Senior Southern Cameroons environmentalist arrested in Mundemba County ⁰

Francophone security agents have arrested Nasako Besingi, the chairman of an NGO charged with protecting the environment. He was arrested on Monday in his office and CCN understands police officers reportedly ransacked the building in search of documents.

The arrest of the head of the NGO “Struggle to Economize the Future Environment” (Sefe) took place on Monday (September 25th) in Mudemba, capital of the Ndian County. There are several unofficial versions of the reasons for his arrest.

Initial information revealed that the environmentalist had distributed propaganda leaflets for the release of Esonno Wakemba, a demonstrator who has been detained since the Southern Cameroons uprising started 11 months ago.

Another hypothesis links the arrest of Nasako Bensigi to his positions on the activities of Herakles Farm, an agricultural firm that is weighed down by allegations of land grabbing and illegal logging.

In this context, Nasako Besingi was sentenced in January 2016 and November 2015 to heavy fines, and some say he has been defaulting payments associated to his prison sentences, for organizing rallies with local inhabitants deemed illegal.

By Rita Akana with files from Cameroon Info.Net