Breaking News

24, June 2016

Boko Haram indicted in Cameroon ⁰

The nebulous terrorist sect, Boko Haram, has been indicted for gross violations of human rights in the Far North Region of Cameroon. “The Boko Haram sect has committed several violations of the rights to life and to physical integrity by roads ambushing, throat slitting, recurrent kidnapping of foreigners and nationals, planting landmines on roads…” the 2015 report on the situation of Human Rights in Cameroon presented yesterday June 23, 2016, by the Cameroon Bar Association states.

While condemning human rights abuses such as torture and inhumane treatment compounded by the security situation in the Far North Region, the report states that the situation in detention and prison cells, access to justice, Public Service amongst others, still leaves much to be desired. The 82-page document divided into four parts notably Civil and Political Rights, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Rights of Specific Groups and Cross-Cutting Issues respectively, there are several discrepancies between domestic laws and international law provisions leading to a difficult and haphazard implementation of human rights. This is evident in civil and political rights as well as rights of specific groups that are protected under international human rights laws.

Barrister Simon Pierre Eteme Eteme, head of the project dubbed “Bar Association-Governance and the Situation of Rights” supported by European Union, calls for the harmonization of international and domestic legal instruments in order to create an enabling environment for the promotion of human rights in Cameroon.

The President of the Bar Council, Barrister Ngnie Kamga, stressed the determination of the Bar Association to continue to press for the implementation of international legal instruments aimed at promoting human rights. Meanwhile, the President of the General Assembly of the Bar Association, Barrister Nico Halle, underlined peace, love, justice and harmony as the bedrock of human rights.

Cameroon Tribune

24, June 2016

Cameroon ranks 17th in the classification of African countries using Face book ⁰

Cameroon has been ranked 17th in the classification of African countries using Face book. Cameroon Concord News gathered from the data released by Face book that over one million Cameroonians are registered on this social network. 620,000 are men (64%), and 340 000 of them (36%) are women.

Another study on the data presented by the social network Mark Zuckerberg noted that Cameroonian youth are those who are most interested in social media. 170 000 subscribers are between the ages of 13 and 19 years, 17%; 440 000 between the ages of 18 and 25 years (46%). The 35 years are only 156,000 people (16.25%).

The ranking is dominated by Egypt, South Africa, Morocco and Nigeria. However, the social network is attracting more and more companies.

Rita Akana (Cameroon Concord News Group)

24, June 2016

Fighting corruption: Special Criminal Court jails CPDM mayor ⁰

A well fed CPDM mayor of Mombo in the Mungo Division in the Littoral region and two of his colleagues have been sentenced to 12 years in prison by the Special Criminal Court for embezzling the sum of 32 million FCFA from the municipality.

Mayor Jean Claude Djouokou of Mombo and his cashier, Gérard Njanpouop Mbomda must also repay the sum of 18 million FCFA back into the treasury.

Sama Ernest (Cameroon Concord News Group)

24, June 2016

Penal Code Crisis: North West lawyers stage massive demo ⁰

Cameroonian lawyers from the North West region have staged a massive demo on Thursday morning in Bamenda, against the new Penal Code. Dressed in their black robes, the legal practitioners carried banners expressing their discontent and demand for the immediate withdrawal of the Penal Code adopted by the CPDM dominated National Assembly.

Late last week, the board of the Bar Association of Cameroon had urged the government to withdraw the document and submit the text to a national consensus.

Last Wednesday in the Chamber of the National Assembly, MPs of the Social Democratic Front (SDF) and the MRC walked out when their colleagues of the ruling CPDM were preparing to vote on the text. The opposition is demanding the removal of items that grant immunity to members of the government.

Cham Victor Bama (Cameroon Concord News Group)

18, June 2016

Nigeria: Aso Rock confirms extension of President Buhari’s medical leave ⁰

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has extended his four-day medical leave in London in the UK and will return to his country on Sunday, June 19 Buhari to resume service at Aso Rock palace on Monday, June 20. The announcement of the extension of the former coup leader was made on Thursday in Abuja by the Vice President of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.

In making the announcement, the current Nigerian Acting President reminded reporters at the presidency that Buhari had a 10-day medical leave which started on the 6^th of June for a “persistent ear infection.” And to reassure his compatriots about the state of Buhari, Professor Osinbajo said that “Mr. President is in good condition, he is doing very well, he is fine. He needs to have one or two days of rest”.

The Aso Rock announcement was prompted by rumors circulating in the country that Buhari was dying in a London hospital. The former military dictator has seen the cancellation of some programs on his agenda.

