Hello,
Read CCDHR’s recent press release entitled (Allowing Cameroonian Citizens Abroad to Vote is Not Enough to Guarantee Free, Fair, and Transparent Elections) in relation to the recent effort by the Government of Cameroon to grant voting rights to Cameroonians abroad.
Excerpt: An investigation concluded by the CCDHR in May 2011 revealed that many militants of the ruling CDPM party in the United States, including the Presidents and executives of the various CPDM sections, subsections, and branches have acquired US citizenship. However, these people maintain strong militancy within Cameroon’s ruling party and continue to enjoy all the privileges of being Cameroonian despite taking up foreign nationality. They get Cameroonian passports for themselves and family, and receive other services and scholarships only available to Cameroonian citizens with relative ease. How the Government of Cameroon allows such interference in the domestic affairs of Cameroon by people who would otherwise be considered foreigners (if they were of the opposition or civil society) is questionable, but not surprising.
Click on the title above to read the complete press release. Thanks in advance for circulating this mail as widely as possible.
Sincerely,
Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Right (CCDHR).
Hello,
Read CCDHR’s recent press release entitled (Arbitrary Arrest and Continued Detention of Kingsley Ashu is Political and Unacceptable) in relation to the arrest, continued detention, and mistreatment of Kingsley Ashu, a former university student leader and critic of the Government of Cameroon.
Excerpt: Kingsley is being held against his will by the Government of Cameroon for political reasons rather than the spurious claim of misinforming uniform officers about his place of birth. His arrest, denial of bail, and continued detention appears to be an act of retaliation against this young and bright Cameroonian, who along with his brave colleagues of the University of Buea Student Union, exposed the corrupt practices of the Government of Cameroon in its fraudulent meddling with university admissions. CCDHR is very concerned about the physical and mental status of Kingsley Ashu. Since his arrest on February 23, 2011, the administration continues to play with time by continuously adjourning his arraignment before a court of law, thereby subjecting him to various forms of psychological torments in an effort to break his will and force him to refrain from ever again engaging in criticism against the Government of Cameroon.
Click on the title above to read the complete press release. Thanks in advance for circulating this mail as widely as possible.
Sincerely,
Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Right (CCDHR).
Hello,
Read CCDHR’s recent press release entitled (CCDHR Condemns Government Barbarism on Peaceful Demonstrators in Cameroon: Calls for International Investigation) in relation to the brutalization of peaceful demonstrators in Cameroon by the security forces of President Paul Biya.
Excerpt: CCDHR watched with shock and consternation, the barbaric and inhuman manner in which peaceful demonstrators in Cameroon were ruthlessly crushed by the country’s uniformed service officers. Peaceful assembly and protest are rights assumed by all as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international conventions and treaties that Cameroon has ratified. The 1990 liberty laws in Cameroon also give people the right to peaceful assembly but today, Cameroonians and the international community witnessed the horrific most unimaginable and degrading treatment the Government of Cameroon meted out to peaceful protesters as they went out to express a legitimate cause and concern. CCDHR denounces such treatment of fellow Cameroonians by their government and implores the international community to investigate the Government of Cameroon for its violation of international conventions which it has an obligation to respect and uphold.
Click on the title above to read the complete press release. Thanks in advance for circulating this mail as widely as possible.
Sincerely,
Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Right (CCDHR).
Hello,
Read CCDHR’s recent press release entitled (Annual Rendezvous of Youth Manipulation: Paul Biya’s Reverence for a Circle of Old Friends is a Distasteful Rejection Cameroonian Youths) in relation to Paul Biya address to the Cameroonian youths on the occasion of the 2011 Youth Day.
