Pakistani human rights lawyers sentenced over social media postsCEFR A2
20 Feb 2026
Adapted from Syed Salman Mehdi, Global Voices • CC BY 3.0
Photo by Hamid Roshaan, Unsplash
Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha are two Pakistani human rights lawyers. On 24 January 2026 they were sentenced to 17 years in prison after posts on social media about alleged military abuses.
Prosecutors say the couple posted tweets between 2021 and 2025 that criticized enforced disappearances and other abuses. A cybercrime agency filed a complaint in 2025 and the court later indicted them under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA). The pair were arrested on 23 January 2026 while driving to court despite having protective bail.
Defence lawyers said they could not fully examine the evidence. Rights groups and international bodies condemned the verdict.
Difficult words
- sentence — officially decide a punishment for someonesentenced
- allege — say someone did something without proofalleged
- indict — formally charge someone with a crimeindicted
- evidence — information or objects used to prove facts
- condemn — say publicly that something is wrongcondemned
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Discussion questions
- Should lawyers be allowed to post on social media about possible abuses? Why or why not?
- Why is it important for defence lawyers to examine the evidence fully? Give one reason.
