Pakistani opposition parties tried to forge a united front today against military president Pervez Musharraf who insisted a state of emergency was necessary for fair elections.
Gen Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup, declared emergency rule in nuclear-armed Pakistan on November 3rd when he suspended the constitution, rounded up thousands of opponents and curbed the media.
"We are ready to set aside our differences with the People's Party," former prime minister Nawaz Sharif said from Saudi Arabia, referring to the party of another former prime minister, Benazir Bhutto.
Ms Bhutto, who had been in power-sharing talks with Gen Musharraf for months, returned home in October from eight years of self-imposed exile and aimed to work with the president on a transition to civilian rule.
Then came the crackdown. After police stifled a protest by Ms Bhutto yesterday and put her under house arrest, she announced her talks with Gen Musharraf were over, and for the first time called on him to step down as president as well as army chief.
She said her party might boycott a parliamentary election Gen Musharraf has promised to hold by January 9th.
Ms Bhutto also contacted old rivals including Islamist alliance leader Qazi Hussain Ahmed, cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, whom police detained on today, and Mr Sharif's party to urge a "coalition of interests", party officials said.
"She's trying to unite all political parties on a minimum agenda to return the country to true democracy," said Latif Khosa, a senator and aide to Ms Bhutto.
"The minimum agenda is the ouster of General Musharraf and formation of a neutral government of national consensus to organise free and fair elections."
Mr Sharif and Ms Bhutto were bitter rivals during the late 1980s and 1990s. They both served two terms as prime minister until Gen Musharraf ousted Mr Sharif in 1999.
Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte is expected to visit Pakistan on Friday to underscore US concerns about the situation.