Malala Condemns 17-Year Sentences for Pak Lawyers Over Social Media Posts

• Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai condemned the 17-year sentences given to Pakistani human rights lawyers Zainab Mazari and Hadi Ali Chattha for social media posts.
• Malala stated that arresting and sentencing civil society activists for social media posts is a violation of fundamental human rights.
• The couple was accused of defaming the state and its security institutions, with Mazari's tweets allegedly portraying the agenda of banned Baloch separatist groups and the Pakistani Taliban.
• The verdict cited Mazari for consistently disseminating "offensive, misleading and anti-state contents" on social media, violating the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (PECA).
• Amnesty International criticized the sentencing as judicial harassment, highlighting shrinking space for dissent in Pakistan for activists and journalists.

Why It Matters: Malala Yousafzai criticized Pakistan's 17-year sentences for lawyers over social media, citing human rights violations.