Coup Leader Called Soldier’s Soldier

WASHINGTON — When Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif selected Pervez Musharraf to be army chief of staff last year, jumping the general over two more senior officers, he apparently thought the former commando was a professional soldier uninterested in politics.

Clearly, it was a miscalculation. The 56-year-old Musharraf on Tuesday took control of Pakistan’s government as leader of the military coup that ousted Sharif’s elected civilian regime.

Experts in the United States say the underlying reason for the coup was concern that the prime minister was trying to subvert the independence of the army. They say it would take that kind of civilian-military clash to motivate Musharraf, described as a “soldier’s soldier,” to seize power.

In recent months, Sharif has strengthened his position by undermining the parliament, media and judiciary. Robert B. Oakley, a former U.S. ambassador to Pakistan, said the prime minister’s moves left the military as virtually the only independent sector on the scene.

“The military has been concerned for some time that they may be the next target,” Oakley said.

Unlike most senior Pakistani military chiefs, Musharraf is not well known in the United States because he never received military training in this country.

“Most people see him as a decisive guy, but we don’t know him fully,” said a Clinton administration official who requested anonymity. “We have had very little contact with him.”

Because of 1990 congressional action cutting off military training of Pakistani officers, he said, “we have lost contact with a rising generation of Pakistani military leaders.”

Musharraf was born in August 1943 in New Delhi. After Pakistan and India obtained independence from Britain in 1947, Musharraf’s family was part of a chaotic migration in which many of the region’s Muslims fled to Pakistan and Hindus escaped to India. Millions of people took to the road, and many of them died.

The experience seems to have had a profound impact on Musharraf, who spent most of his adult life battling India. He joined the Pakistani army in 1964, and the next year was decorated for valor on the battlefield during a 16-day war with India. In 1971, when the two nations fought again, he was a member of the elite Special Services commandos. He also led an infantry division and taught at several military colleges.

He rose steadily through the military hierarchy but never seemed to take much interest in politics. Unlike some officers, he spent most of his time in the field instead of the capital, Islamabad.

Musharraf’s predecessor as army chief, Gen. Jehangir Karmat, was forced to resign last year after Sharif reacted angrily to his proposal for creation of a National Security Council in which the military would be represented alongside civilian officials.

Last October, Sharif picked Musharraf as chief of staff, apparently viewing him as a safe alternative to Karmat.

“Musharraf is a tougher soldier than his predecessor,” Oakley observed. “Karmat just submitted his resignation.”

Pakistan has been ruled by the military about half of the 52 years since independence. The last military ruler, Gen. Mohammad Zia ul-Haq, took power in a 1977 coup and ruled until his death in a mysterious airplane crash 11 years later. Like Musharraf, Zia was considered nonpolitical when he was named army chief of staff in 1976.

But Musharraf may not be planning to hold power for a long time. Pakistan needs economic support from the International Monetary Fund, and it is unlikely to get that help with a military government in place.

“I don’t think he has any intention of governing for long,” Oakley said. “I think he knows he can’t do that. They want to get back into the good graces of the international community, especially the IMF.”