4297th Meeting, 146th Session, Human Rights Committee (CCPR)

Dear members, dear delegation, good morning. I hope you had a good rest. This is the meeting number 4297, and it is public meeting and on webcast. This morning, we will continue the constructive dialogue with delegation of Cameroon. As agreed yesterday at the end of the meeting, The delegation will have 15 minutes to respond to outstanding follow-up questions related to the first part of the list of issues prior to reporting. And then after 15 minutes, we'll move to the next round. Without further ado, I will give the floor to Your Excellency, Mr. Salomon E. Haef.

I sincerely thank you, Mr. President. Good morning, dear members. Yes, we had two questions. The first one is... Yes, the use of arms and the civil protection in the framework of conflict. So I'm going to give the floor to my colleagues. First of all, Dr. Ntamack is going to give you information about the use of.

Thank you, Excellency. Chair, committee members, the use of force and firearms in Cameroon is regulated by various legal texts, notably The law on public order from 1990 and the law from 1997 on organizing defense. They enshrine the principles of absolute necessity, proportionality, legitimate self-defense and proportionality. So the use of firearms is the last resort and must be proportionate to threats. The Director General for National Security regulates this for police and the Ministry of Defense for the armed forces and gendarmerie. Internal oversight mechanisms are available in those administrative entities in order to prevent undue use in the regions in crisis. There is training provided for security and defense forces in basic and continuing training. This is on human rights and the use of firearms. When there is excessive use of force, this will lead to legal proceedings. Criminal penalties can be handed down along with disciplinary proceedings, which could lead to dismissal. I'll give you some tangible examples. In the Elaved case, which was mentioned by a committee member yesterday, five military officers, including one officer, was sentenced to up to 10 years imprisonment in 2021. In the Engabul case in February of this year, three soldiers and one civilian were sentenced to up to three years imprisonment. In addition, between 2019 and 2023, 236 administrative penalties were handed down against police officers for human rights issues. In 2025, 15 gendarmes were also punished for similar offenses. Lastly, victims have the right to reparations. Once they have been identified, they can also be a party to criminal proceedings and they can ask for or claim damages from the court. Measures for restitution and rehabilitation can also be included in the reparations. The law is clear in Cameroon, use of force is regulated There is no impunity for abuse. And when the excessive use of force is proved, then this will lead to individual accountability and the right to reparations for victims.

Thank you.

Thank you very much. I don't know if that is what you wanted to hear. That is the answer on the use of firearms. Now, on abortion and access to health information, I would like to ask Ms. Adum, who is an adviser in the embassy, to provide you with information on these issues.

Thank you, ambassador. Chair, distinguished committee members. Well, in fact, We've amended the law on abortion. I should say these amendments are being studied. Abortion is not a crime when there are serious health grounds for undertaking an abortion. Overall, the health of the mother including her mental health is considered by the Cameroonian lawmaker. We ratified the Maputo Protocol, Article 14 of which calls on states parties to enable abortion in case of rape, incest or when there is a danger to the mother's physical and mental health, or when there is serious malformation of the fetus. So this is why we have recommended the transposal of that protocol into domestic law. There are other measures concerning women's access to information on abortion and to remove current barriers to effective access to legal and safe abortion. In the period under review, the Ministry for Family and Women has undertaken awareness-raising programmes with families in victim assistance centres and schools. When we commemorate International Women's Day, the aim is to enable dissemination of information on the role of sexual and reproductive health services and also the legal basis for abortion and access to specialized centers. Social workers and workers in our ministry, as well as community educators, receive training on legal abortion and how to refer people seeking abortion correctly. We've also made commitments to improve family planning indicators by exceeding to the Family Planning Initiative 2030, which was launched in 2023 in the country. This is a world partnership on family planning. The idea is to allow girls to take their decisions to live in good health. They are supposed to take their own decisions on contraception and procreation so that they can live in society on an equal footing. In June 2022, Cameroon made commitments to fully participate in this initiative, including by further distribution of contraception and reducing unmet family planning needs. So that by 2030, we are trying to ensure that local associations will provide modern contraceptive methods in underserved areas. Furthermore, in 2021, We saw the results of the fourth survey on availability of contraceptive methods and maternal health services. This was conducted by the National Statistics Office in conjunction with the Ministry of Public Health and the United Nations Population Fund. The results of the survey have been published. There was a circular letter in December 2022 for hospital directors to create special units, and the Public Health Ministry is supporting young people in the area of sexual health services and information to make sure that family planning and antenatal consultations and menstrual hygiene consultations are made available. And around 200,000 young people, particularly girls, have had full sexual and reproductive health education under the auspices of the Ministry of the Family and Social Affairs. Thank you.

Mr. President, we received two questions and then I think we have just given the two answers. We don't know if there are more questions. Again, we are at the disposal to reply.

Thank you very much for your replies. So I will move to the next round of the questions. And if there need more answers, we will point out at that moment. So, today I will give the floor first to Madame Tigrouza.

Thank you, Chair. I'd once again like to extend my greetings to the delegation. I'm going to continue the delegation now on paragraphs 14, 20, 21 and 22, but before doing so, I'd like to thank you, Ambassador, for having brought the publications covering the year 2025. These are the publications from the National Human Rights Commission and also the Ministry of Justice's report. So I'm going to have plenty to read over the weekend, but I'll be happy to share these materials with other members of the committee and the secretariat. Now, with regard to issue 14, I'm going to address the issue of the death penalty, which was already raised yesterday in our previous concluding observations from 2017. According to the information the very succinct information provided by the State Party in its report, the situation hasn't changed since our last dialogue. In 2026 alone, two death penalties were handed down, one by shooting, one by hanging. And according to the information that we've received, In May 2026, over 100 people were in death row, and over half of them were condemned for terrorist activities. And Ms. Bassem has already underscored the very vague definition of that. Nevertheless, we have to take those figures with a pinch of salt because there's no transparency or official data from the state party about death sentences handed down by the civilian and military courts. I'd like to add that according to the 2014 Anti-Terrorism or Counter-Terrorism Act, military courts are the only ones that deal with terrorist offenses, even if they've been committed by civilians. And people who run the risk of capital punishment do not enjoy basic legal safeguards, such as access to a lawyer, interpreter, or consular authorities. I'd just like to recall that for our committee, general comment 36 on the right to life, the death penalty following a trial which doesn't provide the most basic safeguards is an arbitrary deprivation of the right to life. And this is the same case law which is applied by the African court concerning compulsory death penalties for certain offenses. So my questions, what are the precise figures about military courts and civil courts handing down death sentences and for what offences? Could you also provide us with disaggregated data? And can you give us specific figures on the number of presidential pardons granted since 2020 for persons who have been sentenced to death. We've heard that there have been no presidential pardons, but we'd like to know if that is correct. And what are the legal measures being undertaken to ensure that the death penalty, whilst awaiting for it to be abolished in law, is only applied to the most serious crimes in line with Article 6 of the Covenant and General Comment 36? Do you plan to accept visits from the Special Rapporteur on counter-terrorism or extrajudicial killings, it seems to me that no special procedures visits have been undertaken since at least our last dialogue, or it may have actually be the case that there have been no special procedures visits since 2013. On paragraphs 20, 21 and 22, I'm going to address freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, attacks against human rights defenders, restrictions on the freedom of association. They all are part of the very strong pressure on civil space, which the United Nations has noticed, particularly in the context of the presidential elections held in October of last year. Now, in view of the security context, we're very worried about this situation. I'd like to start off with freedom of expression. According to the legal framework, I'm not going to come back to the 2014 Counterterrorism Act or the 2010 Act on Cyber Crimes, which only give a very vague description of offenses, so they are a danger to freedom of expression and could lead to people self-censoring. He said, I would like to dwell more about other laws which criminalize freedom of expression, such as defamation or disseminating fake news. So I've got the following question. In view of General Comment 34 and the African courts on human and people's rights, on decriminalizing defamation, notably Konate against Burkina Faso in 2014. And I wonder if Cameroon is planned decriminalize freedom of expression or information in these cases. I'd like come to the serious violations suffered by journalists, human rights defenders, activists, lawyers, and academics. They've been subject to arbitrary arrest and detention, intimidation, torture. They're often tried by military courts. There have been deaths of journalists, particularly those who criticise the President of the Republic, and Mr. Ndiaye mentioned this yesterday. There have also been internet blackouts and televised programmes have been taken off air, particularly in the period around the elections in 2025. So four basic points. Firstly, the issue of journalists being tried by military courts. The committee is very worried about this. Secondly, could you give us further information to that which is contained in the State Party report about investigations, prosecutions, and punishments handed down to the perpetrators of the atrocities mentioned, and what reparations given to victims. And yes, they referred to the so-called legal situation of crisis. So in those situations, how do you have a free press? How do you ensure that critical information of government can circulate? Do you protect investigative journalists? And generally, can you have an uncensored debate when you there are these internet blackouts or closures of media outlets. The delegation, can you provide us with information about how the National Media Council works? Because it seems to be under the auspices of the ruling authorities. So civil society and media are very worried about this. Now on freedom of assembly, paragraph 21, which is another pillar of civic space, situation hasn't improved since our last concluding observations, quite the opposite. According to the information that we've received during the election period of October of last year and following the announcement of results, a number of demonstrations were organized, but they were severely repressed by the security forces. We haven't got any clear figures, but the United Nations believe that at least 48 people lost their lives, over 2,500 were arrested. often arbitrarily. Now, supposedly you only have to declare that you're going to hold a demonstration, but it seems as though you really need an authorization de facto because general justifications are given such as a risk to public order for stopping the political opposition from holding demonstrations. So Can you tell us more about the groundless reasons for banning demonstrations and the need for a de facto authorization? We're very worried about this. What measures have you taken to ensure peaceful assembly, notably use of force by the security forces? Do you fully respect Article 21 and Article 6 in this and also the African Commission's guideline on the freedom of assembly? And what investigations have been conducted and what prosecutions and penalties have been handed down against the security force members for excessive use of force during peaceful demonstrations? What's happened to the 2,500 people who were arrested, have they been released or have they been tried? And we've also received information according to which there have been collective trials in military court. So once again, I'm coming back to the use of military courts, which is of great concern to us. I'd now like to come to another pillar of civic space, which is freedom of association, Article 22 of the Covenant. We've heard that there have been severe restrictions on this. The legal framework contains a number of very vague criteria, such as offense against national unity or state security, in order to refuse registration of an association or to suspend its activities or dissolve it. There was a statement made in March 2024 about clandestine associations and in December 2024 about vaguely defined offences such as combating terrorist funding or money laundering. We're worried about the fact that often associations try to register, but they're met with silence for months or years. So this is de facto refusal of registration, particularly when these associations work on sensitive issues such as the rights of the LGBTI community, which my colleague mentioned yesterday. Now this issue of registration is closely linked to corruption, which Basim mentioned yesterday as well, because according to the information that we've received, people who wish to register their association are often asked to pay sums to officials, but this is something which isn't foreseen in the law. There's also stigmatising speech against associations, NGOs and political parties by members of the government. This includes online harassment of them. So can the delegation explain what measures are being taken, first of all, to set up appropriate remedies when the administration refuses to register association by not giving an answer for a long time? And are you going to amend your laws on combating funding of terrorism and money laundering to stop the current laws being instrumentalized to muzzle associations? And how do you ensure that associations, NGOs and political parties can work without suffering pressure from the authorities or without this hostile discourse against them.

