Lawyers in Islamabad on Monday protested outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) against the arrest and conviction of Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, over controversial social media posts targeting state institutions.
Led by IHC Bar President Syed Wajid Ali Gilani, the demonstration also saw drew advocates of the Islamabad Bar Council (IBC), High Court Bar and District Bar. The protesters raised slogans against police and carried banners demanding “Justice for Lawyers.”
The IHC, IBC, Islamabad High Court Bar Association (IHCBA), and Islamabad District Bar also issued a joint call for a three-day strike, with lawyers only appearing before the high court in urgent matters.
Reportedly, there are plans for similar protests by Bars of the rest of the country though this remains as-yet-unconfirmed.
Also on Monday, a case in the bench of IHC Chief Justice Sarfaraz Dogar could not proceed after the court was informed lawyers were staging a strike over the arrest of lawyers. Upon the CJ’s inquiring of which lawyers were arrested, a lawyer informed him that Mazari and Chattha had been taken into custody. The chief justice then asked whether they were considered lawyers, observing that if the bar considered them lawyers, their representatives could convey their position in chambers.
Mazari and Chattha were both sentenced to a total of 17 years’ imprisonment last week over controversial social media posts after Judge Afzal Majoka found them guilty under various sections of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act.