The Aug 17, 1988, air crash near Bahawalpur resulting in the death of the president, Gen Ziaul Haq, the country’s top military brass and the US ambassador Robin Raphael was a tragedy which had a deep impact on the region. However, it left many questions unanswered. People continue to wonder if Gen Zia had had an idea of what lay ahead. Perhaps by analysing the developments that he had witnessed, he might have had some inkling that something was going to happen, but where, when and in what manner, it was uncertain and unclear.
A series of developments began after the dismissal of prime minister Mohammed Khan Junejo, on May 29, 1988. The next day, Junejo held a meeting with his former ministers and friends and discussed the future strategy, including the formation of the caretaker government. In the evening, Gen Zia addressed the nation, repeating all what he had said earlier, in his press conference. He also called on Junejo at the Prime Minister House for an informal but important meeting. The general made an attempt to justify his action but at the same time he wanted the Muslim League leadership to be handed over to someone else. Junejo did not support the general’s desire and said that the new leader must be a firm believer in Muslim League policies. Gen Zia told Junejo that he had already spoken to Pir Sahib Pagara who had pledged to visit the capital in a week.
The dismissal affected Gen Zia’s work and behaviour, as it appeared from his formal schedule. The first thing he did was to reverse any and all administrative changes carried out by Junejo. The bureaucracy had become accustomed to this so they showed no reaction.
Confining himself mostly to his office and home, the general expedited the process of Islamisation. In this regard, he began working on a new ordinance called the Sharia ordinance which he thought would be delayed if not implemented soon enough. Therfore, on June 15, 1988, he promulgated the ordinance which he considered the cornerstone of his policy.
Did Gen Zia have a clue that something catastrophic was about to happen?
Incidentally, the ordinance did not receive the appreciation that he expected; the reason being that it did not satisfy every school of thought, even the Jamaat-i-Islami which had stood by his side for quite some time, differed bitterly. Most of the political parties differed on the very perception of the ordinance as its philosophy was based on a central leadership i.e., presidential form of government as against a parliamentary democracy which the majority of parties wanted.
On July 21, Gen Zia announced that general elections would be held in November, as announced previously, but these would be held on a non-party basis. This ignited a new debate and the political parties began making plans to strongly resist. On Aug 1, 1988, Benazir Bhutto filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the proposed elections on a non-party basis.
As other political parties also took an interest in Benazir’s petition, the ‘too faithful bureaucracy’ did not show much interest in the election arrangements, as they felt that this time the situation might turn grimmer than feared. They began holding meetings, especially in the Foreign Office, which sent a message of urgency.
One of Zia’s supporters, journalist Ziaul Islam Ansari, mentions some events such as Gen’s Zia’s meetings with newsmen between Aug 8 and 10, covering a variety of questions of an important nature. In one such meeting, on Aug 10, with selected newsmen mostly from the National Press Trust, the general specifically spoke of two things. He said that a conspiracy had been hatched by Russia to increase Indian influence in Kabul with the objective of punishing Pakistan. But, the general said, Pakistan would not allow this to happen. He said a few words that created anxiety.
He said that when everything had been settled in Afghanistan, his efforts to bring in a consensus government in Kabul were being opposed by some countries and they wanted to punish him. He said, “They want to sort out Pakistan and to achieve that they want to sort me out,” but immediately asked the reporters to treat it as “off the record” and not publish it. When one journalist asked what he meant by “they want to sort out”, the general replied that he meant that these countries were interpreting the consensus government in Kabul as a hard-line Islamic government which would export fundamentalism to the rest of the world.
That day the journalists found Gen Zia in a rather strange disposition. The man who would always share the best moments with newsmen, did not appear in spirits. It was quite surprising to see a man who spoke highly about jihad against Russian occupation, narrate all events leading to the settlement of a major issue. His demand for forming a caretaker government before signing the Geneva Accord appeared painful for him. When he referred to some powers without naming them, it appeared that either he had been conveyed a message or he had sensed it.
The next day, Aug 11, 1988, saw unusual activities at the President House. The Supreme Court gave its verdict on Benazir Bhutto’s petition regarding theholding of elections on a non-party basis. It proclaimed that holding elections on non-party basis did not have any legal support and that the government’s standpoint was not justified. When the general was contacted for comments he appeared adamant about holding elections on a non-party basis and said that the formulation of electoral rules was the task of the government and, if needed, these laws would be formulated in a manner in which the polls could be held on non-party basis.
Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, March 20th, 2016
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