Musharraf's "Second Coup" In Pakistan

Leader Evokes Lincoln In Announcing State Of Emergency; Bhutto Warns Of Civil War

(CBS/AP)  In the 24 hours since President Gen. Pervez Musharraf declared a state of emergency, Pakistan appears to have inched closer to the precipice of chaos.

Around the country, human rights organizations have been shut down. Musharraf has ordered the arrest of more than a thousand political opponents and lawyers. Some, including the fired head of the Supreme Court, are under house arrest, reports CBS News foreign correspondent Sheila MacVicar. Other have been sent to prison.

Streets in the capital are closed off; the route to the Supreme Court is blocked. Independent news media remain silenced. And criticizing the president or the prime minister is now a crime, adds MacVicar.

The government said they need these measures in order to combat rising extremism. Musharraf said he was forced to suspend the constitution in order to fight growing Islamic extremism, and required "harmony" among the three branches of government in order to fight terrorism.

There have been a series of spectacular attacks recently, most notably the two suicide bombers who attacked former prime minister Benazir Bhutto's convoy when she returned from exile a couple of weeks ago.

Others would point out that Musharraf benefits from suspending the constitution by emergency decree and in particular getting rid of the Supreme Court. One of the key decisions on the court's plate was to rule on the legality of his re-election as president.

Now, as Musharraf faced his critics at home and abroad, he quoted another president facing a divided nation, Abraham Lincoln.

Addressing the Pakistan people on television last night, he briefly spoke in English, appealing directly to America: "Inaction at this moment is suicide for Pakistan and I cannot allow this country to commit suicide."

The general defended his decision with a quote from Lincoln: "By general law life and limb must be protected; yet often a limb must be amputated to save a life."

Suspending basic rights and sacking independent-minded judges may buy Musharraf more time in power, but his assumption of emergency powers could ultimately destabilize Pakistan further and embolden Islamic militants.

Opposition leader Benezir Bhutto agreed that Musharraf's actions amounted to a "second coup." In an interview with CBS News correspondent Dave Browde, she said this latest action against the country's judiciary and to declare a new provisional constitution will lead to protests. "I know that the judges are not going to take this lying down, the lawyers aren't going to take this lying down.

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Listen to the CBS News interview with Bhutto

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"It's very important that General Musharraf be pressed to restore the constitution, to release the political prisoners, respect the judiciary and hold elections under an independent election commission."

Bhutto was worried about the impact of yesterday's events on Pakistan, telling Browde that extremists could exploit the situation to their own advantage, and that if Musharraf stays on his present course, chaos would ensue "in a day or two."

"If elections are postponed it bodes very ill for the nation that as extremist supporters gain more time, our country could be facing not only an Islamic takeover but really a civil war."

However, CBS News regional consultant Jere Van Dyk, now in Afghanistan, believes Bhutto is incorrectly assessing the potential for civil war. "She's trying to tap fear in the West by saying that there is a possibility of civil war. The civil war has been going on now for the last four months, particularly in the western regions of Pakistan, which is why Gen. Musharraf called for this emergency rule.

"The militancy along the frontier has spread, just like these wildfires in Southern California, closer and closer if you will to settled areas, urban areas, civilization," Van Dyk said. "In the last four months 800 people were killed in suicide attacks throughout the country. General Musharraf said, 'Enough, I've got to stop it.'

"There's no way that there will be a civil war with all the military and all the police in the streets today," Van Dyk notes.

The U.S. Embassy in Islamabad is advising caution for Americans in the country, however, recommending all U.S. citizens stay in their residences.

U.S. To Review Aid To Terror-Fighting Ally
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday the U.S. will review its aid to Pakistan after the country's military ruler suspended the constitution. Her announcement puts in question some of the billions in U.S. assistance to a close terrorism-fighting ally.

On a Mideast trip now overshadowed by the unfolding crisis in nuclear-armed Pakistan, Rice suggested that the Bush administration would not suspend aid wholesale.

The U.S. has provided about $11 billion to Pakistan since 2001, when Pakistan's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, made a strategic shift to ally with the United States after the Sept. 11 attacks.

"Some of the aid that goes to Pakistan is directly related to the counterterrorism mission," Rice told reporters traveling with her. "We just have to review the situation. But I would be very surprised if anyone wants the president to set aside or ignore" the responsibility to national security that can come through such cooperation, she said.

The top U.S. diplomat said she had not spoken directly with Musharraf since he announced what she called "extraconstitutional" moves on Saturday.

Western allies will find it increasingly awkward to support a military leader who twice seized power by force and has become a hated figure to many at home.