Former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf returned home yesterday after nearly four years of self-imposed exile to contest elections despite the possibility of arrest and a threat from the Taliban to kill him.
Musharraf hopes to regain influence so that his party can win seats in the general election scheduled for May 11, when he will face fierce competition, including from the man he ousted in a military takeover. The former army general, who seized power in a 1999 coup, resigned in 2008 when his allies lost a vote and a new government threatened him with impeachment. He left Pakistan a year later.
About 1,000 supporters chanted slogans outside Karachi’s airport.
Musharraf has been far removed from Pakistan’s troubles during his exile in London and Dubai, with the governing Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) having had little success in tackling corruption, chronic power cuts and rebuilding dilapidated infrastructure
Pakistan may soon have to turn to the IMF again to keep the economy afloat and avoid a balance of payments crisis.
A caretaker government, headed by newly appointed interim Pakistani Prime Minister Hazar Khan Khoso, a former judge, will make preparations for elections.
Musharraf faces charges of failing to provide adequate security to former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto before her assassination in 2007.
He also faces charges in connection with the death of a separatist leader in Baluchistan Province. He denies any wrongdoing.
Musharraf had been granted bail in advance to avoid being arrested upon his return, but he could be detained at a later date.
Musharraf’s most immediate concern may be Pakistan’s Taliban, who threatened in a video on Saturday to despatch suicide bombers and snipers to kill him and send him to “hell.”
Musharraf dismissed the threats, but a rally he was supposed to hold yesterday afternoon was cancelled. Al-Qaeda assassins have tried to kill Musharraf at least three times in the past.
MILESTONE: The foreign minister called the signing ‘a major step forward in US-Taiwan relations,’ while the Presidential Office said it was a symbol of the nations’ shared values US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed into law the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, which requires the US Department of State to regularly review and update guidelines governing official US interactions with Taiwan. The new law is an amendment to the Taiwan Assurance Act of 2020 focused on reviewing guidelines on US interactions with Taiwan. Previously, the state department was required to conduct a one-time review of its guidance governing relations with Taiwan, but under the new bill, the agency must conduct a review “not less than every five years.” It must then submit an updated report based on its findings “not later
The Presidential Office today thanked the US for enacting the Taiwan Assurance Implementation Act, which requires the US Department of State to regularly review and update guidelines governing official US interactions with Taiwan. The new law, signed by US President Donald Trump yesterday, is an amendment to the Taiwan Assurance Act of 2020 focused on reviewing guidelines on US interactions with Taiwan. Previously, the department was required to conduct a one-time review of its guidance governing relations with Taiwan, but under the new bill, the agency must conduct such a review "not less than every five years." It must then submit an updated
STAYING ALERT: China this week deployed its largest maritime show of force to date in the region, prompting concern in Taipei and Tokyo, which Beijing has brushed off Deterring conflict over Taiwan is a priority, the White House said in its National Security Strategy published yesterday, which also called on Japan and South Korea to increase their defense spending to help protect the first island chain. Taiwan is strategically positioned between Northeast and Southeast Asia, and provides direct access to the second island chain, with one-third of global shipping passing through the South China Sea, the report said. Given the implications for the US economy, along with Taiwan’s dominance in semiconductors, “deterring a conflict over Taiwan, ideally by preserving military overmatch, is a priority,” it said. However, the strategy also reiterated
Taiwanese prosecutors charged Tokyo Electron Ltd for failing to prevent staff from allegedly stealing Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) trade secrets, escalating a dispute involving two Asian linchpins of a chip industry increasingly vital to national and economic security. Prosecutors indicted the Japanese company on four counts of contravening the Trade Secrets Act (營業秘密法) and the National Security Act (國家安全法), they said in a statement yesterday. They’re asking a local court to rule in favor of their request for Tokyo Electron pay a fine of up to NT$120 million (US$3.8 million) for failing in its duty to prevent the alleged
RSS