Thank you very much, Madame Tigrza. Now I'll give the floor to Madame Bassim.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and good morning to you, to the Cameroonian delegation and all present here today. I would like to pay a special thank you to the delegation who tried its best to answer many of my questions yesterday. I still have a little follow-up question with regard to the use of force and firearms by the law enforcement authorities. I wish to have a clarification on the consistency of the framework that Monsieur has explained, the national framework with the international standards, and if he can indicate what the measures that are taken by the State Party to ensure that that framework is in harmony with the international standards, especially the United Nations guidelines on the use of arms and firearms during the dispersation of riots, and even sometimes towards peaceful assemblies. On another note, I would like to pass to the issue number 15, which is prohibition of torture and treatment of persons deprived of liberty. With due respect to the fact that the State Party has been reviewed by the Committee against Torture not long ago, And with no intention of duplication, this committee cannot ignore the recurrent reports underscoring that human rights defenders and political opponents are frequently targeted with violence and intimidation, creating a persistent climate of fear. There is documentation of cases of repression, cracking down from the authorities on civil society, subjecting them to harassment and torture. Police brutality remains a problem, including the abuse and torture of the detainees. More than a colleague of mine would touch upon this issue, of course, in their respective questions. Now, I would like to turn to the conditions in custody. whether in police stations, prisons, which are, according to reliable sources, simply inhuman. These places of detention are lacking the minimum of hygiene, sanitation, drinking water, basic health care, and social services. All of them are overcrowded, And in numerous police custody, particularly in rural areas, there is no separation between men and women, minors and adults, exposing women and minors to sexual harassment and all kind of abuses. Lack of food, severe hunger, and malnutrition are the rule in places of detention. except if food is provided from outside sources, such as family, friends or lawyers. Most places of custody and prisons represent a real health risk, whether to inmates or to the prison staff themselves, due to the lack of basic cleaning and disinfecting, the conditions of extreme heat, humidity and mould. In this respect, can the delegation of Cameroon spell out the measures taken by the State party to strengthen, first, the prevention of torture and ill-treatment and specify the timeline of ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment? Can you please provide information and, if possible, updated statistics on cases of torture, ill-treatment investigated by the competent authorities and where perpetrators were appropriately punished and victims adequately compensated? Please specify the measures taken by the State party to improve the conditions of detention in places of custody and prisons, to align them with the Nelson Mandela Rules, and to allow for regular, independent, and impartial monitoring visits to places of detention to ensure that the fundamental rights of the detainees are duly respected. I thank you.

Thank you, Madam Bassim. Now I will give the floor to Mr. Fernandez-Lieza.

Yes, Chair, good morning. Well, first and foremost, thank you very much to the delegation of Cameroon for yesterday's constructive dialogue. Today, I will be resuming several points beginning with the liberty and freedom, security of persons in paragraph 16. In its most recent concluding observations, the committee expressed concern regarding compliance with the 48-hour time limit for pretrial detention, known as garde a vue in French, where such an extension had not been authorized by a court in the principles of necessity and proportionality. We would kindly ask for more detailed information to be provided on whether or not there are still cases of extended pretrial detention, and that, if so, what measures have been taken to eradicate this practice. On paragraph 19, on freedom of movement and the right to move freely, the Committee is aware that there are non-state armed groups that make the enjoyment of this right difficult. In English-speaking regions, separatist groups such as Ghost Town Mondays are active and obstruct this right and this freedom. The state has responded by stepping up checks and adopting measures to strengthen security and the freedom of movement. But the Committee is also concerned that these situations of restriction and curtailing of this freedom is being restricted by the actions of the state security forces. In particular, we would like to know whether the prefix order dated July 16th, 2024, prohibiting residents in the Department of Mfuti still remains in force. On paragraph 24, participation in public life. We have received information that there are violations of rights related to participation in public life. As restrictions to the right of peaceful assembly recognized by article 25 of the Constitution of Cameroon on grounds of national security. Political party meetings have been cancelled, and there have been arrests and excessive use of force by the police during political demonstrations. We would like to receive information on whether the State has taken measures and is guaranteed and committed to the freedom of assembly, expression, and association in order to foster a pluralist and democratic society. And I will wrap up this segment of questions by asking about minorities. The coexistence between the English-speaking minority and the French-speaking majority is one that is known by the Committee, a situation that has been worsened since 2010, which has given rise to calls for secession, as well as situations of conflict, violence, instability, human rights violations and negotiations, among other things. The Committee would like to know whether the recommendations that arose from the national dialogue are being implemented in order to promote bilingualism and to ensure the participation of the English-speaking minority in public life. We would also like to know whether the State is considering other approaches to promote pluralistic coexistence between majorities and minorities in such a way that it actively promotes mutual understanding Is there any proposal, any idea along these lines? Regarding sexual minorities, LGBTI individuals, the committee has received information about people with different sexual orientation resulting in serious issues. This year, 68 people that identified as homosexuals were arrested in Douala at a bar, being charged for homosexuality. Many of them were sent to the Ndoude prison. In mid-June, a LGBTI human rights defender was apprehended in Yaounde. Committee is concerned by this type of measure because no measures are taken to prevent such acts. Violence is not a cultural value. Lastly, on indigenous peoples, we have various remaining concerns, beginning with the Baka people. When the Ngoila reserve was established, they were displaced to another forest and were given compensations. But an iron mining license is affecting the area where they resettled in the forest itself. As for the Mbore, make up 10% of the population, They are excluded from politics. Political parties do not include them in their candidate list, nor does the president include them among the senators he appoints. They are socially marginalized and are subjected to hate speech. The Committee would like to know if the country is taking measures to address the needs of these indigenous peoples. Thank you.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ferdinand Saliéja. I will give the floor to Mr. Ndiaye.

Thank you, Chair. And once again, I would like to thank the delegation of Cameroon for being here and for the many replies that they have provided to the questions that we had yesterday. Today, I'm going to speak about the administration of justice. The list of issues asked which measures had been taken on the protection of witnesses, and the report that we received does not provide any figures on the length of the trials and does not mention either the mechanism for the protection of witnesses. So that takes me to the next question. What is the average length of time of a criminal proceeding? How many cases are still awaiting trial? How many requests for legal assistance have been accepted? And is there a program to protect witnesses? Regarding the independence of the justice system, how do judges and prosecutors, how are they appointed? How are they taken down from their position, if need be. Does the Minister of Justice play a role in this process? If so, what is the role? The report also says nothing about the Higher Judicial Council. And we would like to know if the delegation can tell us how many times the Higher Council has met since 2017. And what decisions has it taken under Article 64? Also, what does Article 64 of the Code of Criminal Procedure provide regarding the discontinuation of prosecutions? How many times has this provision been applied since 2017? The report also mentions the General Inspectorate of Judicial Services, which is under the Ministry of Justice, as a safeguard of legal independence. And how is that compatible with the principle of separation of powers? Regarding military courts, we would like to know how many civilians have been tried in these courts since 2017, and what objective or serious grounds justify this practice in light of paragraph 22 of General Comment 32. The report says that these courts include both military and civilian judges. Now, are military judges serving officers subject to the chain of command of the Ministry of Defense. According to information available to the Committee, a communication from the Special Procedures Concerning the Independence of Justice and Lawyers, which is reference 3/2022, concerns the arrest, detention, and prosecution before military courts of a lawyer who represents persons imprisoned in connection with the Angofovo crisis. What safeguards protect lawyers appearing before these courts? And finally, on the right to a fair trial and practice, are English-speaking defendants tried in English under common law system? Of the 440 English-speaking registers and legal officers that have been recruited, how many have been assigned to Northwest and Southwest regions? Are confessions obtained under torture inadmissible? Has the court ever excluded evidence based on this ground? And lastly, as of when can a defendant call for an attorney, including during detention, if they are prosecuted in a case of terrorism? Are there any alternatives to imprisonment? Is there a sentence judge or equivalent mechanism for social reintegration for individuals? Thank you.

