Musharraf urges Pakistan lawyers against anarchy

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf on Thursday called on lawyers opposing his rule to stop spreading anarchy as tensions flared in the country just days after a new government made up of his opponents took office.

Violence broke out in parts of the country's commercial capital, Karachi, on Wednesday after anti-Musharraf lawyers clashed with his supporters in a court.

Five people were killed in shooting in the city while six charred bodies of lawyers, two of them women, were recovered from a building housing lawyers' chambers after it was set ablaze.

Violence in Karachi, which has a long history of political and sectarian unrest, is the first since the new coalition led by Pakistan People's Party of assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was sworn in.

"I appeal to the lawyers not to spread anarchy. Law and order should be maintained," Musharraf told reporters before departing for a five-day visit to China.

Musharraf has become growingly isolated since his allies suffered crushing defeat in February 18 elections.

The party of Nawaz Sharif, the prime minister Musharraf overthrew in a military coup in 1999, is a major partner in the new coalition and demands him to stand down.

Bhutto's party has been ambivalent on the issue but wants to clip the president's authority, including powers to dismiss the government.

TENSIONS HIGH

Tensions have been running high in the country in recent days after Musharraf's opponents thrashed two of his close allies.

"I strongly condemn all these incidents. We should adopt civilized behavior," Musharraf said.

Holding placards inscribed with "killer democracy is unacceptable," his allies walked out of the National Assembly and staged a protest in front of the parliament.

However, hundreds of lawyers shouting "Go, Musharraf go," rallied in the cities of Lahore and Rawalpindi.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, a former Bhutto aide, condemned the violence and said it was aimed at derailing the democracy.

"I'm convinced, these acts are being fuelled by those who don't want democracy to flourish. Instead they want to derail the democratic process," he told the National Assembly.

Lawyers have waged a campaign against Musharraf since he tried to dismiss Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry in March last year.

In November, Musharraf sacked Chaudhry and dozens of other judges when he imposed emergency rule for six weeks to pre-empt a ruling against the legitimacy of his re-election in October while still remaining army chief.

The new coalition government last month promised to reinstate the judges.

(Additional reporting by Kamran Haider; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Sanjeev Miglani)