Cameroonian president, Paul Biya and Human Rights in Cameroun

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(Free-Press-Release.com) June 2, 2011 -- Yaoundé, Cameroon – After many measures taken by the Cameroonian President, Paul Biya, in order to modernize the Cameroonian society, now it’s time to change the human rights section, an area in which Cameroon's reputation has long been tarnished by a spotty, even negative, track record.

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Cameroonian president, Paul Biya and Human Rights in Cameroun

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In this sense, Paul Biya starts this process of shaping the human rights in Cameroon by keeping in mind the Twelve Labours of Hercules: non-observance of civil and political rights, legal gridlock and red tape, poor conditions for detainees, impunity of state agents, etc... He thinks there is an urgent need to fix this issue, particularly since the growth and fulfillment of man constitutes the centrepiece of his governance.

Cameroonian President tried, with success, to change something in this field. He repealed the decree of 1962 and urged the National Assembly to adopt a law ending detention for politically motivated offences. The effect of this first measure was immediately seen, the Cameroonian society no longer having political prisoners, the penal establishments of Tcholliré, Yoko, Mantum, and of the BMM in Yaoundé, hitherto famous for their treatment of political prisoners, have become ordinary prisons. By creating the National Committee on Human Rights, Paul Biya managed to setup a further plan for fighting for human rights in Cameroon, a section based on this “watchdog” - the National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms (CNDHL). The next step was to continue the reform in the judiciary branch by including CNDHL in the structure of Ministry of Justice in Cameroon, alongside with the penitentiary administration department, formerly subsumed under the Ministry of Territorial Administration.

Another measure taken by Paul Biya in order to make Cameroon a more democratic society and a modern nation, was to introduce a code of penal procedure for improving the dispensing of justice and guarantee the protection of civil liberties, the mental and physical integrity of individuals, the right to a fair trial, the presumption of innocence, compliance with time limits and conditions for police custody, and so on. Human rights in Cameroon were also affected by the prison issues. It’s well known the fact that the Cameroonian prisons are overcrowded and unsanitary, that’s why, President Paul Biya started to make the changes needed. Firstly, he brought prison administration under the purview of the Ministry of Justice and then to build new prisons and to improve the sanitary conditions at the old jails, being internationally supported.

A most remarkable change in Cameroon concerns the end to impunity for human rights violations. The head of state's warning on this matter is unequivocal: "Today, no one can remain indifferent to human rights violations, wherever they may occur, and all perpetrators of such violations will be held accountable for their actions." He did as he said: a life sentence for any human who kills or causes the death of another person by torture was immediate released in the Cameroonian Penal Code, having as particular target police departments and the national constabulary accused of maltreatment applied to detainees.

Paul Biya’s concern regarding the human rights is one of his main priorities in this continuous process of making Cameroon a modern and democratic state. He continues to fight for Cameroonians’ social and economic rights and tries to educate the nation using both genuine and occidental manners.

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