Thank you very much. Now I will invite Madame Solon.

Mr. Chair, and welcome back to the delegation of Cameroon. I would also like to express gratitude for your replies on our questions yesterday and today. Let me continue with questions on issues number 18 and 23. I would first like to acknowledge and commend the efforts undertaken by Cameroon to combat trafficking in persons and the measures taken to strengthen the relevant legal framework. We would now like to seek some clarification on how these measures are being implemented in practice and on the extent to which they ensure full and effective protection of victims, including children, in accordance with Cameroon's obligations under the Covenant. Could the delegation explain whether the current definition of trafficking under Law No. 2011/024 and Sections 342/1 of the Penal Code ensures that the apparent consent of a victim does not preclude a finding of trafficking where force, coercion, fraud, deception, abuse of authority, or abuse of a position of vulnerability has been used? Does Cameroonian law recognize trafficking of a child for exploitation without requiring proof of force, coercion, or deception? What measures has Cameroon taken to ensure that trafficking for domestic labor, domestic servitude, and other forms of forced labor are effectively detected, investigated, and prosecuted? What guarantees prevent trafficking victims from being arrested, detained or prosecuted for conduct resulting directly from their exploitation? What measures have you developed to strengthen proactive identification of victims and potential victims, including at borders, workplaces, detention facilities and among children in vulnerable situations? How does Cameroon ensure that all credible allegations of trafficking are promptly, thoroughly, and independently investigated, that perpetrators are prosecuted and, where appropriate, punished? What effective remedies are available to victims of trafficking, including compensation, rehabilitation, psychological assistance, legal assistance, and measures of social reintegration? What measures are available to protect trafficking victims and witnesses from intimidation, retaliation, further exploitation and violence during investigation and judicial proceedings? And finally, for this issue, one remark. You have informed us about the training programmes provided to members of the gendarmerie and the judiciary. Could you indicate whether the government has developed a sustainable strategy to expand such trainings, including regular training for newly recruited personnel, nationwide coverage, and mechanisms to assess its impact on its identification, investigation, and prosecution of trafficking cases? Now I will turn to my second issue, and that is issue number 23, rights of the child. You have informed us about awareness-raising campaigns targeting adolescents, pupils and students. Have you considered awareness-raising programmes targeting parents, teachers, law enforcement officials, social services and other professionals working with children? What mechanisms are in place to ensure the early identification, reporting and investigation of cases of violence against children and to hold perpetrators accountable? What other systematic measures, in addition to those mentioned in your report, has Cameroon taken to ensure that child victims of violence and abuse, including sexual violence, have timely and effective access to comprehensive assistance, including medical, psychological, social and legal support, as well as appropriate protection and rehabilitation services? Turning to the issue of birth certificates, We commend the enactment of the law in 2024. Could the delegation elaborate on the measures taken to ensure the universal and timely registration of births and the issuance of birth certificates to all children born in Cameroon, including children born outside formal health facilities, as well as children of refugees, internally displaced persons, and other persons in vulnerable situations? Regarding the issue of early child marriage, we note that it is criminalized under Cameroonian law. Could the delegation provide information on the measures taken to prevent and eradicate this practice, which reportedly remains widespread? In particular, what steps are being taken to address the social and economic factors that contribute to child marriage? We also note that child marriages are often forced. What measures have been developed to hold parents, guardians and other individuals who facilitate or arrange such marriages accountable, including those responsible for registering such marriages? What other specific measures have been taken to ensure the effective implementation and enforcement of the law, particularly with regard to forced marriages involving children? I thank you.

Thank you very much, Madame Solon. Now I will suspend the meeting for 15 minutes to allow delegations to prepare their replies. I will allow a little extra time for moving the room and changing the room and come back. So meeting is suspended.

Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you.

okay dear members of the committee dear delegation the meeting and I will give the floor to the delegation for 60 minutes for their replies.

You have the floor sir

thank you Mr. presidents allow me to switch in French.

Thank you chair first of all I'd like to thank you and all the distinguished members of the committee. I would like to thank you for the questions posed. They are instructive and they also give us a chance to tell you what Cameroon is doing. There have been a number of developments when it comes to law and human rights. Before I get down to the heart of the issues raised by the five members on your behalf as a whole, I would like to, first of all, refer to some misunderstandings. I've heard some of the members say that the coexistence of French and English-speaking communities is difficult. That's wrong. Cameroon is a strong nation and we see that for almost a hundred years now we've had bilingualism. I'm not going to come back to the political developments in Cameroon but for those who don't know, Cameroon was originally a German possession in the colonial period so it was a German speak German territory, but the Germans left in 1916. It was very big then. And in 1916, Cameroon was divided into two between the United Kingdom and France. They took over Cameroon with a League of Nations mandate created here in Geneva. In 1947, we were placed under a protectorate and Cameroon was divided around three quarters came under French administration and one quarter under British administration and attached to Nigeria. In 1960 the French speaking part which was under a United Nations trusteeship exceeded to its independence. This was on the 1st of January 1960. And then there was a call for reunification between the English and French speaking parts. That's why we talk about a true nation because there was this strengthening. So for everyone who is aware of the history since 1961 up until around 2015, because the problem started in around 2015, 2016. And the problems were raised by just a small number of people in the English speaking part. They were manipulated by the diaspora. This was under the pretext that there was a need to develop secessionist policies on the basis of false consultations. The cohabitation between French and English speaking communities never posed a problem. In fact, it's. part of Cameroon's wealth. For those who've studied law, I studied law, if you look at Cameroonian criminal law, then you'll see that it is been enriched by both common law and Roman law, which is behind French speaking, so, and it's been enriched by Cameroonian traditions. If you look at movement of people and the permeation of bilingualism, if you go to university, then you'll see that there are French and English courses. They're delivered in those languages. There's no problem of cohabitation. The problem in the northwest and southwest is caused by a small number of our compatriots. And it's under the pretext, and I'm not going to come back to it, it's under a pretext and it's evolved into terrorism we see local terrorism so I wanted to come back to this because we need to stop disseminating the idea of a problem between English and French speaking communities they've no people been pushed away from the French speaking part of the country because they're English speakers. There's a lot of mixing the marriage between people of different major languages. So I think that you really understand that there is a true symbiosis, symbiosis in the nation. It's not a problem of English speaking community, French speaking community, it's a problem of individuals. So we've heard a number of very relevant questions which enable us to tell you about the political and legal developments in the country. Ms. Basim raised the issue of 11, which the use of force and firearms, articles 2 and 6 of the Covenant. And I'd like to start with those before we address the others. Obviously, we're going to refer to the death penalty, articles 6 and 7 of the Covenant, raised by Ms. Tigrouja. And then we'll go through all the questions and provide answers. So I'd like to give the floor to Mr. Antamaki, who is the senior advisor at the Permanent Mission. You have the floor, sir.

