Apex Showdown - The Extraordinary Paths of Leaders

Author: Wang Zhijun / Country:
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-07-01
Features: On the afternoon of October 12, 1999, a Pakistan Civil Aviation passenger plane departed from Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, bound for Karachi in Pakistan. When the middle school teachers and students from the Pakistan International School on board the flight came down from the joy of participating in a swimming competition, they suddenly discovered that a prominent figure who had been frequently appearing on television recently was sitting in the first-class cabin. He was General Pervez Musharraf, dressed in civilian clothes but still exuding military authority. As the Chief of the Pakistan Army and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Pervez Musharraf was returning to the country after being invited to Colombo to participate in the 50th anniversary celebration of the Sri Lankan military over the weekend. When he saw so many curious eyes staring at him, he revealed a rare smile and greeted everyone, and fulfilled their request to take a group photo with him.
As the plane approached the airspace of Karachi International Airport, it suddenly received a notification from the airport control center prohibiting landing, either diverting to an Indian airport or flying to another domestic airport about 200 kilometers north of Karachi. The expression on General Musharraf's face turned serious. In the enclosed first-class cabin, his aide reported the message from the ground: he had been dismissed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Flying to India would mean falling into the hands of authorities hostile due to the nuclear competition and the Kashmir conflict, akin to being captured on the battlefield; while flying to the designated domestic airport would result in being arrested by the police there and then transported by a special aircraft to the capital. After urgent discussions with his aides, General Musharraf calmly made a decision: the plane would not land, but circle in the airspace above Karachi, waiting for ground assistance. He ordered that the news not be disclosed to the passengers to avoid panic. He asked his aide to enter the cockpit, and then the passengers heard the captain announce that due to technical issues on the ground, the landing would be delayed, but there was nothing to worry about. Only then did they recover from their astonishment, and soon after, they saw Musharraf himself enter the cockpit. Shortly thereafter, Musharraf returned to the cabin with a calm expression, wearing a confident smile that made it impossible to imagine he was in a life-or-death situation at that moment.
Meanwhile, another struggle was unfolding on the ground in full swing. At 5 p.m., Prime Minister Sharif had just appointed Ziauddin, the former director of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), as the new Chief of the Army Staff. At 6:30 p.m., loyal forces to Musharraf launched a pre-planned operation. They surrounded the presidential palace, the prime minister's office, and occupied key departments such as the national television and radio stations, the telecommunications bureau, and more. Prime Minister Sharif, the new Chief of the Army Staff, and some cabinet ministers were placed under house arrest. At that moment, Musharraf's plane had already circled over the Karachi airport for nearly 40 minutes, with the fuel in the tank depleting rapidly, leaving only five minutes left. While Musharraf gave the decisive order to land forcibly at the airport, loyal forces rushed into the airport and seized control.
After the plane landed safely, Musharraf bid farewell to the passengers with a natural expression, then disembarked and held emergency consultations with his trusted men, including the commander of the Karachi garrison, in the airport lounge. Musharraf's daughter and son-in-law, along with a few accompanying personnel, attempted to enter the airport to greet their father but were blocked by guards on duty. Subsequently, under the protection of a heavily armed guard, Musharraf ignored the persistent reporters and immediately boarded a special vehicle, speeding out of the airport toward the headquarters of the Karachi garrison. Later, Musharraf, dressed in military uniform, delivered a national televised address. He announced that the Sharif government had been "dissolved" and that the military had taken over. The general, who had been dismissed just ten hours earlier by Sharif, read a statement with a solemn expression: "I want to tell everyone that the intervention of the armed forces is the last resort to save the country. At this moment, I can assure you that our country is absolutely stable, and everything is under control."
In a country with a tradition of military coups, the soldiers spoke in their unique way. The usually low-key General Musharraf, having successfully orchestrated the coup, instantly became a media sensation. P1-2