- Cecilie Roang says the envoy’s actions “conform with international law.”
- Norway watches court proceedings around the world: official.
- “Reporting events at home is the central task of diplomacy.”
Norway’s Foreign Ministry defended its ambassador’s presence at a Supreme Court hearing for Imaan Mazari and her husband, Hadi Ali Chattha, saying the move was “in line with international law.”
“This legal presence and observation of a court hearing in the receiving state is within the functions of embassies and is in line with international law,” a Norwegian media outlet reported. Dagbladet cited Cecilie Roang, senior advisor at the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The statement comes two days after Pakistan’s foreign ministry summoned Norway’s ambassador for his presence at the court hearing in Islamabad, with officials claiming the act constituted interference in the country’s internal affairs.
FO spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said the Additional Foreign Secretary (Europe) summoned the Norwegian diplomat for his attendance at a court proceeding, calling it “a violation of diplomatic protocol and relevant international law.”
“Noting that his actions amount to interference in the country’s internal affairs, the ambassador was urged to adhere to the established norms of diplomatic engagement, as outlined in the relevant articles of the Vienna Convention,” Andrabi added.
In a statement issued a day ago, Roang confirmed that the Norwegian ambassador attended and observed a hearing at the Supreme Court, highlighting that such actions fall within the routine functions of diplomatic missions and were “both legal and completely normal.”
He said Norway, like many other countries, regularly observes judicial proceedings around the world, particularly in cases of public interest. “Reporting at home on events in the country of service is a central task of diplomacy. Legally attending public court hearings is not an unusual way to gather knowledge,” he added.
While the FO raised objections to the Norwegian envoy’s presence at the court hearing, Mazari defended his actions as a routine occurrence.
Mazari, responding to an X user’s post criticizing the Norwegian ambassador’s presence at the hearing, defended his actions, saying diplomats “routinely observe” such proceedings.
“[…] Diplomats routinely observe judicial proceedings, which is not the same as taking a position in any case. “This is standard practice,” he wrote in his X post.
Meanwhile, a three-member SC bench accepted Mazari’s plea against the verdict of the Islamabad High Court, which had dismissed the lawyer’s plea seeking to stop the trial in the court of additional sessions judges.
The court, in its verdict, said that the trial in this case should be stayed until the decision of the IHC.
Mazari and Chattha were booked in a case registered by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) under Sections 9, 10, 11 and 26 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act (Peca), 2016 and were subsequently charged on October 30.
The first information report (FIR) alleges that the couple tried to incite divisions on linguistic grounds through social media posts.
