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Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq | |
|---|---|
محمد ضیاء الحق | |
 Official military portrait | |
| 6th President of Pakistan | |
| In office 16 September 1978 – 17 August 1988 | |
| Prime Minister | Muhammad Junejo |
| Preceded by | Fazal Ilahi Chaudhry |
| Succeeded by | Ghulam Ishaq Khan |
| 2nd Chief of the Army Staff | |
| In office 1 March 1976 – 17 August 1988 | |
| President |
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| Prime Minister | |
| Preceded by | Tikka Khan |
| Succeeded by | Mirza Aslam Beg |
| Chief Martial Law Administrator | |
| In office 5 July 1977 – 24 March 1985 | |
| Preceded by | Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (as Prime Minister) |
| Succeeded by | Muhammad Junejo (as Prime Minister) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 12 August 1924 Jalandhar, Punjab Province, British India |
| Died | 17 August 1988 (aged 64) Bahawalpur, Punjab, Pakistan |
| Cause of death | Aircraft crash |
| Resting place | Faisal Mosque, Islamabad |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 5, including Ijaz |
| Alma mater | |
| Nickname | The Ringmaster[1] Master of Illusion[2] |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | |
| Branch/service | |
| Years of service | 1943–1988 |
| Rank | General |
| Unit | Guides Cavalry Armoured Corps |
| Commands | |
| Battles/wars | |
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|---|---|---|
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Policies
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Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq[a] (12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani military officer who served as the 6th president of Pakistan from 1978 until his death in 1988. He rose to prominence after leading a coup on 5 July 1977, which overthrew the democratically elected government of prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Zia subsequently imposed martial law, suspended the constitution, and served as chief martial law administrator before assuming the presidency. Zia served as the 2nd chief of the Army Staff from 1976 to 1988, a position he later leveraged to execute a coup in 1977,[3] which was the second coup in Pakistan's history of coups; the first occurred in 1958 under Ayub Khan.[4]
Zia was born in Jalandhar and trained at the Indian Military Academy in Dehradun. In 1943, he was commissioned in the British Indian Army and fought in the Pacific War of the Second World War. Following the partition of India in 1947, Zia joined the Pakistan Army and was stationed in the Frontier Force Regiment. During the Black September, he played a prominent role in defending the Jordanian Armed Forces against the Palestinian Liberation Organization. In 1976, Zia was elevated to the rank of General and was appointed as Chief of Army Staff, succeeding Tikka Khan, by prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. In July 1977, Zia organized Operation Fair Play, during which he overthrew Bhutto and declared martial law. Zia remained de facto leader for over a year, assuming the presidency in September 1978. He directed Islamization in Pakistan, escalated the country's atomic bomb project and instituted industrialization and deregulation, which significantly improved Pakistan's economy. In 1979, following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Zia adopted an anti-Soviet stance and aided the Afghan mujahidin. He bolstered ties with China and the United States and emphasized Pakistan's role in the Islamic world. Zia held non-partisan elections in 1985 and appointed Muhammad Junejo prime minister, though he accumulated more presidential powers through the Eighth Amendment in the Constitution of Pakistan. He dismissed Junejo's government on charges of economic stagflation and announced general elections in November 1988. In August 1988, while travelling from Bahawalpur to Islamabad, Zia died in an aircraft crash near the Sutlej River. He was buried at the Faisal Mosque in Islamabad.
Zia dominated Pakistan's politics for over a decade and his proxy war against the Soviet Union is credited with stopping an expected Soviet invasion of Pakistan. He is praised by Islamists for his desecularization efforts and opposition to Western culture. Zia's detractors criticize his authoritarianism, his press censorship, his purported religious intolerance and his weakening of democracy in Pakistan. His overall policy has been called Ziaism. Zia is also cited for promoting the political career of Nawaz Sharif, who was thrice elected prime minister.
- ^ Hyman, Ghayur & Kaushik 1989, p. 35
- ^ Rehman, I. A. (17 August 2016). "Ziaul Haq: Master of illusion". Herald Magazine. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
- ^ "Military Dictator, Martial Law, Islamization". Encyclopedia Britannica. 20 July 1998. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
- ^ "Pakistan's history of coups and assassinations". Reuters. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
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