Every four and a half years, the human rights record of each United Nations member state is reviewed by its peers in the Human Rights Council in Geneva as part of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR). On November 14, 2023, Cameroon’s situation will be examined based on information submitted by the Cameroonian government, national and international non-governmental organizations, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. This is an opportunity for member states to engage with the Cameroonian government regarding its commitments to human rights and to make recommendations aimed at improving the protection and respect for human rights in the country.
Therefore, we, civil society organizations, publicly call on United Nations member states to issue strong recommendations for the protection and respect of human rights during the Universal Periodic Review of Cameroon. We also insist that the Cameroonian government take note of these recommendations and take necessary measures for their implementation.
We particularly want to draw attention to the human rights situation in the Northwest and Southwest regions of Cameroon. The inhabitants of the Anglophone regions are victims of illegal killings, murders, sexual violence, home destruction, and abductions committed by Cameroonian defense and security forces, pro-government militias, and separatist armed groups. The latest report from Amnesty International on Cameroon (‘With or Against Us,’ published in July 2023) documented these atrocities, particularly in the Northwest region.
Atrocities denounced on both sides in the Northwest and Southwest regions
Since October 1, 2017, the date of the proclamation of the independence of the “Federal Republic of Ambazonia” by separatist groups, clashes between the Cameroonian army and separatist armed groups, commonly known as “Ambazonians” or “Ambas,” have not ceased. The inhabitants of the Northwest and Southwest regions are caught in the crossfire. Testimonies from these residents describe how the military, suspecting them of collaborating with separatists, pour gasoline on their houses before setting them on fire and commit violence against women and girls in retaliation for attacks against them. On the other hand, separatist armed groups assault villages, kidnap people, demand ransoms, steal livestock, and kill those suspected of collaborating with Cameroonian authorities or not adhering to the new rules they impose.
In response, the Cameroonian government has often reacted with new human rights violations, arbitrarily arresting and detaining individuals accused of being armed separatists or supporting them. To date, hundreds of people are detained, prosecuted, or judged by military courts, whose jurisdiction should be reserved for military offenses according to international human rights standards. Several defendants have spent at least a year in prison without access to a judge. At the same time, although the government claims to have opened investigations into atrocities committed by armed separatists or defense and security forces, there is a lack of transparency about judicial follow-up, raising concerns about impunity and leaving the majority of victims without justice. There are also numerous initiatives to silence human rights defenders, activists, academics, lawyers, and journalists who denounce atrocities committed in the context of armed violence in the Anglophone regions.
Given the gravity of these abuses and human rights violations, we are concerned about the silence surrounding this crisis, which has not received sufficient attention and action at the international and regional levels. Many partner states of Cameroon have continued their military cooperation with the country, despite the real risk of military equipment provided to the armed forces being used or diverted to militias or armed separatists to commit atrocities in the Anglophone regions.
In light of this situation, we call on the Cameroonian government to:
Immediately investigate all allegations of human rights violations committed by Cameroonian armed forces and prosecute those responsible in fair trials.
Immediately investigate all allegations of crimes committed by armed separatists and prosecute those responsible in fair trials.
Ensure that individuals arrested in the context of the Anglophone crisis are promptly brought before a civilian court that respects international standards of fair trial, not military courts.
Immediately and unconditionally release all arbitrarily detained persons in the context of this crisis and more broadly.
Protect journalists, human rights defenders, and activists who receive threats for documenting or denouncing crimes committed in the context of armed violence in the Anglophone regions (or elsewhere).
We also call on international partners of Cameroon to use the UPR process to:
Condemn crimes committed by Cameroonian security forces, militias, and armed separatists and publicly call on the Cameroonian government to urgently open thorough, independent, and impartial investigations.
Highlight the injustice of arbitrary detention cases and call for the release of all arbitrarily detained persons.
Demand the protection of journalists, human rights defenders, and activists, both in the Anglophone regions and nationally.
We hope that the UPR process will send a strong message to the Cameroonian government: We all must be aware of human rights violations in the country. It is time to act to end atrocities and protect human rights.
Source : Cameroon
