PEACE-MAKER
Former Speaker of the House Jose C. De Venecia Jr.
Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, who served as his country’s president from 2001 to 2008, recently died in Dubai where he had been living in self-imposed exile since 2016.
He was the first Pakistani head of state to visit the Philippines.
Musharraf, an Armed Forces chief, seized power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless military coup in 1999, then assumed the presidency in 2001.
As president, he brought his country back to the path of economic recovery and modernization. He pursued policies of liberalization, deregulation, and privatization, which were hailed by the international community.
He was a key figure in the battle against terrorism and violent extremism. Musharraf became an ally of the United States in its war on terror following the 9/11 terror attacks.
However, his presidency was also marred by allegations of human rights violations and oppression.
On our invitation as then Speaker of the House, President Musharraf addressed the joint session of the House of Representatives and Senate in April 2005, in the course of his state visit to the Philippines.
It was also during our time as House leader that, on our humble invitation, US President George W. Bush addressed the joint session of the Philippine Congress on October 2003; Chinese President Hu Jintao on April 2005; and Indian President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam on February 2006.
Pakistan has a special place in our heart as we have built friendships in that South Asian country during our modest foray into political party- and parliamentary diplomacy for many years.
Benazir Bhutto, who served as the first women prime minister of Pakistan and in the Muslim world, addressed the inaugural of ICAPP, the International Conference of Asian Political Parties, which we founded and launched in Manila in September 2000. Our wife Gina and we were heartbroken when she was assassinated in December 2007, for she became a dear friend to us.
Her 34-year-old son, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, is now the foreign minister of Pakistan and the youngest to be appointed to the post.
We first met the then 22-year-old Bilawal when he spoke at the conference of ICAPP in Nanning, China. Like his late beloved mother Benazir, Bilawal is bright, eloquent, and outspoken.
Then there’s Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, the brilliant international relations expert, who is chairman of the powerful Senate committee on defense and defense production, and earlier, the committee on foreign relations.
Senator Mushahid also serves as co-chairman of our 350-member International Conference of Asian Political Parties. He co-founded with us in 2006 the Asian Parliamentary Assembly, APA, which is now composed of more than 40 parliaments in Asia.
The Philippines and Pakistan established diplomatic relations on Sept. 8, 1949. Presidents Diosdado Macapagal and Fidel V. Ramos visited Pakistan in 1962 and 1997, respectively.
Pakistani prime ministers Husseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, Mohammad Khan Junejo, and Benazir Bhutto have also visited our country.