Bhutto's party woos Pakistan Islamists

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani opposition parties thatinflicted a big defeat on President Pervez Musharraf's alliesin last week's election are trying to woo Islamists to build acoalition that could threaten the rule of the U.S. ally.

Asif Ali Zardari, widower of assassinated former PrimeMinister Benazir Bhutto and leader of her party, on Thursdaynight met Fazl-ur-Rehman, a hard-line Islamic cleric anddiscussed the possibility of forming a "government of nationalconsensus".

Representatives of both leaders were due to meet again onFriday evening for more discussions.

Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party (PPP) won most seats inthe February 18 election, but not enough to rule alone. ThePakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) of another former primeminister, Nawaz Sharif, came second.

Zardari has called for a coalition government made up ofall parties except Musharraf's main ally, the Pakistan MuslimLeague (PML), which suffered a humiliating defeat in the polls.

"We support the idea of a government of national consensusbecause it is in the interest of the country and nation," AbdulGhafoor Haideri, a close aide to Rehman, told Reuters.

"No party can address the problems of the country alone,"said Haideri, who is leading his side in the talks with thePPP.

Voters rejected the Islamist parties that emerged as amajor bloc after the last election in 2002.

The PPP is already in talks with Sharif's party on theformation of a coalition.

The PPP is seen as the most liberal and Western-leaningPakistani party and analysts say it has nothing in common withthe Islamist groups, some of which sympathise with the Taliban,except opposition to the unpopular Musharraf.

Haideri said his party, which has seven seats in theNational Assembly, would vote to rescind Musharraf's power todismiss the government and for the abolition of a NationalSecurity Council formed by Musharraf to oversee the affairs ofthe government.

Important U.S. ally Musharraf seized power in a 1999 coupwhen he was army chief.

(Editing by Robert Birsel and Alex Richardson)