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Musharraf releases thousands of opponents

Riot police with canes beat a journalist with canes Tuesday while they scuffle in Karachi at a protest against the state of emergency and crackdown against the press. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Paul Haven Associated Press
Riot police with canes beat a journalist with canes Tuesday while they scuffle in Karachi at a protest against the state of emergency and crackdown against the press. Associated Press (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – President Gen. Pervez Musharraf freed thousands of opponents from jails Tuesday in a sign he is rolling back a wave of repression under emergency rule and flew to Saudi Arabia to talk about the future of an exiled rival, Nawaz Sharif.

Saudi officials said there were efforts to arrange a meeting between Musharraf and Sharif, who was ousted as prime minister by the general’s 1999 coup. However, a Pakistani official said Musharraf’s goal was to prevent Sharif from returning before parliamentary elections Jan. 8.

Back home, the political caldron continued to boil, with dozens of journalists detained for several hours after clashing with police during a protest and newly freed opposition lawyers vowing to keep up their agitation.

But there was also some relief for Musharraf. Ex-premier Benazir Bhutto, leader of a key opposition party, deferred a decision on whether to boycott the elections, which the West hopes will produce a moderate government able to stand up to Pakistan’s rising Islamic extremism.

The Interior Ministry said 3,400 people had been released from jail, among them political activists and lawyers at the forefront of protests against Musharraf before and after he decreed emergency rule Nov. 3, purging the Supreme Court and taking independent TV news off the air.

Ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema said more than 2,000 others remained behind bars but would be released shortly. “The process has started. More are being released today,” he said.