Lawmakers wearing lapel pins with pictures of slain former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto vowed a new dawn for democracy March 17 as Pakistan's Parliament convened for the first time since opponents of the president swept to victory in February elections.

Legislative leaders promised to slash U.S.-backed President Pervez Musharraf's powers.

But the president's foes face challenges, including high inflation and other economic troubles, increased Islamic militancy and the ticklish question of who should be prime minister.