Pakistan was founded as an independent and democratic state by Quaid-e-Azam, Muhammad Ali Jinnah. According to the constitution, Pakistan is a democratic parliamentary republic with an electoral system of governance. Despite that, there has been a series of successful military coups or martial laws in Pakistan, dated as follows:
Iskandar Mirza – 7th October – 1958
Iskandar Mirza came to the Governor General’s office in 1955. But after failing to maintain relations with the incoming prime ministers, who resigned one after the other, he declared martial law. He appointed General Ayub Khan as chief martial law administrator, abolishing all national and provincial assemblies.
Ayub Khan ruled Pakistan for ten years, first as a martial law administrator and then as the country-elected president.
General Yahya Khan – 25th March – 1969
On March 25, 1969, General Yahya Khan imposed the second martial law in Pakistani history. He stepped in, announced martial law, dissolved all assemblies, and resumed the presidential office after Ayub Khan stepped down as president. His regime lasted till 1971, after which the chairman of PPP, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, took over as president and the firstcivilian martial law administrator.
General Zia ul Haq – 5th July – 1977
Zia ul Haq overthrew Bhutto’s government and became the chief martial law administrator. Not only did he dissolve all national and provincial assemblies, but he also banned all political parties and suspended fundamental rights. General Zia also issued a 15-point code of ethics to forbid any speech, actions, deeds, and symbols that could harm Pakistan’s solidarity and Islamic values. He later became the 6th President of Pakistan and served till his demise in a plane crash in 1988.
General Pervaiz Musharraf – 12th October – 1999
The fourth and last up till now military rule was imposed by General Pervaiz Musharraf when he staged a bloodless coup and overthrew the government of Nawaz Sharif. However, this was not martial law, as general elections were held in 2002, as announced by him. However, before conducting elections, he held a referendum to re-elect himself as president for another five-year term. Pervaiz Musharraf resigned on August 18th in the face of impeachment after serving as Chief Executive from 1999 to 2002 and President from 2002 to 2008.
Why is a Martial Law Threat Ever Present in Pakistan?
Over the decades, warnings of martial law have become a famous catchphrase for the Pakistani population and governments.
Generating turmoil with a military takeover is the ideal strategy to remain in power, regardless of whether a political tenure is hindered by poor governance, abuse of power, bribery, corruption, lawlessness, and mismanagement. But, sometimes politicians benefit from this. An article by the Diplomat writes that Pakistan’s political parties have historically failed when they portray themselves as mistreated and isolated because of the looming military intervention danger.
In actuality, the threat of martial law in Pakistan stems from the preparedness of the military to take over and also from the politicians’ readiness to permit military interventions.
Does Pakistan Function Better Under a Military Coup?
There is no definitive answer to whether Pakistan performed better under martial law or democratic regimes. Several researchers have stated that in light of macroeconomic factors such as GDP, economic growth rate, and Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Pakistan appears to have performed better economically under military dictatorship. On the other hand, human development receives no importance under both military coups or democracy.