Excerpt: Overall, the situation of youths in Cameroon is both disturbing and deplorable. Since independence, the Republic of Cameroon has been dominated by two autocratic leaders, Ahmadou Ahidjo and Paul Biya. Paul Biya became President in 1982 and has cultivated a small, exclusive ruling class of old friends and continues to exhibit nepotistic and autocratic policies despite his initial promises of liberalization and democratic reform. Unfortunately, this type of governance apparatus has worked well to preclude the existence of a legitimate civil service system that would allow for the utilization of the talents of young Cameroonians. As a result, many Cameroonians, especially the youths, have lost faith in their ability to affect change legally and seems to have abandoned the exercise of their rights to democratic participation due to the understanding that voting means nothing under the current machinery.
Click on the title above to read the complete press release. Thanks in advance for circulating this release as widely as possible.
Sincerely,
Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Right (CCDHR).
Hello,
Read CCDHR’s recent press release entitled (When the Hunter Becomes the Hunted: The Fall of a President for Life in Tunisia and its Implications for the President for Life in Cameroon) in relation to the recent popular uprising in Tunisia that has led the President to Flee the country after 23 years of oppressive rule.
Excerpt: As Cameroonians witness the current developments in Tunisia, they will very quickly realize that the situation of Tunisia bears stark similarities to that of Cameroon. The Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Rights (CCDHR) notes with regret that the hallmarks of the Tunisian society under Ben Ali such as high unemployment, corruption, embezzlement, suppression of press freedom, muzzling of critics and political opponents, and violation of the rights of citizens are entrenched tenets of the Cameroonians society under Paul Biya.
Click on the title above to read the complete press release. Thanks in advance for circulating this release as widely as possible.
Sincerely,
Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Right (CCDHR).
The Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Rights (CCDHR) has published its annual activity report for the year 2010. This report can now be accessed on our website. The year 2010 was significant in the four-year existence of the organization. Established to promote democracy, respect for human rights, rule of law, good governance, and public accountability in Cameroon, CCDHR remained committed to these principles and was unwavering in its criticism and publicity of abuses perpetuated on the people of Cameroon. For purposes of an easy read, we have created a shorter version of the report, specifically dealing with CCDHR’s achievements for the year 2010, which you can Download HERE.
We start the year 2011 acknowledging that the challenges for Cameroon abound. Therefore, the resources, commitment, and leadership of every Cameroonian is indispensable to making Cameroon a beckon of hope and envy to others around the world. With the prospect of Presidential elections in 2011, CCDHR will continue to advocate for the rights of every Cameroonian to cast a ballot in a free, fair, and transparent election, and to have that ballot counted as cast.
Excerpt of Annual Activity Report
As a paramount part of the DECLARATION of the “International Conference on the State of Democracy in Cameroon 50 Years After Independence” organized by CCDHR on March 6, 2010 at American University in Washington DC, CCDHR made the following specific pronouncements regarding the expected Presidential Elections of 2011.
• That the anticipated Presidential elections in 2011 be deferred, as there is yet no authentic legal and institutional framework to organize and manage transparent elections in Cameroon.
• That a ‘Transitional Government’ be established to include all political parties, the civil society, clergies, and prominent scholars.
• That the ‘Transitional Government’ be headed by an independent person, preferable a clergy that is acceptable to the political parties and the civil society, and who can be viewed as a symbol of national unity.
• That the ‘Transitional Government’ should have a mandate of four (4) years with specific responsibility to draft a democratic constitution, revise electoral laws in Cameroon, set-up the requisite democratic institutions, and organize Municipal, Parliamentary, and Presidential elections by the end of its mandate.
• That members of the transitional government be barred from running for office in the elections that culminates to the expiration of its mandate.
Welcome to the on-the-dot communication medium of the Cameroon Center for Democracy and Human Rights (CCDHR). Through this forum, CCDHR will be able to reach you briefly, but in a timely manner on pertinent issues concerning democracy, human rights, good governance, and public accountability in Cameroon.
CCDHR is an independent non-governmental organization dedicated to promoting good governance and public accountability in the Republic of Cameroon. We are committed to the principles and values we represent and defend through our programs. At the core of our work is the building of a strong and effective civil society on the belief that this is critical to the establishment and preservation of a sustainable democracy in Cameroon.