Friday, February fourteenth, the UN says at least 22 people have been killed in a village in the Northwest region of Cameroon. Over half of those killed were children. No one has claimed responsibility for Friday’s incident but the opposition parties blame the killing on the government.
UN human rights experts urge Cameroon Government to halt violence against English-speaking protests
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GENEVA, Switzerland, December 21,
2016–Two United Nations human rights experts* have called on the government of
Cameroon to exercise restraint and begin dialogue, amid rising attacks on
peaceful protesters.
Special Rapporteurs Maina Kiai and Rita Izsak-Ndiaye said they were deeply concerned about the worsening violence in the north-west and south-west, which has included the use of force against English-speaking demonstrators protesting against the growing appointment of French-speaking civil servants in their regions. Most of the protests have been led by regional bar associations and teachers’ unions.
Special Rapporteurs Maina Kiai and Rita Izsak-Ndiaye said they were deeply concerned about the worsening violence in the north-west and south-west, which has included the use of force against English-speaking demonstrators protesting against the growing appointment of French-speaking civil servants in their regions. Most of the protests have been led by regional bar associations and teachers’ unions.
English speakers have long
complained that they face discrimination and marginalization, and are excluded
from top civil service positions and public services. They also claim their
access to justice is limited because the majority of legislation and judicial
proceedings are in French.
“We call on the authorities to
engage in a fruitful and inclusive dialogue with civil society, particularly
the lawyers’ and teachers’ unions in Anglophone regions who are asking for
bilingual public services and more inclusion of English speakers in the public
sphere,” said the experts.
Mr. Kiai, the Special Rapporteur
on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association, said he was
particularly alarmed by reports that security forces used excessive force
during demonstrations on 28 November in Buea and 8 December in Bamenda.
Sources say that police used live
bullets to disperse protesters, leading to the death of at least four people.
Dozens more were injured, arbitrarily arrested and allegedly tortured.
“I urge the Government of
Cameroon to conduct a thorough investigation into the use of force against
protesters in recent months, and to exercise the utmost restraint in policing
future demonstrations,” Mr. Kiai said.
“In democratic societies,
demonstrations and protests are key to raising awareness about human rights,
and political and social concerns, including those regarding minority issues,”
he stressed. “Peaceful protests play a critical role in amplifying the voices
of people who are marginalized, and present an alternative narrative to
established political interests.”
The Special Rapporteur on
minority issues, Rita Izsak-Ndiaye, who carried out an official visit to
Cameroon in 2013*, said there were significant challenges over linguistic
minorities. “When I visited Cameroon, discrimination against Anglophones was
brought to my attention as a key area of concern in Bamenda, in particular in
the areas of access to public posts and political office,” she noted.
Ms. Izsak-Ndiaye called on the
Government to address the concerns raised by the English speakers over the
exercise of their linguistic rights, and to fully implement the State’s policy
of official language bilingualism.
“Fulfilling the language rights of minorities is not only essential to prevent tensions from escalating further, but is also a fundamental element of good governance,” the Special Rapporteur emphasized.
“Fulfilling the language rights of minorities is not only essential to prevent tensions from escalating further, but is also a fundamental element of good governance,” the Special Rapporteur emphasized.
The experts’ call for restraint
and dialogue has been endorsed by the Special Rapporteur on the situation of
human rights defenders, Michel Forst.
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