Jurist’s body Lawyers for Lawyers published an open letter on Wednesday condemning the “ongoing judicial harassment” of lawyers Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chatta and urging the government to drop the cases against them.

The National Cybercrime Investigation Agency (NCIA) had registered a case against Mazari and Chattha, accusing the two of attempting to incite divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts and of creating the impression that the armed forces were engaged in terrorism within the country.

Their lawyer, appointed by the court, refused to cross-examine the prosecution’s witnesses during the most recent hearing on Tuesday, saying that he could not “ask questions dictated” to him.

In a press release, Lawyers for Lawyers, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute, the Law Society of England and Wales, the International Commission of Jurists and the International Observatory of Lawyers at Risk expressed concern over the case.

“We have received credible information indicating that the recent indictment and criminal proceedings against the couple, marred by serious irregularities and the denial of due process guarantees, are intended to obstruct their legitimate legal work and retaliate against them for exercising their right to freedom of expression,” it read.

Lawyers for Lawyers noted tweets made by the couple criticising the armed forces and that the trial progressed rapidly but was “marred by procedural irregularities and apparent judicial bias, raising serious concerns about [its] fairness and legitimacy”.

“The ongoing trial is part of a broader troubling trend of judicial harassment aimed at exhausting the lawyers’ time and resources, discrediting their work, and obstructing their ability to represent victims of state violence,” Lawyers for Lawyers said.

The body urged the authorities to:

• Immediately drop all charges and end criminal proceedings against Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chattha related to their legitimate professional activities and exercise of freedom of expression;
• Immediately cease all acts of harassment, intimidation, and improper interference in their legitimate professional work;
• Ensure that all lawyers in Pakistan can perform their professional duties without fear of reprisals and free of all undue restrictions in accordance with international standards.