Thank you, Your Excellency. Thank you for giving me the floor. I'd like to start, in fact, then with the issue raised by Ms. Basim. This is the alignment of Cameroonian law with international standards. I can give you a simple answer. The basic principles are all the same in the national framework and the international framework. So absolute necessity, strict proportionality, legitimate self-defense and proportionality. So in the 1986 law, you see that you have to have proportionate use of force. And the code is based on the UN principles in 1990 on the use of force and firearms. As we've already said, we have initial training, but also continuing training for police officers and gendarmes and military officers. And there is also disciplinary and legal oversight. All abuse could lead to removal of the firearm and disciplinary proceedings, which can go as far as dismissal and also entail criminal proceedings. So we respect the basic international principles, but we're ready to update our domestic tests in order to ensure that they continue to be fully aligned with international standards. The country has been particularly attentive to this over the past decade. Now, with regard to the death penalty, Chair, my delegation would like to make a few remarks on this. First of all, I think you need to distinguish between the new death sentences and the total number of people on death row. The report shows that in February 26, according to consolidated data, there are 100 people on death row in Cameroonian prisons, even if we don't have the number of new convictions handed down each year, but we can send the official legal statistics to you in writing once we have checked them. Secondly, with regard to presidential pardons, it would be wrong to say that there have been no clemency measures since 2020. If you look at a new decree from the 15th of April 2020, which foresees commutation remission of sentences and notably commutation of death sentences. This decree doesn't only cover the death penalty, but also a large number of prisoners. But in any case, whenever anyone is sentenced to death, their sentence can be commuted into a death sentence. And that was in the decree from the 15th of April 2020. And thirdly, no executions have been carried out for over 30 years in Cameroon, and so we have a de facto moratorium. We have the death penalty foreseen in the criminal code. It is a deterrent, but Cameroon is considered to be a de facto abolitionist. The death sentence can only be handed down for a small number of very serious offenses. We are aware of the very restrictive interpretation of the committee in general comment 36, whereby they state that it should be willful murder. We have that interpretation of the committee in mind in our Counterterrorism Act. Fourthly, Cameroon has not ratified the second optional protocol on the abolition of the death penalty. We need to align domestic law in order to do so, but we cannot announce a decision today because it's up to national authorities to do so, but we've taken good note of the committee's recommendation. And once we start the ratification process, at that time, even if it takes some time, we do not exclude that we may ratify in time. Now, when it comes to special procedures, I'd like to recall something which is important, and this is something which has been recognised by the Office of the High Commissioner. Since 2014, Cameroon has had a standing invitation for all special procedures mandate holders. So this means to say that Cameroon stands ready to receive these visits from the mechanisms. Obviously, the visits need to be coordinated with the competent authorities in the country in order to prepare them properly. It's true to say that We haven't had any visits since the fifth periodic report submitted to the committee, and we've taken note of your observation. But what is new to the committee is that Cameroon has five-year national action plans for promoting and protecting human rights. If you look at the latest one, which we're just finalising for the 2026-2030 period, this includes a consultative consultative mechanism for preparing special procedures visits. It is also inclusive, because NGOs and other stakeholders will be involved in this. I would like to reassure the committee that the aim is to ensure that there is traceability of the visits and that we follow up on the results of such visits. Thank you very much.

Thank you. I would now like to move on to articles 6, 7, 9 and 10, which is the ban on cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment, prohibition of torture, detention conditions and monitoring of detention conditions. These were questions which were raised by Ms. Tigrouja, Ms. Basim in particular. I'll give the floor to Mr. Tung Kwee, who will start off with the answers.

Thank you, Your Excellency, Ambassador. Thank you for giving me the floor. Chair. Honourable members of the committee, I'd like to begin by reacting to the question on torture. I can tell you that since the previous review of Cameroon by the committee, one of the major developments has been to, in 2019, appoint the National Human Rights Commission as the national preventive mechanism for torture. But basically, the anti-terrorism measures focus on training and awareness raising for law enforcement and the population at large. We also have warning mechanisms and also deontological training for the judiciary as well. All allegations on torture which are brought to the knowledge of the authorities automatically trigger the launch of a legal investigation. And when evidence has been collected, then they will lead to prosecution, conviction and reparations. I would also like to recall here that in the sixth periodic report of Cameroon on the Convention against Torture contains figures and details about the number of measures taken in this regard. But I'd also like to draw your attention to two or three rulings which attest to the state's desire to combat torture. Firstly, a ruling which was handed down in 6th of May 2020 by the High Court in Bannamengo, which is in the central region of Cameroon. It was seized of the case concerning Ibrahim Bello. The ambassadors just saying that this is a case which comes from his hometown so two police officers were convicted of torture and serious injury inflicted on Ibrahim Bello SG was sentenced to four years imprisonment and BN a police officer was sentenced to three years in prison furthermore they were ordered to pay 5 million CFA francs jointly and severally. He was also the victim cared for in the National Rehabilitation Center for Persons with Disabilities. Another court decision in the Eastern Region, Akwidi, three police officers were sentenced to 10 years in prison for torture and We referred to a case yesterday in January 23 following the suspect suspicious death of the journalist Martinez Togo. A legal investigation was immediately launched, which enabled the suspects to be arrested and put in custody. And they are being tried in the military court in Yaounde for arrest, unlawful imprisonment, torture, murder, and abuse of authority. I would also like to point out that the military hierarchy has ethical training for law enforcement and defense officers. So it's in this regard that the Ministry of Defense has sent around a circular calling on defense and security forces to respect the complete ban on torture and saying that any official committing such offenses would suffer the consequences. We have a number of warning mechanisms in place which can help us flag cases of torture, such as a hotline to the police working round the clock, and there is also a hotline to the gendarmerie and a hotline to the National Human Rights Commission. 1523, which was launched in 2023. Chair, honourable members, as.

You can see, Cameroon is deeply committed to combating torture. Now, on the ratification of OPCAT, this is something that has already been talked about, so I need not to reiterate that point. Chair, regarding the detention conditions, I would like to note that Cameroon has learned and continues to learn how to progressively improve the conditions of detentions in order to align them with international standards as set out in the Nelson Mandela Rules. It should be known that the Cameroonian Penitentiary Code is inspired by the Nelson Mandela Rules. And so, Trying to progressively improve the condition of detentions, Cameroonian authorities have devoted constantly increasing resources to the penitentiary system. To give you a rough idea, between 2017 and 2026, resources earmarked for the penitentiary units have increased by over 25%. This has allowed the administration to further improve the technical capacities of its staff and to increase the material and infrastructure resources, including equipment. An illustrative example is the building of a prison, which is quite a modern one. It is a point of pride for many in the town of Douala. It is a Douala Nguma prison I'm speaking of. It is quite cutting edge, housing 1,600 inmates. Additionally, since 2019 and up until 2025, the state of Cameroon has refurbished 30 odd prisons. Additionally, all these initiatives have allowed us to significantly increase the hosting capacity of Cameroonian prisons. From 2017 to 2026, this went from over 17,000 spots to over 36,000. Additionally, Over 10,000 inmates have benefited from the presidential decree of April 15, 2020 on ending the sentences. 6,942 detainees were immediately released. And this is interesting, 25% of the prison population. And this was during COVID. The same effort has had an impact on the provision of food for prisoners and for care for transmissible diseases in prisons. From 2019 to 2024, to prevent transmissible diseases, over 21,000 inmates benefited from vaccines against hepatitis B, cholera, meningitis, tennis, and other. Regarding the reinsertion from 2019 to 2025, many inmates were trained on professions and trades. And further, the point on improvement in prison conditions, the staff member working in prisons are constantly being trained on new material. For example, 2024, 125 among them went to courses on human rights. And I will conclude by mentioning surveillance in centers of detention. As I said, there is a national mechanism for the prevention of torture, which has been set up. And from 2024 to '25, the Commission had a unbiased opinion following visits to centers of detention without restriction these visits. Other mechanisms where we also carry out visits and audits to centers of detention. I can speak of the one of the Human Rights Office and the Office of International Cooperation with the Ministry of Justice, which carries out some 20 visits in prisons every year. And I can tell you personally, that our visits, because I am in that department, the regular visits that we pay prisons give us an opportunity to see with our own eyes whether there is or not an improvement in the actual detention conditions. There's the case of the prison in Fubon, which between two of our visits had significantly improved its prison conditions. I also want to say that other international mechanisms, such as the International Red Cross Committee, pays visits. And the committee from 2017, 2025 to 2021 carried out some 15 visits to the centers of detention. And to conclude on this, I would like to reiterate that the state of Cameroon believes that keeping oversight of the centers of detention is important in preventing and detecting cases of torture. Thank you.

Thank you, Director. I think that this was a question Madame Bassim had, who asked about the nutrition of prisoners and the hygiene in prisons. And I think you just heard about this. Efforts are made by the government. Prisoners have rights, and the government ensures that these rights are respected. And on the ratification of the protocol, I think it was also you who asked this about torture. Well, the protocol was ratified, and the instruments are going to be introduced into our legislation in short order. We had questions raised by Madam Surland, Mr. Hernandez on slavery. on freedom of movement. And to answer some of these questions, we're going to give the floor to Ms. Mthamark, advisor on human trafficking and slavery, and Mr. Kwidi to speak about the freedom of movement. Thank you.

