The undersigned organisations strongly condemn the arbitrary arrest and subsequent conviction of Pakistani human rights lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha and call for their immediate release and measures to ensure the conviction is set aside. On 24 January, a District and Sessions Court in Islamabad sentenced the lawyers to 17 years’ imprisonment and Rs. 36 million fines each over alleged “anti-state” social media posts, following their arrest the previous day. This constitutes the latest escalation in a pattern of continued harassment against the couple in retaliation for the legitimate exercise of their human rights and professional functions.
Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir is a human rights lawyer who has represented victims of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial killings, and custodial abuse, frequently challenging the legality of state practices. Her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, is a human rights lawyer and criminal law specialist who has defended individuals facing spurious charges of blasphemy and provided pro bono legal support in cases involving sexual violence, enforced disappearances, and death row prisoners. Both lawyers have faced targeted reprisals, including harassment through judicial processes, for their human rights and legal work, as well as for their outspoken advocacy for accountability and the rule of law.