Cameroon

From Criminal Defense Wiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

Background

Cameroon, officially known as the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa that is comprised of 10 provinces and 1 capital, Yaounde. It was discovered by Portuguese in the 15000 and its name derives from "Camaroes", which means shrimps in Portuguese. Prior to World War I, Cameroon was a German colony. However, after Germany's defeat in the Great War, the colony was partitioned between France and Great Britain, with France obtaining control of a larger geographic share. In 1955, the Union of the Peoples of Cameroon began an armed struggle for independence in French Cameroon. The French part of Cameroon became independent on January 1, 1960, forming the Republic of Cameroon. The following year, in British Cameroon, the northern two-thirds of the territory, which was mostly occupied by Muslims, voted to join Nigeria while the southern one-third of the territory, which was Christian, voted to join the Republic of Cameroon. The British section of Cameroon officially gained independence on October 1, 1961. The first president of Cameroon was Ahmadou Ahidjo, who served from 1961 to 1982. Under Ahidjo's rule, Cameroon outlawed all political parties except for Ahidjo's and implemented a new constitution in 1972. The 1972 constitution, which provides for a strong central government dominated by the executive branch, turned Cameroon from a federation of two regions into a unitary state. When Ahidjo stepped down in 1982, he was constitutionally succeeded by Paul Biya, who is presently still retains the presidency.[1]

Cameroon Cameroon is made up of an extraordinary diversity of about 250 tribes speaking at least 280 different indigenous languages. It has a population of about 19.5 million people, among which 20% is Anglophone and 80% Francophone. The official languages of Cameroon are English and French, although the French language is dominant. In anglophone provinces, Pidgin English is widely spoken. Religions in the country range from Christian (40%) or Muslim (20%) to indigenous African (40%).[2]

Type of System

Cameroon legal system is a relic of the colonial era. However, despite the fact that Cameroon was unified from a political and administrative perspective since 1972, there are dual and contradictory procedural sources in Cameroon: the Criminal Procedure Ordinance, extracted from the Laws of Nigeria of 1958 and the Code of criminal instruction (Code d’instruction criminelle) which comes from the Ordinance of 14th February 1938. Hence, Cameroon applies a dual system, if not conflicting, influenced by both civil law and common law. It may be noted that traditional courts in the villages (i.e., non statutory courts) exercise jurisdiction over whatever matter, issue, cause or dispute arising in the village whether civil of criminal[3]. Customary law governs matters such as customary marriages, divorce, custody, inheritance, adoption and affiliation and also lands held by customary communities. Customary law includes Islamic Law and those native laws and customs “which are not repugnant … and not incompatible to natural justice, equity and good conscience, nor incompatible either directly or by natural implication with the written law for the time being in force"[4].

English Cameroon adheres to the stare decisis rule. In Francophone Cameroon, however, the stare decisis is not strictly adhered to and is not considered as a primary source of law. Rather, it is considered as being highly persuasive when coming from the superior courts. In Francophone Cameroon, procedure is inquisitorial[5].

In practice, Cameroon is known to be one of the most corrupted countries in the world. Bribing is a way of life and what is commonly known as a whisky often supersedes formal laws. According to Transparency International, police and the judicial system are among the most corrupt sectors in Cameroon[6]. Moreover, there is no efficient system of law reporting in the country, despite commendable efforts in that direction. Hence, the law is not readily accessible to citizens and is not applied uniformly.

The highest judicial authority in Cameroon is the Ministry of Justice, which located under the executive branch. The Supreme Court is located within the Ministry of Justice and may only review cases at the president's request.[7] The Supreme Court is comprised of six judges, all of whom are appointed by the president. It has jurisdiction over the whole country. There is also a High Court of Justice, composed of nine judges and six substitute judges who are elected by the National Assembly.[8] High Courts operate at divisional level, but they also often cover several divisions. The Cameroonian system has trial courts/courts of first instances in every one of its 58 country divisions, with a court of appeal in each of the country's 10 official regions. There are Magistrates' Courts, which operate at sub-divisional level, although they usually cover subdivisions. Finally, there are also Traditional Law Courts, which operate at village or tribal level[9].



See Criminal Justice Systems Around the World

Sources of defendants’ rights

The sources of defendant’s rights are mainly found in the Constitution, the legislation and judicial precedents and customary law[10]. Judicial precedent will be applied differently depending on whether the litigants are in Anglophone or Francophone Cameroon. The Constitution is the most important source of law in Cameroon and offers protections from illegal search and seizure, illegal arrest, detention and prosecution, prevents from retrospective effects of the law, ensures a fair hearing, guarantee the presumption of innocence, the rights to life and physical and moral integrity, protects from cruel, humane treatments and torture[11].

Pre-Trial Phase

Cameroon law makes the distinction between flagrant delictos (flagrant crimes) and non flagrant crimes. A flagrant crime includes one which has just been committed, or one for which the public chases the suspect after the commission thereof[12]. In the case of flagrant crimes, the police officer may prohibit any witness to move away from the crime scene for a period not exceeding 12 hours[13]. The Republic Prosecutor is competent to deal with flagrant crimes. Once the Prosecutor arrives, the police agent is no longer seized of the matter[14]. The Prosecutor identifies the suspect, summarily examines him/her, and if charges are laid by magistrate, the Prosecutor decides whether the accused is detained or freed on bail[15].


After arrest, section 52 of the Code of Penal Procedure provides that an accused shall appear before the Court within:


§ 5 days if the accused resides in the city where the hearing is;


§ 10 days if he resides in the department where the hearing is;


§ 30 days if he resides in another department or;


§ 90 days if he resides abroad.

Court Procedures

Post-Conviction Facts / Issues

  1. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26431.htm
  2. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26431.htm
  3. Henry Samuelson & Co., "Cameroon Legal System", 12th September, 2009, online: http://www.hg.org/article.asp?id=7155
  4. The Customary courts ordinance cap 142 of 1948
  5. Henry Samuelson & Co., "Cameroon Legal System", 12th September, 2009, online: http://www.hg.org/article.asp?id=7155
  6. Wikipedia, Corruption au Cameroun, online: http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_au_Cameroun and Transparency Watch, http://www.transparency.org/publications/newsletter/2007/november_2007/anti_corruption_work/gcr_french
  7. http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26431.htm
  8. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cm.html
  9. GlobaLex, Researching Cameroon Law, Charles Manga Fambad, online: http://www.nyulawglobal.org/Globalex/Cameroon.htm
  10. GlobalLex, Researching Cameroonian Law, Charles Manga Fombad, online: http://www.nyulawglobal.org/Globalex/Cameroon.htm
  11. Constitution of the Republic of Cameroon,Law No. 96-06 of 18 January 1996 to amend the Constitution of 2 June 1972,online: http://confinder.richmond.edu/admin/docs/Cameroon.pdf
  12. Nouveau Code de Procédure Pénale, Presses Universitaires d’Afrique, Yaoundé, (2005), entered into force on 1st January, 2007 by loi n°2005-007 du 27 juillet 2005 portant code de procédure pénale (NCPP)Section 103
  13. Section 104 (2)a) NCPP.
  14. Section 111 NCPP
  15. Section 114 (1) NCPP