Pakistani Leader Says He’ll Hold Elections
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has told his national security council that he will hold parliamentary elections before Feb. 15 and give up his role as military leader.
The general’s comments, shown on national television, indicated that he believed the supreme court he filled with new appointees would uphold his re-election as president, the New York Times reports.
Opposition leader Benazir Bhutto said Musharraf’s comments were vague. He did not set a specific date for elections and his security forces continued to arrest Bhutto supporters, rounding up as many as 500 party members. Bhutto said she still intended to hold a rally on Friday, the Washington Post reports.
Some news accounts say about 3,000 Pakistani lawyers have been arrested for protesting Musharraf’s invocation of emergency powers, ABAJournal.com noted. The general suspended the Pakistan constitution and fired the entire supreme court.