We're going to be answering Madame Sutherland's questions on the elimination of slavery and human trafficking. The law of 2011 and Article 342-1 of the Criminal Code, which you mentioned, are the foundation for these investigations, but in practice, Cameroon has moved from mainly normative provisions to a more operational approach. I'll explain what I mean. Since 2023, regional coordination committees, as well as a governmental platform with civil society, is improving this system, and sentences have been approved. For example, there was a 20-year prison sentence for cases of trafficking in 2019, 18 years in 2022, and other such sentences in 2024. On the consent of the victim, the 2011 law defines treatment as recruiting, transferring, housing, or welcoming, a person in order to exploit them when the use of threats or force is used, but also fraud, deceit, exploitation of a situation of vulnerability. It also says that consent is not considered when violence was inflicted upon the victim or their parents or guardians. Cameroon is also a party to the Palermo Protocol. according to which the consent of a victim is rendered null and void when one of these means was availed of. Regarding the Committee's question about the need to guarantee full alignment with the national law to this international standard, I can say that in the case of children and domestic abuse, the law in Cameroon protects all people, regardless of their age. But it also has an aggravating factor for a harsher sentence in certain circumstances, particularly those involving children, exploitation, in addition to slavery, forced labor, other analogous practices, and servitude. Human trafficking with labor purposes can be prosecuted, and as long as the requirements for the crime are proven. awareness raising in schools for children and specialized mechanisms and the police and there's also social protection programs here I should know that this is a point of pride for us because it doesn't happen all the time Cameroon has two separate ministries and trusted with the protection of children it's not everywhere we find that the Ministry for the protection of women and family and they have a purview of children's right and also the Ministry of Social Affairs which works with children in distress and each of these two departments has regional offices to ensure they are there, close to their target population. Each of these departments has 10 different regional services, 58 departmental ones, and each one of them have 360 local neighborhood offices. Regarding the identification of victims, I can say that this is done through several channels. The police, the gendarmes, social services, which I mentioned a moment ago, 360 times two, because they're two ministries, airports and labor inspections, and there are other warning mechanisms. Since January, 2022, we also have a green line, which is hotline, and that's the Ministry of Social Affairs, working with children in distress. If you dial 1503, that's a toll-free number, victims and also witnesses can report anonymously, confidentially some events and trigger social or police, social worker police investigation. There's also involvement of the police, the gendarmes, and the Human Rights Commission. Each of these three departments also has a free hotline. At international airports at Yaounde and Douala, there are also checks and services for vulnerable people and migrant workers. On investigations and trials and redress, these investigations can trigger a police and gendarme investigation, as well as a submission to the prosecutor's office. Then courts have had several sentences and can provide redress to victims. In a case of trafficking, of a member state to the UN we're not going to mention, the higher courts in Messan sentenced the author to 10-year prison sentence and 65 million CFA franc compensation for the victim. Protection also means social care and social protection. Transit Center housing victims of trafficking is operational in Yaounde. The information is confidential, and we recognize, however, the protection of victims and witnesses against reprisals is an area in which this current mechanism can benefit from further improvements. There was also a question on training of new staff, particularly regarding trafficking. I can say that this training does not depend exclusively on sparse workshops. There's a whole module on organized crime, which covers trafficking in persons and trafficking in migrants, and that's part of the new training program for the police and gendarmes. With it, the new generations can be trained from the very beginning of their education. But this training is then also supplemented by continuous education where we bring in judges, police, and all together, and also other people working in protecting individuals. And we often do this training hand in hand with civil society organizations. Thank you.

Thank you. Mr. Hernandez had a question on individual freedoms. like, for example, the freedom of movement? And I'll give it to Mr. Koidi to answer that question. Thank you,

Chair, committee members. Our delegation would like to thank you for your questions and interest on the freedom of movement. I would like to provide some information on the measures that have been taken to guarantee the freedom of movement of individuals in the northwest and southwest regions of the country. On measures seeking to guarantee the freedom of movement of people in the Northwest and Southwest region, Cameroon would like to, first, draw the Committee's attention to particular difficulties that exist for the populations of these two regions, given that there are separatist groups operational there. There are days in which we say that these are dead cities. Yes, microphone,

that'd be great. The use of improvised

explosive devices and other practices that hinder the population's safety make it difficult for them to have access to social, to basic services and to move freely. The Cameroonian authorities are setting up several security measures, administrative measures, and logistical measures in order to protect people and assets and to promote the restoration of the normal movement conditions. On the security front, the defense and security forces have improved the security of areas in the cities by increasing checkpoints and by having police walking through the city, as well as air police. There's territorial presence of the gendarmerie police in these areas. And in Batsibo, Kumbu, Unsi, and Alu, we have created swift response offices. The security forces also have improved surveillance of main roads and urban areas. Mobile patrols improve securing strategic points. And when so required, escorts are set up in order to protect cargo moving through the roads and protect from ambush threats. Administratively, Local authorities are assessing regularly the situation on the ground in order to take the proper conditions for law enforcement so they are adapted to the circumstances. Operations are done in hot spots of tension to prevent the inflow of armed groups. And logistically, the government is additionally pursuing efforts in building and maintaining essential infrastructure on the roads in order to promote movement to ensure that there is lower risk of attacks. And the population can say if there's any threat or prevention of circulation of movement to the competent authorities. My colleague a moment ago mentioned some of the provisions that were taken in this regard. Particularly, I'm thinking of the hotline that is made available for the national gendarmes, the Human Rights Commission, and the police. They'll have a toll-free number. In light of the aforementioned, Cameroon remains convinced that protection of people, securing of roads, and preservation of ongoing economic activities are all sine qua non conditions for the effective enjoyment of the freedom of movement. On the prefectural ruling of July 2024, 16th of July, well, this decree is an administrative act. Cameroon recognizes the freedom of movement and the choices of its citizens are fundamental rights protected by article 12 of the Covenant. We also recognize that in enjoying their rights, the enjoyment of rights must be done pursuant to the content of that international document. Article 12 mentions freedom of movement and to the choice of residence is to be protected by the law, and that is necessary for the protection of legitimate interests, and it must be compatible with other rights recognized in the Covenant. We would like to point out here and now that the compatibility of the decree in question with the Covenant must bear in mind the legal foundation and the end pursued. and that any restriction is benefiting those concerned. Presidency of the Republic and maintaining public order in the country are legitimate concerns of our state. However, the implementation of measures must respect legality, necessity, and proportionality. It must take into account an assessment of the situation of those involved and abide by applicable law. Thank you. And now we're going to answer

questions raised by Mr. Ndiaye on the administration and independence of justice, the right to a fair trial, and questions raised, I believe, by Madame Tigrja on freedom and security of people. But before giving the floor to Mr. Fonkouhi, who is a judge and will give us more details about this, I would like to say something. And I think I said this yesterday. In 1990, the head of state of Cameroon, His Excellency Mr. Biya, had a parliamentary session devoted exclusively to the right to freedom. I can tell you that that parliamentary session laid out its vision, its program, on human rights in general and on freedom for the civilization. And I can forward you a whole host of documents on this. It was a true revolution of the political and legal landscape of Cameroon in this area. It set us down the path to modernity. So now I'll give the floor to Judge Phung Quyen, who will be answering some of these questions on freedom and security of people and on the administration and independence of justice. Questions Mr. Dyadin, Madame Taguja had for us. You have the floor. Thank you, Your Excellency, Ambassador.

I will begin by answering the question on the length of custody. And I can tell you that generally that is governed by the criminal procedural code. and also by other legislation. The criminal procedural code says that the delay cannot be more than 48 hours renewable once by the judiciary police officer under the written and grounded authorization of the prosecutor, which could exceptionally be renewed twice. Then a custody length can be extended based on the distance between the gendarmerie detention center to the place where the trials should take place, 48 hours by 50 kilometer in distance. But by taking into account the complexity of certain investigations, particularly in the area of terrorism, cases that require a great deal of due diligence, other specific laws provide for additional specific delays. I should point out that the visits to detention centers, which we mentioned a moment ago, as well as disciplinary legal measures, ensure that this length of custody is respected. On the extended detention cases, I should say that when this happens, it can lead to disciplinary action of the members of the judiciary police that are behind it. or to the judges leading this investigation, bearing in mind that such a case, we're dealing with a case of police custody. And for people in custody who believe that their custody is extended beyond what is provided by the law, they can go to habeas corpus judge. Between 2024, 2025, habeas corpus judges looked at dozens of requests for immediate release. And additionally, judges also sentenced several people who were supposed to be enforcing the law for having unlawfully arrested. On conditions of detention, I would like to say that in spite of resources, which are, by the way, limited, the state of Cameroon has set its mind to improve the conditions of detention progressively. I can say that by and large, the idea that you have is not entirely accurate. For example, there are cases of alleged lack of care. And the criminal procedural code of Cameroon says that those who are in police custody can ask for a doctor to pay them a visit. And these people are in touch with their family, and they have the possibility of being assisted by legal counsel. Cameroonian authorities ensure that there is a separation between women, men, and children who are being held in police custody. Though, texts in Cameroon have set up certain cells for police custody, and there are also records which ensure that there is proper monitoring of those that are being held in custody. On combating terrorism, a question that we answered at length yesterday, I do want to add that if there is a delay, a long temporary provisional detention, then the police has an obligation to release people beyond the statutory length of custody. Now there's a question of a fair trial, and I'll answer this question generally. the delay of custody, I'd like to say that in some cases, the texts do not specify the delay, but in most cases, most procedures are not governed by a specific length of time, but judges are regularly trained and awareness is raised to ensure that justice is seen within a reasonable span of time. bearing in mind the difficulty and complexity of the case, the number of people involved in a particular case and all that. So in 2023, if my memory doesn't fail me, we had a prosecution completion rate of 67%. And we are committed to improve this rate. And on the statistics on legal counsel, for 2025, we had a total rate of over 50% of requests for legal counsel, and 58% in 2024. But to have detailed information on this, I would like to invite you to consult the report of the Ministry of Justice of Cameroon on the state of human rights in Cameroon, where you will find detail on these questions on legal counsel. The report is published every year, and it has been published every year since 2005. The most recent one is from 2024. The 2025 report is about to be published. And regarding people who speak English, I won't say Anglophone because in Cameroon, We're a bilingual country. English and French are languages on an equal footing. Northwest and Southwest region, you will find many people who speak French and express themselves in French with everyone. And just like in the other regions, you will find people who speak on a daily basis with others in English. The state of Cameroon started a process of recruiting legal experts who work in English for the courts of appeal of Northeast and Southwest and Northwest. And we have trained 160 people and another 100 of auditors for the school of judges and prosecutors. And whenever a case is brought before a court, the legal authorities ensure that those involved in the case can express themselves in the language they master best. And when the language they speak best is not the one used by the legal authorities, then an interpreter is called for. In Cameroon, we do have a great number of trained interpreters that are registered under the Ministry of Justice. And regarding the protection of attorneys, I can say that in Cameroon, we have a strong bar protecting the rights of the attorneys. And this is from a law of 1990, which ensures the protection of attorneys. And among other measures, it provides for immunity of protection of these attorneys. Like everyone who's under the Cameroonian jurisdiction, they have similar protections. And on the protection of witnesses, we have taken notes. of the program you mentioned, but I would like to point out that the sanctions provided by the Criminal Procedural Code and by the Administrative Police also allow for witnesses to be protected there. On the news recently, I can tell you that the Ministry of Justice and UNICEF are currently working on publishing a practical guide on the protection of child witnesses in the criminal justice system. And to address the concern of the General Inspectorate of the Ministry of Justice, I feel particularly called out here. And I can tell you that this is a mechanism that is feared by judges and even myself. So I can tell you that that mechanism is there. And every time that a judge is called before this mechanism, they can feel the spotlight is on them. So it is an independent mechanism. And I'd like to provide you some figures just to give you an idea on how this mechanism works. So between 2024 and 2025, the General Inspectorate of the Judiciary and the Ministry of Justice processed 460 complaints. It had 210 investigations launched. 48 observational letters were sent out and also 128 requests for information and 20 requests for explanations were answered. And as for the hiring, promotion, modalities, and also sanctions imposed on judges, I can say that the auditors, and they are actually just students, are part of a selective course, selective examination. I would even say it's the most selective one. It's part of the National School of Accounting. Um and once they complete this examination, all the judging judges students undergo a military training. and then practical, theoretical training. And then they join the justice system after an approval for the president of the republic. So the appointment, the hiring, the promotion, and the removal of judges is done by the president after the advice of the Higher Council of the Magistrature. And the vice president of that council is the minister of justice.

