Notes

Overview

President Paul Biya has ruled Cameroon since 1982. His Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement (CPDM) has maintained power by rigging elections, using state resources for political patronage, and limiting the activities of opposition parties. Press freedom and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are restricted, and due process protections are poorly upheld. A conflict between security forces and separatists in the Anglophone Northwest and Southwest regions is ongoing and has resulted in widespread civilian deaths and displacements.

Key Developments in 2021

• In December, members of the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement (CRM), who had been arrested in September 2020 during a peaceful protest, received prison sentences of up to seven years for “rebellion.”
• A November report by the Supreme Court’s Chamber of Accounts noted numerous “weaknesses and abuses” in the government’s management of COVID-19 funding, and found that more than 21 billion CFA francs ($34.8 million) had been diverted from the government’s COVID-19 fund. In May, the government also committed to investigating why “most of a $335 million loan” from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) could not be accounted for.
• The conflict in the Anglophone regions wore on, with frequent reports of violence and deaths at the hands of both separatist and government forces throughout the year, including numerous deadly attacks on civil servants, students, teachers, and schools by separatists.

Electoral Process

In the Northwest and Southwest regions, separatists called for an election boycott, and armed militants used threats and intimidation to keep voters away from the polls. Out of 2,300 polling stations in the Northwest Region, only 74 opened on election day. Approximately 15 percent of registered voters cast ballots in the Southwest Region, while turnout was only 5 percent in the Northwest Region.

Mayoral elections were held in Bangangté, a town in West Cameroon, in May 2021. The election process featured numerous irregularities, and resulted in the son of the Senate’s top official being elected, despite the absence of the required number of municipal councilors as stipulated by Cameroon’s electoral laws.

The upper chamber of Cameroon’s bicameral Parliament is the 100-member Senate. Senators serve five-year terms; 70 are elected through indirect suffrage by regional councils, while the remaining 30 are appointed by the president. The 180 members of the National Assembly, the lower chamber, are directly elected in multi member constituencies to five-year terms.

The independence and integrity of Cameroon’s electoral framework has long been compromised by accusations of partisanship by election management bodies.

In March 2021, the leaders of seven opposition political parties met to draft an updated and fair electoral code. The group planned to present the proposed reforms to the public in November, but was prevented from doing so by police.

Political Pluralism and Participation

Opposition rallies are frequently prohibited by the government; in July 2021, the government banned a peaceful protest planned by the CRM, though numerous CPDM marches in support of President Biya were authorized.

In December 2021, the government briefly placed CRM president Kamto under house arrest in an apparent attempt to stop him from launching his book in Douala, a CRM stronghold. Later in December, 47 CRM members, who had been arrested in September 2020 during a peaceful protest, received prison sentences of up to seven years for “rebellion.”

Opposition parties are highly fragmented, preventing any one of them from becoming a viable alternative to the ruling CPDM. Frequent harassment, intimidation, and arrests of opposition figures further reduce the ability of opposition parties to gain power through elections.

LGBT+ people, some ethnic minorities, and women are generally excluded from positions of political influence, and their interests are poorly represented by elected officials. The government has expressed a commitment to increasing women’s representation in Parliament.

Functioning of Government

President Biya has extensive executive authority, including wide-ranging appointment powers and strong control over state institutions. Many policies are generated by the government and adopted by presidential decree, with minimal involvement by the parliament.

In May 2021, the summary of an investigative report by the Supreme Court’s Chamber of Accounts was published on social media. The report, which was officially published in November, noted numerous “weaknesses and abuses” in the government’s management of COVID-19 funding, and found that more than 21 billion CFA francs ($34.8 million) had been diverted from the government’s COVID-19 fund. In May, the government also committed to investigating why “most of a $335 million loan” from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) could not be accounted for.

Decisions, especially those made by presidential decree, are often adopted without public consultation. Cameroon lacks an access to information law, and it is difficult to gain access to government documents or statistics in practice. The websites of most ministries do not provide substantial information.

Freedom of Expression and Belief

Independent and critical journalists face pressure and the risk of detention or arrest in connection with their work. In September 2021, journalist Sébastien Ebala was sentenced to two years in prison for “contempt” of the president. Ebala has been detained since April 2020, when he was arrested after publicly stating that Biya should leave power while advocating for an anti government march.

