Parliament jeers Pakistan's leader

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - President Gen. Pervez Musharraf recently faced two assassination attempts and launched a historic peace process with nuclear-armed rival India, but opposition lawmakers offered no praise Saturday during his first speech to Parliament, heckling him as a military dictator and demanding he resign.

The noisy disruption highlighted deep-seated resentment at the military's persistent involvement in politics and blunted Musharraf's efforts to portray himself as a legitimate ruler since seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1999.

Opposition members chanted "go Musharraf, go Musharraf" and "friends of dictators are traitors" throughout his 40-minute, nationally televised speech. Musharraf supporters countered by thumping tables in applause, at times making it difficult to hear him.

Meanwhile, two domestic flights were diverted, preventing at least three opposition legislators from attending the speech. Officials gave conflicting reasons for the diversions.

Security was extremely tight at Parliament, with armored personnel carriers patrolling, after the two attempts on the president's life last month. The two bombings were blamed on Islamic militants who despise the president for allying Pakistan to the United States in the war on terror.

In his speech, Musharraf spoke of the needs to crush terrorism, to keep Pakistan's nuclear weapons secure and to prevent proliferation of atomic arms. He also urged a resolution of the long-standing conflict with India over the divided territory of Kashmir.

"A few people are committing the curse of extremism in our society ... who want to impose their narrow-minded ideas on others," Musharraf told the special joint session of both houses of Parliament.

The address capped a highly charged two weeks. Musharraf struck a deal with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to start talks on the Kashmir standoff; the military has stepped up operations in tribal borderlands to hunt down al-Qaida fugitives; and a car bombing injured 15 people outside a church in the southern city of Karachi.

Amid accusations that Pakistani nuclear technology has proliferated to Iran, Libya and North Korea, Musharraf promised to strengthen Pakistan's deterrent while stressing the need to "assure the world that we are a responsible nation and will not let nuclear weapons spread."

Musharraf, swapping his army uniform for a traditional white jacket, concluded his speech with a salute and punching his fists in the air.

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