The current members of the Higher Council of the Judiciary in Cameroon, which is the disciplinary body for the... prosecutors and judges are appointed for a five-year mandate. Now with regard to the criminal procedural code that you asked about, we haven't got any statistics on the matter at the moment and we will provide them to you. With regard to the independence of military judiciary, I would like to point out that the members of the military judiciary have the same status as civilians and must respect independence. They must obey the law and their conscience. And as we indicated yesterday, there is a decree from 2024 which orders them to swear an oath before the Cameroonian Supreme Court, so they do not answer to the military hierarchy as members of a court. I will leave it at that.

Thank you, Eric Sounsey. Thank you for those answers, those very detailed answers. Chair, honourable members of the Committee, We're going to continue now with public freedoms, notably freedom of assembly and association. These were questions which were raised by Ms. Tegruddra, Mr. Fernandes, and I think also Ms. Shorland touched upon these matters. I'll give the floor to Mr. Ntamack, the advisor, to answer these questions.

Thank you, Your Excellency. Well, we're going to deal with peaceful assemblies and associations before we move on to human trafficking. So we received a number of questions and we'll group them together according to subject. I'd like to clarify that there is prior declaration and not authorization for demonstrations. The act from 1990 says that demonstrations are free except when there is a risk to public order, but there must be a formal notification of this risk to the organisers and it can be contested before the courts. The terminology used by the authorities may give you an idea that you need an authorisation, but it doesn't mean that that is what is in the law. If you look at articles 26 and the covenant, the use of force in demonstrations is bound by the principles of necessity and proportionality. Firearms are prohibited and they cannot be used to disperse ordinary demonstrations. In order to prevent any abuse, Cameroon uses training and awareness raising Over 12,600 gendarmes were provided with training in recent years on techniques of maintaining public order. And when there is alleged abuse, this can lead to investigations and proceedings, punishment, and reparations. We have different figures in our considering the number of arrests 615 people have released and a number of them were brought before the courts on the 8th of October 2025 there were a number of people who were convicted by the and do the Hyundai military court for a maximum of 15 months imprisonment Others have been released once serving their sentences. There are other cases before the courts, but it's not participating in demonstrations which leads to you being tried before the military court. As the ambassador mentioned yesterday, it depends on what the charges are and the rules of jurisdiction. Once again, Cameroon has taken into note the committee's concerns with regard to trials of civilians in military courts, with regard to banning of political parties. Now, this was raised by Mr. Fernandez. We never prevent opposition parties from meeting. Hundreds of political meetings and demonstrations are held every day without any restrictions. They could either be public or private meetings with regard to a specific example, which has been raised by NGOs, which is the PCRN. It wasn't the administrative authorities were concerned about the disruptions, but the courts. And so there was a ruling handed down in 2023. It was thought that the various factions in the internal conflict of the party could pose a risk to public order. So you're saying that meetings are often banned but it's because that there are warring factions within the political party and sometimes this leads to battles and there are very violent terms used on the internet so this is reason why the administrative authorities believe that this could degenerate and is documented, it's often opposing factions which refer to the administrative authorities and call for the meeting of the opposite faction to be banned. Sometimes this could lead to the committee or other international authorities that there are restrictions being put in place by the authorities. Now, with regard to freedom of association, three remarks. First of all, common law associations, you just need to make a declaration. When the prefect receives the file, he's got up to two months to give his view. Otherwise, there is tacit approval. And so this gives legal personality to the association. So tacit as silence. Silence leads to tacit approval, so this avoids the danger that you mentioned. There are no arbitrary decisions. The legal remedies are not just theoretical. The higher court of Yondu overruled a court of first instance ruling and also Douala court also lifted any restrictions on NGOs which were placed on it by administrative authority and thirdly with regard to associations defending LGBTI rights if you look at the law then the administrative authorities looks at the aims in the articles association and This is pursuant to Article 4 of the law. It's not just targeted restrictions, it's because the aim of the association opposes the law, public morals, et cetera. Now, with regard to avoiding undue administrative interference, well, we have legal rules for suspension or dissolution of these associations, and there is judicial oversight. of administrative decisions, which we mentioned earlier on. And obviously, there needs to be a factual basis for such a decision.

Thank you, advisor. We've got three areas of concern which were raised by the committee members. I think this was rights of the child, participation in public affairs, rights of the child 7, 15, 16, 24 and article 25 of the Covenant. Adom has the floor.

Thank you for giving the floor, Excellency. Now, with regard to rights of the child, well, I think that the advisor has already covered them, but I'll just add some data to it. When it comes to protecting children from violence, we have strengthened the legal framework in this regard. We adopted the law on the 25th of July, 2020. 2023, which sets out rules for protecting children online and sets out the penalties for offenses against children in the digital environment. We've also adopted a number of different instruments, such as the National Action Plan for eradicating female genital mutilation running up to 2026. This is based on education awareness raising involving local communities. The state also strives to ensure that children victims of violence receive full assistance. In addition, in order to combat violence in schools, the administration of secondary schools in the Ministry of Primary Education have issued decrees to set up functional and adapted mechanisms for preventing all forms of violence against school pupils by providing a protective and inclusive and safe education environment which fosters learning. It also facilitates flagging and administrative and disciplinary proceedings when there are misdemeanors. When it comes to issuing birth certificates, we've undertaken structural reforms and technological reforms in order to promote universal birth registration, including for internally displaced persons and refugees. The hub of this is adoption of a law in December 2024 concerning the organization of civil registry. So we have modernized and reorganized the system by integrating digital technology into it. It gradually integrates the biometric data of newborns so that they can have a single identification number and there is a centralized database. So this will stop the fraud of double identities or forgery. We have a pilot project for digitalizing thousands of old registers and issuing the first digital certificates. We've also further strengthened the ecosystem for birth registration through additional human resources, funding and equipment. This The basis of this ecosystem is the National Civil Registration Office, which is decentralized authorities. And you can find them in health facilities as well and in administrative authorities. We've raised awareness amongst local leaders and we have seen an increase in the budget of the Ministry of Development and Decentralization. It increased by 300% between 2019 and 2026. In order to bring civil registry closer to local communities, we have officers in hundreds of health facilities so that the birth registration can be completed before the child leaves the health facility. So I've covered rights of the child now with regard to participation in public life. There was a problem on. Equality, transparency, access to the media during elections, and there are clear procedures for the media in elections. the candidates for the presidential elections in 2018 and 2025 and legislative elections in recent years as well as senatorial elections as well as regional council elections in recent years have had equal treatment in terms of public funding for candidacies. With regard to the independence and impartiality of elections, Camerine, this is something which is guaranteed by the elections code and the law from 2006 concerning its creation and organization and functioning. The members of this electoral bodies are appointed according to certain criteria, their competence, their integrity, impartiality and independence, and they are committed to act in full impartiality. With regard to allegations concerning harassment, they're groundless. The police act in the same way towards all political candidates, regardless of their political orientation. I think I'll leave it at that for now. Thank you, Chair.

Thank you very much.

With your indulgence, Chair, we've got one last point which we need to provide you with answers. I think it was Mr. Fernandez who asked about minorities, so I'll give the floor to Mr. Couedi. And perhaps I can also add to his answers at the end.

Please bear the time in mind because we've already overshot our allocated speaking time.

