By Boris Esono Nwenfor
BUEA, Cameroon – International human rights organisation, Amnesty International, has called on Cameroonian authorities to immediately release 36 opposition supporters who have been arbitrarily detained for five years following peaceful protests in 2020.
On September 22, 2020, more than 500 people were arrested during demonstrations organised by the opposition party Movement for the Renaissance of Cameroon (MRC). While most were later released, 36 remain incarcerated in Kondengui Prison in Yaoundé, serving sentences of five to seven years imposed by a military court.
“The Cameroonian authorities must immediately release these individuals, who have committed no crime other than to express their opinion,” said Marceau Sivieude, Amnesty International’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa.
“The authorities must address these concerns and ensure that no person is arbitrarily arrested or detained solely for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly. The authorities must also refrain from trying civilians in military courts, as it is incompatible with the right to a fair trial and therefore in violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.”
According to Hippolyte Meli Tiakouang, coordinator of the collective of defense lawyers for detained opposition members, 36 appeals filed since 2022 remain unresolved before Cameroon’s Supreme Court. “Thirty-six appeals have been lodged since 2022 with the Supreme Court of Cameroon, which has not yet ruled on any of them. The delays are unreasonable. One might think that the judiciary drags things out so that the sentences handed down will be carried out,” said Hippolyte Meli Tiakouang.
In November 2022, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention declared the imprisonment of 15 MRC activists unlawful, but the authorities have yet to comply.
The call for release comes amid sharp restrictions ahead of Cameroon’s October 12 presidential election. President Paul Biya, 92, in power for nearly 43 years, is seeking an eighth term against 11 challengers.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has already warned of shrinking civic space. On August 4, at least 54 MRC supporters were arrested near the Constitutional Council in Yaoundé during pre-election hearings. Many were later released on bail, though 23 still face charges for “inciting revolt.” Days later, another opposition supporter who posted videos calling for protests was arrested in Douala and is currently being tried by a military court.
“We are deeply disappointed that the authorities have failed to recognise the arbitrary nature of the ongoing detention of these protesters,” said Marceau Sivieude.
“These opposition supporters should never have been arrested in the first place. The fact that they were arrested points to the alarming crackdown on freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in Cameroon. The charges against those who are prosecuted for exercising their human rights must be dropped.”
“In recent years, anyone who dares criticise the authorities, whether a human rights defender, a journalist, a political activist or a protester, runs the risk of being arbitrarily arrested and detained, tortured or otherwise ill-treated, and tried by military courts. Unfortunately, this trend increases as the presidential election approaches. This travesty of justice must end,” Marceau Sivieude added.
Amnesty International has urged the government to uphold its obligations under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, both of which guarantee freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly.
“The authorities must uphold the country’s international human rights obligations, including under the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to which Cameroon is a state party.”
