16, June 2020
Cameroon disabled protest neglect as coronavirus spreads 0
Hundreds of people with disabilities fanned out across Cameroon’s capital Monday, protesting against the neglect they say they’ve suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. The campaigners say social distancing rules have discouraged caregiving for the disabled, leaving many more vulnerable to the virus. Cameroon has seen nearly 10,000 coronavirus cases and 276 coronavirus-related deaths, making it one of the worst-affected countries in Africa.
Hundreds of people with disabilities visited markets, churches, mosques and public buildings to remind Cameroonians not to ignore them as the central African country deals with COVID-19.
Among the campaigners was Coco Bertin, founder of the Club for the Rehabilitated Young Blind People of Cameroon. Bertin, who is visually impaired, says there are no braille documents explaining measures to combat coronavirus.
“We heard that there were some posters to sensitize the people about this pandemic, but we can not be aware of it because we can not read. We need the government to get involved and to transcribe these documents,” said Bertin.
The campaign was organized by Jean Pascal Somb Lingom, president of the Association for the Promotion of Assisted Technologies and the Education of the Blind.
Lingom, who is also visually impaired, said the government did not contact people living with special needs when explaining COVID-19 prevention measures.
“People who are on wheelchairs need specific measures to be able to have access to hand washing facilities to limit being contaminated by the virus. Hearing impaired persons need facilities that can help them have access to adequate information so that they can know what to do and how to do it so that they will not be affected,” he said.
A tap with a bucket and a bar of soap is available for students to wash their hands as a preventive measure against the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus at the Lycée Général Leclerc School in Yaoundé, Cameroon, June 1, 2020.
Lingom said blind people cannot see buckets and soap kept in public places for people to wash their hands and avoid COVID 19. He said social distancing measures have scared caregivers from assisting them for fear of being contaminated.
He said people living with disabilities are becoming poorer because they find it difficult to do business or to go to their offices without help.
An estimated three million of Cameroon’s 25 million people are living with disabilities.
Eric Tanda, director of health in the Health Ministry, said the government has started examining what he calls pertinent issues raised for Cameroon’s disabled.
Speaking by telephone in Yaounde, Tanda said the disabled, such as the hard of hearing, need to follow measures put in place to stop the spread of coronavirus.
“The government, especially the ministry of public health, has provided somebody who interprets this message to them by using the sign symbol. Once in the community, they should try as much as possible to respect physical distancing while with their masks on.”
The government recommends everyone wash their hands regularly, keep a distance of at least a meter and a half from others, and always wear face masks to avoid spreading or catching the coronavirus.
Source: VOA



















16, June 2020
Yaounde under pressure as international community calls for investigation into Wazizi’s death 0
Several countries have expressed concern about the death of Cameroonian journalist Samuel Wazizi while in military custody.
The concerns were raised at the United Nations Security Council meeting on Cameroon and the Central African subregion last weekend.
The government of Cameroon has been urged to immediately investigate the circumstances leading to the death of the 36-year-old journalist and bring the culprit to book.
Wazizi died 10 months ago, but this information was only made public earlier this month. He was arrested by police on August 3, 2019, in a suburb in the conflict-ridden south-west region of the country.
He was transferred to military custody on August 7, then ferried to the capital Yaoundé six days later, Cameroon’s military spokesperson Colonel Cyrille Serge Atonfack Guemo said. Wazizi arrived in Yaoundé feeling feverish and died on August 17 due to an infection, the military said.
Local and international organisations have also called for an impartial probe, saying that the UN Security Council members should urge accountability for the death of the journalist when it is briefed on the situation in Cameroon at their meeting with the UN Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA).
The United States Mission to the UN also called for an independent investigation into Wazizi’s death and called attention to the conflict in Cameroon, which according to the UN Refugee Agency(UNHCR) has displaced more than 600,000 people.
“The US also calls attention to the conflict in Cameroon, which @Refugees reports has displaced nearly 680K people. We are deeply concerned by the death of journalist Samuel Wazizi while in Cameroonian military detention and call for an independent investigation,” the US Mission wrote on Twitter.
For its part, the German Mission to Cameroon focused on the impact of the conflict on the subregion while calling for accountability in Wazizi’s death as well as respect for human life.
“The situation in #Cameroon and its negative impact on Central Africa remain of particular concern. On the death of journalist #SamuelWazizi in detention, Germany urgently calls for accountability, respect for human rights and freedom of the press,” a tweet from the German Mission to the UN read.
Wazizi worked as a journalist at the privately owned broadcaster Chillen Muzik and TV (CMTV) in Buea, south-west region.
Source: IOL.Co