Well, I'd like to give the delegation's answers to these questions. First of all, implementation of measures to benefit the Northwest and Southwest bilingualism in public affairs. indigenous peoples and protecting natural resources of indigenous peoples living areas. Now, with regard to measures benefiting the northwest and southwest, we remain attentive to the concerns expressed in by the people in these two regions. So, it's in this spirit that the head of state announced a major national dialogue to try and respond to the aspirations of these people and find a lasting solution to the crisis affecting these regions. These measures include, we can underscore that these measures include the law on promoting bilingualism. So this promotes the official languages of the country, in addition, the national. Commission for Bilingualism and Multiculturalism was created and undertakes awareness raising and education activities in order to promote peaceful harmony, to discourage hate speech, and in recent years a number of campaigns have undertaken covering thousands of people. It also undertakes visits to central and decentralized authorities. A number of measures have been taken to embed the use of English in public authorities and the judicial system in the same regard, the common law system. is recognized by the Supreme Court and the National College for Public Administration and the Judiciary recruited 430 English speaking pupils. This was a special operation to recruit English speaking registers, registrars and legal officers. Participation in public life. North and South West regions are represented in central authorities and in the legislative actions in 2021. There were over 30 MPs who were elected to the National Assembly. So there are senators which represent these regions. They're either elected or appointed and all of the meetings. The speaker. breaks off.

Thank you, Chair. So, I've got a very large document in front of me, and so I'll try to summarize it. There are no linguistic minorities in Cameroon. Our population is around 34 million, and what I was saying just a few moments ago is that the two languages, French and English, are both official languages, and I would like to say that English is taking over in Cameroon. If we look at the statistics by region, then you'll see that there are over 8 million people living in the northwest and southwest regions. So if you've got 8 million out of 34, then you can talk about a multilingual country. And the trend is for people to speak English more and more. I can give you the example of my children. I've got three who speak English, one who speaks French, so there are no linguistic minorities. And among the main measures taken by the head of state is to promote symbiosis between the two communities. Cameroon is a true nation in which all people are perfectly integrated and The people living in the two areas, the northwest and southwest, are just part of a mosaic of ethnicities. We have over 250 ethnicities, and people firstly identify with their ethnic group. So I think this division on the basis of being an English speaker and French speaker is really done by people who want to create confusion. There's an increasing trend of speaking English in Cameroon. Now, on the LGBTI minority, I think I explained this to you yesterday, what you need to take into consideration, you need to take into consideration the morals and values of society. There's no stigma as such. If I say that I'm LGBTI, that doesn't mean to say that I'm going to be persecuted. It's when there are egregious cases. If you just say, I'm LGBTI, you're not committing a crime. You could say that the person is defending LGBTI, but it's not an offense. They're not stigmatized, but it's when there are attacks on decency. Cameroon is doing its utmost to preserve freedoms and rights. enshrined in the Constitution. I think that's all I have to say. Thank you very much for the additional time you've given us, Chair. We've tried to go through all the questions, and that's all that I can say for the time being. Thank you.

Okay, thank you very much, Ambassador. I will move to the, there are first additional questions regarding the paragraph 24 and 25 from Mr. Fernandez-Lieja. So I'll first give the floor to Fernandez-Lieja. Well, thank

you very much, Chair. I've got a follow-up question. Notably, in view of the responses provided, the right to participate in cultural life. I spoke about this earlier, but I'd like to focus on two subjects. First of all, the independence and impartiality of the electoral body, ELECAM. This is the central electoral authority which is tasked with organising the elections in Cameroon. So it is a directorate general for elections in the National Council and he also created a constitutional council a few years ago. So the electoral body then, ELECAM, provides the institutional team which organizes and supervises elections. So the committee is concerned about its independence. It's not sufficiently independent from the government, and notably, it's not sufficiently independent from the president of the republic. So that's one question I put to you, and El Integrujo already raised an issue which I would like to take further now, and this concerns the rights to political participation, the right of association, the right to peaceful assembly and demonstration. The Committee is concerned that certain political movements such as the political movement for Alliance or the movement for transformation in commune have been considered illegal this is following a release from the Ministry of Administration they're considered to be clandestine movements and unlawful according to that release from the Ministry So that is a restriction on the right of association and political participation, which doesn't appear to be justified. I've also received information about certain political demonstrations which were subject to repression. there was a political demonstration which led to the arbitrary arrest of demonstrators and acts of torture. This is from 2020. So the committee is concerned about such events because you claim that this kind of restrictions have never occurred. So we'd like some more information if you have it. For example, in May 2023, Maurice Camto organised the first meeting in Yaounde. It was authorised. It was the first one which had been authorised for five years. So, I don't think that there is really the appropriate environment for exercising this freedom of association and assembly. Chair, can I ask a couple of more questions about minorities? With regard to minorities now, during this constructive dialogue, we've heard about some measures which have been taken. Notably, you've recruited English speakers for judicial functions. But two concerns. You've just said that there are no minorities. there's no English speaking minority. Well, technically speaking from the perspective in international law, we would say that there is a de facto minority. There might not be a small minority, but according to international law, you would say that there is an English speaking minority because the majority of people living in your country are French speaking. And at the same time, It's not just a language which determines if you're a minority. There are a number of other factors as well, but we won't get into them now. But I would like to say that the Committee is concerned about minorities because of the implementation of recommendations concerning the absence of discrimination against certain groups. So we want to make sure that there is no discrimination against English speakers in the regions, and we'd like to know if the state is taking measures in order to ensure that you work towards coexistence, peaceful coexistence among all groups in Cameroon. The fact that there is a separatist or a secessionist movement is Perhaps because there's not enough peaceful coexistence and you would actually see fewer secessionist aspirations if you did more to promote coexistence. Now, acts of violence against members of the LGBTI community. I don't think you've really answered on this. I don't think that acts of violence against them are necessary or proportionate. So, it could be that even if the state is moving towards new values, it should take the necessary measures in order to prevent acts of violence against the LGBTI community. I don't think this is something which can be defended by claiming that this is part of the national values. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mr. Fernandez-Riela. Then I will collect several follow-up questions before giving the floor back to the delegation. So I will give the floor first to Madam Bassim.

Thank you, Mr. Chairperson. And once again, thank you for the replies by the esteemed delegation. What I meant by visitations to the places of detention, not the official or formal kind of visits done by governmental institutions. What I meant was visits by the National Committee on Human Rights, independent body, which is an independent body, NGOs, specialized agencies, or those related to this respect. This is what I meant by, do you permit this kind of visits, whether announced or non-announced? On another note, It's really music to my ears to know that you ratified the second, the protocol on that, and that the instruments will be deposited very soon. This is great news and always a step towards more enjoyment and compliance with instruments of human rights. especially in our world today, is great news. Thank you very much for making our day. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Now I'll give the floor to Madame Chigourza.

Thank you. Thank you very much to the delegation. And along the same lines as Madame Bassim, I'll say that I was very pleased to hear that Cameroon had opened a permanent standing invitation to special procedures. Now, given that it's an invitation that was made in 2014, the question naturally arises, no visits and we're in 2026, so wouldn't it be about time to make sure this open invitation leads to something. And I'm sure the Special Rapporteur on Combating Terrorism will be more than pleased in being able to discuss on site with authorities. Okay, so three specific questions that I have related to some of the topics we've been talking about. First, on freedom of expression, I got no answer, especially on the well-known Council on Family and Communication Operational 2024 with journalists. And according to information we have, in an arbitrary way, in the rapporteur on freedom of expression and the African Commission on Human Rights and Peoples had also sent to Cameroon a letter. And I would like to know, even if writing, if you don't want to answer now orally, what was the follow-up to that appeal letter? And how can you ensure that the National Council of Communication is really independent? That's question number one. Question number two, and this goes back to the death penalty. and commuting the death penalty. Do you have figures you could provide the committee on this? And did I understand the decree of April 15th correctly? Because according to the information I gleaned when preparing for this dialogue, commuting does not apply for terrorist acts. So it brings us back to the same issue. There are certain offenses that are punishable by death. where commuting the death penalty is not applicable, and that's from the 2014 law on acts of terrorism. That's question two. And question three has to do with what Mr. Fernandez was saying just now on indigenous communities and the way in which they are brought in and involved by their associations, especially in making decisions. There seems to be an MOU with the forestry sector, which was adopted on August 13, 2024. If I understood, the reason behind this MOU is that, well, for associations to participate in forest management, they must be, quote unquote, authorized by authorities. And so according to information we have, for example, the Paka indigenous community was excluded from this management and from taking decisions on forests, flora and fauna. Can you give us written information on this MOU to clarify this and how it respects freedom of association and also what our colleague mentioned about the protection of the rights of indigenous communities. Thank you.

Now I will invite Mr. NDIA.

