. After that, there had been news that Nawaz Sharif had been boarded in another airliner and was exiled back to Saudi Arabia. "He has been sent back," a senior security official told Agence France-Presse, as local television showed a Pakistan International Airlines plane carried deported Sharif from Islamabad airport.[7]

On September 10, 2007, Nawaz Sharif landed at Jeddah airport and was greeted by Saudi intelligence chief Prince Miqren bin Abdul Aziz. Pakistan's Religious Affairs Minister Ijaz-ul Haq stated that "He has not only embarrassed Pakistan but also the leadership of Saudi Arabia by violating the agreement.." The European Union asked the Pakistani government to respect the court ruling, for Sharif should have the chance to defend himself in a Pakistani court. In Washington, Sean McCormack of the White House (joined by India) stated that the deportation was an "internal matter" but said that elections should be "free and fair" (but expressing mild disapproval of Pervez Musharraf's action). But US organisation Human Rights Watch accused the Pakistan Government of violating international law. Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz party condemned the deportation by filing a contempt suit in the Pakistan Supreme Court. His brother Shahbaz Sharif changed return plans at the last minute.[8][9]

Sharif is contesting for the upcoming Pakistan General Elections from the Lahore, Hyderabad, Punjab province.


[edit] Return from exile in November 2007
On November 25, 2007, Nawaz Sharif made a re-return from exile attempt. Earlier hundreds of supporters, including few leaders of his party are detained.[10] He started to Lahore on a special flight form the holy city of Medina along with his brother Shahbaz Sharif and other family members