By VOA News
13 March 2009

 Pakistan's government widened a ban on protests Friday and rounded up dozens of activists in a bid to stifle a second day of anti-government demonstrations.

Authorities blocked public gatherings in North West Frontier Province, similar to earlier bans imposed on central Punjab and southern Sindh provinces. Hundreds of activists were taken into police custody overnight in North West Frontier Province.

Supporters of opposition leader Nawaz Sharif are trying to defy the crackdown. But police successfully stopped a convoy as it tried to enter Sindh province earlier Friday.  

Organizers had intended the so-called "long march" to begin in cities across the country and culminate in a sit-in at the parliament in Islamabad on Monday.  

Meanwhile, the government said it is seeking talks with opposition leaders to resolve the standoff.

Opposition activists led by Mr. Sharif are demanding that President Asif Ali Zardari reinstate the former Supreme Court chief justice, Iftikhar Mohammed Chaudhry, ousted by former President Pervez Musharraf.

Top U.S. officials have expressed concern about the situation. Calls have been made to President Zardari and Mr. Sharif, urging them to negotiate a solution to the brewing political crisis.

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