Postwar Difficulties

Bhutto worked to restore constitutional rule, and in 1973 a new constitution was adopted. In 1977 elections were held and Bhutto's party was retained in power. The opposition parties, charging fraud, demanded new elections and launched a civil disobedience campaign. The army, led by General Mohammed Zia ul-Haq, then seized control. Zia made himself president in 1978. In 1979, Bhutto, who was convicted of instigating the murder of a political opponent, was executed. Zia worked to transform Pakistan into a more Islamic country, replacing laws based on Western legal concepts with Islamic law.

In 1988 Zia died in a plane crash. In elections that followed, Benazir Bhutto, the former president's daughter, became prime minister. Under Bhutto, Pakistan rejoined the Commonwealth of Nations and opened itself to international investment. The economy struggled, however, and Bhutto was accused of corruption and removed from office in 1990. The subsequent government collapsed in 1993 and Bhutto returned to power. In 1996 she was again dismissed.

In early 1990, tension and violence increased between India and Pakistan over the status of Kashmir. While leaders of India and Pakistan attempted to negotiate a settlement, the violence continued. In 1998,Pakistan detonated a series of nuclear devices in response to India's testing of nuclear weapons weeks earlier. Both countries drew international condemnation and saw crucial foreign aid and investment withheld in protest.

In December 2001, India blamed militant groups operating in Pakistan for an attack on its Parliament that killed or injured more than 20 people. The incident led the two countries to the brink of war. By the end of 2003, discussions between the two countries had led to a formal cease-fire in the hostilities along their common border, including Kashmir.

From 1988 to 1999, two parties governed Pakistan alternately—the Pakistan People's Party, led by Benazir Bhutto, the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto; and the Pakistan Muslim League, led by Mohammad Nawaz Sharif.

In October, 1999, General Pervez Musharraf led a military coup that overthrew Sharif's government. Musharraf suspended Parliament, suspended the Constitution, and declared himself the head of a transitional government. Sharif was later exiled to Saudi Arabia. In 2001, Musharraf declared himself president and formally dissolved Parliament. In a national referendum in April, 2002, voters approved the extension of Musharraf's term as president for five years. In August, 2002, he announced sweeping changes to Pakistan's Constitution that were designed to cement his hold on power. In late 2002 and early 2003, the Constitution, as amended by Musharraf, was restored, and elections were held for both houses of Parliament.

Many members of Parliament protested Musharraf's changes to the Constitution. At the end of 2003, a compromise was reached, and Parliament endorsed a revised version of Musharraf's changes. As part of the compromise, Musharraf agreed to step down as head of Pakistan's armed forces by the end of 2004. However, in December, 2004, he announced that he would continue to serve as military chief. Parliament had passed a law the previous month allowing Musharraf to remain in the post.

In October, 2005, a major earthquake hit north of the city of Islamabad. More than 73,000 people were killed in northern Pakistan and Pakistani-held Kashmir, and at least 1,300 were killed in Indian-held Kashmir. Over 3 million people were left homeless throughout the region.