Yaounde,
29 September 2017
Dear Reader:
Please find attached a brief from the Centre for Law and Public Policy entitled, ‘Cameroon: respect human rights in public events, statements, and inter-community relations’, published in the wake of events in the predominantly English-speaking regions of Cameroon, which remain of concern.
The note reminds all stakeholders of the fundamental principles of human rights protection under national and international laws, which apply during such periods of contestation, including: (i) respect by law enforcement officials for international principles on the use of force, (ii) the need for pressure groups to refrain from violent actions which justify law enforcement bodies’ resort to the use of force, (iii) the imperative for all actors involved to refrain from statements which threaten or may incite to violence against persons or groups on discriminatory grounds, and (iv) the duty to initiate criminal action against persons responsible for such incitement, and to stem any attempts at stigmatisation between the country’s linguistic, cultural or ethnic communities. The note reiterates the importance of dialogue as the means of resolving the crisis.
Regards,
Author: Center for Law and Public policy (CLPP)