The National Communications Council (CNC), a media regulatory body, has a history of harassing journalists and outlets. In June 2021, the prime minister installed the new head of the CNC, telling him to “promote sanity” and the “consolidation of national unity” and to fight fake news in the country’s media landscape. State-run Cameroon Radio Television (CRTV) has been criticized for favoring the CPDM in its coverage. The government continued to suppress media coverage of the Anglophone crisis in 2021.

Religious freedom is somewhat restricted in northern areas affected by the presence of the Boko Haram extremist group, which has carried out violent attacks against places of worship.

In September 2021, military security forces detained Fridolin Nke, a philosophy professor who had recently published a book criticizing the Biya government; Nke, who reported being tortured while in custody, was quickly released. Academic freedom continues to be severely impacted by the crisis in the Anglophone regions, with separatists enforcing a boycott of schools and carrying out acts of violence against teachers and students.

Associational and Organizational Rights

Freedom of assembly is subject to significant restrictions. Authorities continued to ban and violently disperse events perceived as anti government in 2021, notably those staged by the opposition CRM

Anglophone activists have faced harassment, violence, and arrest for their activities. LGBT+ organizations have also been targeted by law enforcement.

In December 2020, Cameroonian authorities instructed international NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) to suspend their operations in the Northwest Region, claiming that the group was covertly aiding Anglophone separatists; MSF repeatedly denied such accusations, but was forced to withdraw from the region in August 2021.

Rule of Law

Due process rights are poorly upheld. Lengthy pretrial detentions are commonplace. Civilians accused of terrorism are frequently not afforded the right to a fair trial. French legal norms are regularly imposed upon Cameroonians in Anglophone regions.

In December 2021, 47 people arrested in the aftermath of the September 2020 CRM anti government rallies were sentenced to up to seven years in prison on charges of “rebellion.” State security forces have carried out extrajudicial killings and arbitrary detentions in connection with the Anglophone crisis, and in the Far North regions in response to Boko Haram activities.

Prison conditions are harsh, marked by “extreme overcrowding” and poor sanitation. Inmates often face a lack of access to food, water, and medical care. Police brutality remains a problem, including the abuse and torture of detainees.

Discrimination against Anglophone Cameroonians and individuals from certain ethnic groups, including the Bamiléké, is common. The government imposes the French language in Anglophone regions, and Anglophone Cameroonians are frequently denied senior jobs in the civil service.

Discrimination against the LGBT+ community is rife, and violence against LGBT+ people is common.

People are frequently prosecuted with no evidence of sexual activity, but rather on suspicions that they are gay.

The ongoing Boko Haram and Anglophone conflicts have forced large numbers of people to flee their homes. As of December 2021, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) estimated that there were 573,900 internally displaced persons (IDPs) within the Northwest and Southwest regions; other UN reports estimated that as of August there were more than 340,000 IDPs in the Far North region.

Personal Autonomy and Individual Rights

Free movement is severely limited in parts of the Far North Region due to Boko Haram activity, and in the two Anglophone regions due to the ongoing crisis there.

The Anglophone crisis has exacted a heavy toll on children, many of whom have been deprived of their right to education. Thousands of schools have closed, and attacks and kidnappings of students and teachers at those operating are frequent. In June 2021, six civil servants from the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Regional Development (MINEPAT) were kidnapped by Anglophone separatists in the Southwest Region; one was killed, and the others had not been released at year’s end.

Harassment of small business owners by state agents is common. Agribusinesses and logging operations are often carried out without consulting local inhabitants. In many regions, women are still dispossessed of their inheritance rights.

The Boko Haram conflict has also exacerbated the already prevalent practice of child marriage and the sexual abuse of minors in the Far North Region. Customary law can allow rapists to escape punishment if the victim consents to marriage. Despite laws guaranteeing equal rights to men and women to file for divorce, in practice courts often disadvantage women by making proceedings prohibitively expensive or lengthy.

Sexual relations between people of the same sex are legally prohibited in Cameroon. In May 2021, two transgender women were sentenced to five years in prison and fined 200,000 CFA francs ($330) for “attempted homosexuality.” Both women were released pending appeal in July following pressure from international and domestic human rights organizations.

The sexual exploitation of children on social media has increased in recent years; in June 2021, the Minister of Women’s Empowerment held a press conference condemning such abuse, saying that those responsible will be held accountable under the law.