Holding her guilty for the killing of a Pakistani paramilitary soldier during the 2024 protests, leading human rights activist Mahrang Baloch has been sentenced to life in prison by an anti-terrorism court, sparking global outcry.
Baloch has campaigned extensively against disappearances in the Balochistan province.
She once led an all-women march on a 1,600-km stretch to the capital city Islamabad to seek justice for missing family members from Balochistan and other regions of the country.
Sibghatullah, another leader of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) advocacy group and her associate, also faces life behind bars.
The Pakistani government has accused BYC of links with Baloch militants, which the organisation has rejected.
Baloch’s lawyer has also vowed to appeal her conviction for murder and terrorism, news agency Reuters reported.
Who is Mahrang Baloch?
A fierce opponent of enforced disappearances and alleged human rights violations in southwestern Balochistan province, Pakistani authorities detained her since March 2025. She has campaigned in Balochistan since 2009, when her father was allegedly taken by service officers and found dead with alleged signs of torture two years later, BBC reported.
International outcry and mockery of justice accusations
The court proceedings were criticised by the Swedish environmental activist Greta Thunberg, who in a statement said the trial was a “mockery of justice” conducted “in utter secrecy” and levelled allegations of criminalising dissent against the Pakistani state.
Human rights activists criticised the trial as the accused were asked to appear via video link from prison but instead boycotted proceedings.
International human rights NGO Amnesty called the verdict “an affront to the right to a fair trial”.
Isabelle Lassee, Amnesty International’s Acting Regional Director for South Asia, said the verdict “demonstrates how Pakistan’s anti-terrorism laws are being cynically misused to silence peaceful dissent. The conviction and sentence followed an expedited secret trial conducted on jail premises, during which serious concerns were raised over international fair trial standards and due process. No direct evidence was presented linking Mahrang and Shah Jee to the alleged violence”.
Official defence of the judicial outcome
Defending the verdict awarded by the court on Monday, Balochistan government officials said the process followed a fair trial and proved that if protesters use violence and target state officials, they can be prosecuted as terrorists, Reuters reported.
“Those who take the law into their own hands under the guise of peaceful protest, promote violence, and target state officials are, in fact, facilitators of terrorism,” Sarfaraz Bugti, the chief minister of Balochistan province, said.
Mahrang was convicted on the charges of murder and terrorism along with her fellow activist Sibghatullah. (Photo: Reuters) 
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