After Kargil debacle, Musharraf helped bring Pak, India 'closest to a settlement' on Kashmir issue: Pak media

Islamabad | Despite his reputation as the man responsible for the "Kargil debacle", Pakistan's former military ruler Gen Pervez Musharraf advocated peace with India, helping to bring both countries the "closest to a settlement" on the Kashmir issue, the media here wrote on Monday on the legacy of the late dictator.

Gen Musharraf will long be remembered as a "hero" and a "villain" for his role in the Kargil War with India in 1999, newspaper said in editorials.

Musharraf, who was president between 2001 and 2008, died in Dubai on Sunday after a prolonged illness. He was 79.

Following in the footsteps of military strongmen Ayub Khan and Zia-ul-Haq, Musharraf will be remembered for bringing the democratic process in the country to an abrupt halt, the Dawn newspaper said in an editorial on the reign of the commando-turned-politician.

Musharraf violated the Constitution twice, earning the dubious distinction of being Pakistan's only military ruler to be sentenced to death for high treason for imposing his second emergency in 2007. "He was something of an enigma as his authoritarian rule was also interspersed with liberal reforms," the newspaper noted.

"Despite his reputation as the man responsible for the Kargil debacle, he advocated for peace with India, helping to bring Pakistan and India the closest to a settlement on the Kashmir issue they had ever been," it said, apparently referring to a four-point formula to resolve the Kashmir issue in 2001.

"He will long be remembered as a hero and a villain for his role in Kargil's 1999 warfare with India. This was why he was contested closely at home and abroad," The Express Tribune said in its editorial on Musharraf.

"Yet the late general's mistakes were considerable, the biggest and most unforgivable being the derailing of the constitutional order," the Dawn said.

Musharraf was a "controversial figure" as far as his way of politics was concerned, The Express Tribune said.

His biggest slip was acting against the then Chief Justice of Pakistan, which kick-started a storm of protests that ultimately led to his phased-out dismissal from the Presidency, it noted.

"As a passionate advocate of Pakistan's tangibles, Pervez Musharraf was a show stopper when it came to defending national interests," it commented.

"Perhaps the most egregious assault the former dictator did though was on democracy," The News International said in its editorial.

After taking over the country via a coup, he had gone on to famously describe the Constitution as a piece of paper which could be thrown away. "It took nine years for democracy to return to Pakistan and that too had to face the brunt of Gen Musharraf's flawed policies..., " the newspaper commented.

However, the enduring legacy left behind by Musharraf remains one of a country that was left ever more divided and militant than it was when he took over – and one that didn't get to face accountability for this.

"Historians will no doubt write chapters about him. But for now, the final chapter of his life and of his role in Pakistan is over," the newspaper said.

The Daily Times newspaper in its editorial noted that Musharraf's divisive regime was marked with human rights abuses, censorship and a complete disintegration of democracy but also a short-lived period of economic growth.

He created an atmosphere of liberalism in the country and started the process of accountability, though the latter proved to be a controversial exercise…Yet the late general's mistakes were considerable, the biggest and most unforgivable being the derailing of the constitutional order.

"The Musharraf era holds numerous lessons for Pakistan's ruling elite, civilian and military. All can learn from his many mistakes, as well as his successes,” the Dawn said.

"His complex and tortured legacy is burned into the Pakistani psyche forever," the The Daily Times commented.