Pakistan PM backs treason charges against former president Musharraf

Pakistan's new government intends to put the former military dictator Pervez Musharraf on trial on charges of high treason, the prime minister Nawaz Sharif says, in a move likely to anger the country's powerful armed forces.

ISLAMABAD // Pakistan's new government intends to put the former military dictator Pervez Musharraf on trial on charges of high treason, the prime minister Nawaz Sharif said today, in a move likely to anger the country's powerful armed forces.

The charges being considered against Mr Musharraf relate to his declaration of a state of emergency in 2007 and the suspension of constitutional rights that followed.

In Pakistan, the maximum penalty for treason is death.

The government "firmly subscribes to the view that the holding in abeyance of the constitution on 3rd November 2007, constituted an act of high treason", Mr Sharif said in parliament, reading from a statement simultaneously presented to the Supreme Court.

"Musharraf will have to answer for his guilt before the court," he said.

Mr Musharraf ousted Mr Sharif in a coup 14 years ago, cutting short the prime minister's second term in office. Mr Sharif was then hounded into exile in Saudi Arabia by the dictator.

Mr Sharif's decision to move against Mr Musharraf suggested that he is determined to take a more assertive stance than the last government in relation to the military, which has ruled Pakistan for much of the nation's 66-year existence.

"Notwithstanding the fact that the prime minister has borne the brunt of Musharraf's brazen coup, he wishes to assure both this august court and the people of Pakistan that he will act according to the highest standards of justice and follow the due process of law," Mr Sharif said.

Mr Musharraf, a key ally of George W Bush in the early years of Washington's "war on terror", spent almost four years in self-imposed exile. He returned to Pakistan hoping to contest the May 11 elections but was put under house arrest.

His detention appeared to break an unwritten rule that the top ranks of the military are untouchable, even after they have retired. The current army chief has suggested the military is unhappy with how the authorities have treated Mr Musharraf.

The former leader's spokesman, Raza Bokhari, called Mr Sharif's announcement "reckless and ill conceived". He said it was designed to distract attention from more pressing national issues.

"It can result in unnecessary tension among the various pillars of state and possibly destabilise the country," Mr Bokhari said.

Mr Musharraf also faces accusations that he overstepped his powers in a showdown with the judiciary in 2007 when he sacked the chief justice and placed judges under house arrest.

Another legal challenge revolves around allegations that he failed to provide adequate security to prevent the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, also in 2007.

The elections this year brought Mr Sharif back to office for an unprecedented third time and saw the first transition between two civilian governments in Pakistan's turbulent history.