Ex-Pakistan president Musharraf in Dubai for treatment

Dubai - The former president has remained free even though there was a travel ban on him.

Former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf arrived in Dubai on Friday morning for medical treatment, just days after a three-year travel ban was lifted.
In Pakistan, Musharraf is facing a slew of charges, including treason and murder related to the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and that of an influential cleric.
He has pleaded not guilty to all charges. The former president has remained free even though there was a travel ban on him.
In 2014, a provincial court ruled that Musharraf be allowed to leave Pakistan, but that ruling was swiftly appealed by the Federal Government. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court rejected the appeal.
"I am going abroad for treatment but will return to face the cases against me," a party spokesman in Karachi quoted Musharraf as saying. "I am a commando. I love my motherland."
The spokesman said that Musharraf has already reached his residence in Dubai, where he will stay for several weeks before seeking further medical attention in the United States.
"Six to eight weeks are required for the treatment and then he would go back home," noted Dr Amjad Malik, a Dubai spokesman for Musharraf's All Pakistan Muslim League party.
Khaleej Times attempted to contact Pakistan Muslim League officials in Dubai on Friday without any success.
Earlier this week, Reuters quoted Farough Naseem, Musharraf's lawyer, as saying that the former president also planned to visit his ailing mother in Dubai.
Musharraf's travel ban dates back to March 2013, when he returned from self-imposed exile in the UK and Dubai to Pakistan in a botched attempt to contest elections in the country. He was banned from taking part in the polls and instead faced a number of criminal charges.
In 1999, while serving as Pakistan's Army Chief, Musharraf seized power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. He ruled the country until being ousted in a 2008 election.
Some Pakistani politicians have expressed their disapproval of the ruling on Musharraf.
Following the Press conference announcing the government's decision, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, tweeted that the government had "set him free."
"SMBB [Benazir Bhutto] deprived him from his real power: his uniform.AZ [Asif Ali Zardari] threw him out of Presidency.What did you do? Set him free?" he tweeted.
reporters@Khaleejtimes.com

• Dubai
• Pakistan