Pakistani Court Gives Rights Lawyers 10-Year Prison Terms

Inside Adiala Jail, a judge sentenced human rights lawyers Imaan Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha to 10 years in prison each. The Anti-Terrorism Court convicted them over a 2024 incident involving road barriers and police guarding the route of a visiting cricket team. Their sentences run at the same time, so the longest term sets their actual time in prison. ^8,11

The case began after prosecutors accused the couple of removing barriers and obstructing officers in Islamabad on 25 October 2024, while England’s cricket team was touring Pakistan. They denied the charges and pleaded not guilty. The court also gave them one-year and two-year terms for obstructing and using force against public servants. It ordered those sentences to run at the same time as the 10-year term. It cleared them of other charges, including criminal intimidation and conspiracy. ^2,8

The 10-year term has drawn scrutiny because the trial took place in jail. The UN expert on judges and lawyers, Margaret Satterthwaite, said limits on the couple’s contact with their lawyers raised concerns about a fair trial. Amnesty International also criticised the proceedings, saying the couple had been kept behind a cage-like structure during hearings. Their family says they were not allowed to defend themselves through their own lawyer or given key legal papers. ^5,6

The case also follows the couple’s jailing in January over social media posts critical of the military. Pakistan’s Supreme Court suspended those earlier sentences and granted bail in September, but police arrested them again in this case the same day. Mazari’s mother says the family will challenge the new verdict in the Supreme Court. The appeal will test whether a higher court upholds the convictions and the way the jail trial was held. ^2,5