Chi Prudence Asong (CIR)

18, June 2016

Bodies of 19 Ethiopians found in a container in the Democratic Republic of Congo ⁰

The bodies of nineteen Ethiopians suffocated in a container have been discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo precisely in Mwenda, a town in the Mokambo district.

Cameroon Intelligence Report gathered from Congolese media sources that the nineteen Ethiopians were undocumented and their bodies were found in the bush 7 km from Mwenda, to the border town of Mokambo in Upper Katanga.

75 survivors (72 Ethiopians and 3 Zambians) were also discovered in the same container. We also learned that the illegal immigrants were being transported by a Zambian truck driver en route to South Africa.

CIR

18, June 2016

Germany censures NATO over war games in Eastern Europe ⁰

Germany’s foreign minister has censured war games by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Eastern Europe, saying such drills will not bring security to the region and will rather stoke tensions with Russia. Frank-Walter Steinmeier made the remarks in an interview with the German Bild am Sonntag newspaper, whose extracts were published on Saturday.

“What we shouldn’t do now is inflame the situation further through saber-rattling and warmongering,” Steinmeier said, adding, “We are well-advised to not create pretexts to renew an old confrontation.” NATO launched the Anakonda-16 maneuver on June 7, simulating a Russian attack on Poland. The two-week-long exercise involves some 31,000 troops, dozens of ships and fighter jets, along with 3,000 vehicles.

“Whoever believes that a symbolic tank parade on the alliance’s eastern border will bring security, is mistaken,” Steinmeier said.

Presstv

18, June 2016

More chaos in Euro 2016 as Air France pilots go on strike ⁰

Pilots with the French flag carrier, Air France, are set to walk out of their jobs over pay cuts as the country is hosting the Euro 2016 soccer tournament. Three major pilot unions said on Friday that they were going on strike between June 24 and June 27 after the Air France management made “very vague promises” in negotiations during the last industrial action on June 11-14.

Pilots complain that new pay rules, which were recently decided by the airline management, would lower their salaries by five percent. Air France pilots’ previous action, which ended on June 14, grounded around 20 percent of domestic and international flights and cost the carrier more than EUR 40 million (USD 45 million).

The Air France management said only a quarter of pilots joined the walk-out earlier this month, but unions said the figure was about seven in 10.

Presstv

17, June 2016

Nigeria: Boko Haram kills 18 women ⁰

The Takfiri Boko Haram militants have shot and killed at least 18 women when they stormed a funeral in a village in Nigeria’s troubled northeastern state of Adamawa.

Witnesses and local government officials said the attack was carried out at about 5:00 p.m. local time (1600 GMT) on Thursday in the village of Kuda near the Sambisa forest, where Boko Haram militants hide in far-flung camps to avoid the Nigerian military.

“They stormed our village on motorbikes and immediately opened fire on the people observing the wake,” a witness, requesting anonymity, said.

Presstv

17, June 2016

British pro-EU MP murdered ⁰

Campaigning for Britain’s EU referendum scheduled for next week has been suspended for a second day as the nation remains in shock from the murder of Jo Cox, a Member of Parliament (MP) who was pro-Europe. Cox, a 41-year-old former aid worker and pro-EU campaigner known for her advocacy on behalf of Syrian refugees, was killed on Thursday outside a library where she regularly met constituents in Birstall in northern England.

Cox, a Labour Party MP, had been repeatedly shot and stabbed, witnesses told local media. Following the attack, both sides in Britain’s June 23 EU referendum on staying or leaving the bloc said they were suspending their campaigns. British Prime Minister David Cameron also pulled out of a planned rally in Gibraltar, a British overseas territory located on the southern end of Spain in Mediterranean Sea.

The Stronger in Europe camp, which campaigns in favor of the UK’s continued membership of the EU, said it was “suspending all campaigning” for Thursday and Friday, while a spokesperson for the rival Vote Leave group, an organization that campaigns for Britain to leave the EU, said their “battle bus” was returning to headquarters.

Her attacker is reported to have shouted “put Britain first” at least twice. A 52-year-old man, named locally as Tommy Mair, has been arrested. According to British media, Mair, may have had extreme right-wing leanings. “Britain First” is the name of a far-right anti-immigration group. Police said an investigation was under way to determine the motive of the murder, the first killing of an MP since Ian Gow was killed by a car bomb planted by the Irish Republican Army in 1990.

Earlier on Thursday, dozens gathered outside the Parliament in a vigil to remember Cox, including Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, who was flanked by tearful party colleagues. “What’s happened is beyond appalling. We are here in silent memory of her loss,” said Corbyn. “She was a fearless campaigner, and a voice for the voiceless. We feel shaken,” said Fatima Ibrahim, 23, an activist with the Avaaz civic organisation.

Presstv