Family, legal team of Imaan and Hadi voice concerns over medical facilities at Adiala jail

ISLAMABAD: The families and legal team of incarcerated lawyers and human rights activists Imaan Zainab Mazari-Hazir and Hadi Ali Chatta have voiced concerns over the medical facilities available at Adiala jail.

On January 24, rights lawyers Imaan and Hadi were sentenced by an Islamabad sessions court to a total of 17 years in jail on multiple charges under the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca).

Following their convictions, which were widely condemned by lawyers and United Nations (UN) experts, the couple challenged their convictions before the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on February 7.

In a statement issued on Monday, the family and legal team said they were satisfied with the weekly meetings with the couple at the jail. However, they said Imaan had been experiencing health issues for the past three weeks, raising concerns about the medical facilities available at the jail.

“Imaan had initially complained of heavy bleeding from her gums, but there was no dentist available to examine her at the jail. We arranged for medicine to be sent to her after consulting our dentist, but not all of it reached her,” the statement alleged.

The following week, Imaan also suffered from stomach problems, and medical attention remained inadequate, it added.

“Worse, a medicine, Zedron, meant primarily for cancer patients and which specifically states that it should not be given to women of childbearing age, was administered to her to stop her nausea and vomiting,” the statement claimed.

For the past week, the family and legal team said Imaan had been suffering from a serious chest infection.

“They conducted a blood test which showed a high white blood cell count, indicating an infection. She needs to undergo a chest X-ray, but the jail authorities have still not arranged one to determine the cause of the infection and rule out serious diseases such as tuberculosis,” they said.

They maintained that their concern was compounded by the alarming fact that inmates in the women’s section of Adiala jail who had been diagnosed with infectious diseases were not isolated but housed alongside other inmates, as well as children.

“The women’s medical facilities and the availability of doctors leave a lot to be desired,” they stated.

“This is a health crisis in the jail, and the well-being of prisoners is the responsibility of the state, which must not take it lightly,” the statement said.

They reiterated that all these health issues could be avoided if their applications for suspension of sentence were heard in a timely manner.

They urged the jail authorities and the government to arrange Imaan’s chest X-ray as soon as possible and provide adequate medical facilities, including dental care, to all women prisoners.

They emphasised that detainees with infectious diseases should be isolated or quarantined with dignity to protect other detainees; that specialist doctors and access to relevant medication should be provided to all detainees; and that the government should not oppose the applications for suspension of sentence filed by Imaan and Hadi, which are scheduled to be heard by the IHC on Sept 8, 2026.