Thank you, Chair. Again, I would like to thank the delegation of Cameroon for their detailed and numerous answers to our questions. I would like to ask for some clarification on matters yet unanswered. The length of trials, I think you gave us some figures. We appreciate that, but I want to know, are you planning to automate the process at all in order to shorten the length of trials and proceedings? We have taken due note of the need to create a mechanism for the protection of witnesses. And on attorneys, while the Cameroonian bar recognizes, it's a very active, strong bar association, but I want to know whether attorneys benefit from immunity from arrests. by the judiciary police, because in many bars, they can't be arrested without an authorization from a general prosecutor, the attorney general. Is that the case also? Is there a specific system set up there that protects the attorneys from arrest so that they can freely exercise their functions? Then, question of the meeting of the higher council of the judiciary, I didn't hear. how many times this body has met since 2017, which is the last time that we had the opportunity to speak to you. And then another question on legal cases, the case of Baknis Sogo. We still don't know what happened with this. When is he going to be tried? There was a ruling, but then an appeal, and well, we don't know when that's going to be looked at. Then another question on the number of victims of police violence over the course of protests. Also here, I believe that no answer was given. And then last question touches on two points. First, on victims of Boko Haram and the Anglophone crisis, because oftentimes when there's conflict like this that trickles into a country with armed groups and authorities, the civilian population is caught between a rock and a hard place. which is why we would like to know figures. What statistics do you have for those that are victims of violence from security forces, but also for victims of violence from the armed groups? I don't think I heard an explanation about this. And to pick up on what Mr. Grujic said a moment ago, climate change and indigenous population, it's an important question. for the Bororo, mainly pastors and shepherds, shepherds rather. Is this considered? Are these segments of the population involved in climate change risk management? It's another question I have for you for this follow up. And thank you for your answers.

Mr. Sulan. Madam Sulan.

Thank you, Chair, and thank you very much to the delegation. I have a follow-up question regarding issue 23. I noted your explanation regarding the modernization and digitalization of the newborn registration system that you have introduced. Now, I would like to ask you again about the registration of newborns delivered outside health facilities. What measures are in place to ensure that these newborns are also registered? And one question more, if you could please share with us whether any specific measures have been introduced to systematically identify and register children who were not registered at birth and who have never obtained a birth certificate? That would be my two follow-up questions. Thank you.

Thank you very much. These are all our follow-up questions. I see we have 20 minutes left and I need 7 minutes for conclusion. So I can give you 13 minutes to reply. I know there are a lot of questions, but I want to remind you that you have opportunity to reply in writing after 48 hours, within 48 hours after the review. So I will give the floor, Ambassador.

Thank you, Chair.

Yes, it is indeed an interesting debate. And we want to give many answers to your questions. We don't have a lot of time, but as you suggested already, some of the answers will be provided in writing. And I'll begin with the last question on birth registrations. I come from a rural setting, so what happens there? What you said is true, many children are born in towns, villages not in hospitals and then the state of Cameroon's administration created a national bureau of civil registry so that means that nearly in every town every Canton there is a civil registry officer and so when a child is born they are presented and then the town chief records it in the civil registry. When that's not done, we have certain local hearings and in that case, the mayor with some state agencies would record the birth and regularize this. It was an operation for some time, but we're catching up with our lag. There are many of these local days organized to ensure that every child has and birth registry. Let's see, a few questions, beginning with Mr. Hernandez, right, to cultural life, religious life, right? That was your question. So we are a secular state. Cameroon is a secular state with many coexisting religions. I think our delegation represent this fact. We have Muslims and Christians, Protestants, Catholics in our ranks. really we coexist without issue Muslims and Christians protest everyone working together there are inter-religious meetings and there's also great ties between the Protestant and Christian so we don't have in religious intolerance in our country and thank God for that and legislation is good on this and the government supports this coexistence. You spoke of an organization, non grata organization. I don't know what organization that is, but during the protests organized by Professor Canto, say that our law regulates protests, political ones or others. And when there is a threat to public order, then the government must ensure that doesn't happen. It's not just in Cameroon, but otherwise in other places should ensure that it doesn't go overboard. But It's nothing against freedom of expression, freedom of opinion. So Professor Kontor, at the time, was head of a political party called the MRC, which is no longer there, but since 2023, I believe, held hundreds of protests. He even participated in some campaigns. There was an electoral campaign, an election in 2025. He organized many protests. You spoke of the English-speaking minority. And well, what would you say I am, French or English-speaking? It's a question we have in Cameroon. If you take a segment of the population, 30, 32 million inhabitant population, 8 million originally speak English. It's not everything. Now, pretty much everyone speaks English as well as French. So, English-speaking minority in Cameroon, I would say no, and I say this loudly and clearly. There is no French-speaking minority either. Quite the opposite, people think that speaking English is an advantage. That means that every family now, well, originally my family, French-speaking, but now French speakers see themselves as a minority because there's a trend to speak English now. So this idea of French, English speaking, well, no, these are our languages. So we cannot be divided into French and English speaking. These are languages from brought in from abroad. We have our own languages. We have our own specificity. Whether we speak English is rather an advantage than a reason for discrimination. Our national policies are based on national balance when recruiting and promoting. Just look at the public offices. Many people learn English to be more eligible for promotion. I don't want this to spark up a whole new debate, but I can tell you that it's not an advantage and it's not a disadvantage. So it's not a discussion. I think the information that is bandied about is not real. It's fake news. So on LGBTQ people, I can say here too that I think it's a third time I'm saying it now. There is no stigmatization in Cameroon. It's a very famous attorney actually, who's chairing one of the human rights committees here, who is a defender. And that doesn't create a problem for them. Practices, changes, our culture, changes but our law is against such discrimination there's no persecution either if someone participates flagrantly in certain acts anywhere in the world I think that would trigger certain action and some people that are um in this uh group It's known that they belong to this group, and they even have high-ranking positions in the government, and everyone knows. So on NGOs, detention, well, and visits, yes, there are NGOs that visit centers of detention, and there is no ban on this. This is actually covered by the law. Madame Tigris asked about mandate holders and the invitation. And we, I as an ambassador for some years now, have been in touch with certain rapporteurs, special rapporteurs, talking about visits to Cameroon. Right now, we're at the diplomatic arrangement stage, so it's in the works. Freedom of expression, electoral council, for that, I heard we had about 10, 13 minutes, so see what we can do with that. Communities and forests. Forests in Cameroon are governed by the system. Forest is environment. And there are communities such as the Baka community. We refer to them as small size communities, forest dwellers, indigenous people, protected by the law. Just like the Bworo population who are nomads, protected by the law too. But it so happens that in the case of forest management, when we work in a forest, certain conditions are provided for those living there so that they can remain in their world, so they don't feel like they'll lose anything. And there's a whole legal institutional arsenal set up to protect indigenous populations in Cameroon because we believe that it's part of our wealth. really I'm forced here to just briefly and quickly answer some of these questions I'll give the floor to others maybe I'll mention some of this in the conclusions when we talk about the independent electoral body Mr. Okanda you have one minute I think to say something about the Electoral Council

Ambassador thank you for giving me the floor chair committee members The independence and impartiality of bodies in Cameroon are guaranteed by the law and the electoral code, as well as the law that created the and discusses the operation of that institution. Members are appointed according to their skills and competence with the principle of need impartiality and neutrality. People take an oath to act impartially, and they benefit from immunity for opinions expressed as part of the exercise of their duties, professional responsibilities. They're asked to abstain from any activity that might jeopardize the independence of their work. They cannot receive instructions or orders from public or private authorities. Chair, dear members, to conclude, I would like to say that the Electoral Council has 18 members appointed by decree of the President of the Republic. They are chosen among deputies elected to the National Assembly and members of civil society. Thank you.

Thank you.

On some concerns mentioned by Mr. Ndiaye, I just wanted to say that, indeed, the Ministry of Justice is involved in a digitization process of the legal proceedings. There's a pilot stage which was started a few years back, and we called it e-justice. As I said, that's a pilot stage in the Douala and Yaounde jurisdictions. For some months now, we are working with UNDP, who has pledged to support us and extend the pilot stage further. On immunity of attorneys, our legislation only says that there is immunity for words said during a trial. Now, I also want to recall that the Martinez v. Sogho case is being tried right now. Thank you.

Thank you.

And to quickly answer the last question Madame de Grouchy had, who asked What happens when commuting sentences? It doesn't happen for those sentenced for acts of terrorism. Well, yes, these people are can still be eligible for pardon. According to Article 22 of the Criminal Procedure Code in Cameroon, any death penalty is presented to the President of the Republic. To for him to consider. a pardon. And no death penalty can be handed out without the president considering a pardon. And that is?

So.

On indigenous population and the relationship between that and the environment. Yes, we lament this as well. So I said there's a whole legal framework to protect these people. We spoke of victims of Boko Haram and populations that are victims. Yes, they are cared for, looked after. And after the large scale dialogue organized by the head of state in 2019, There are some measures that were taken in order to support this population as these regions are developed so that the region can be at the same development level as other regions. So there is commitment at the highest level of the state to protect victims, whether are victims of attacks of Boko Haram or victims of terrorist attacks by separatist groups. had a question on the National Council of Communication. That is an advisory body, a consultative body that seeks to regulate the operation of the communication media policy in our country. They are regularly consulted with, and they take decisions. They act as a regulator. It's a regulating body, and it works quite well. They ensure that there are no problems. When there are problems, sanctions are taken before being sent up to the next level in the hierarchy. So it works quite well. We're satisfied with this. And given that there is freedom of expression, as you said yesterday, we have 150 different newspapers, 100 of TV channels. And given that, having such a consultative body is important. So I would like to answer to many more questions, sir, but I'm forced to just briefly answer them as I have. Thank you.

Thank you again. Thank delegation for the responses provided to the committee. And we will move to the conclusion. I now give the floor back to the head of delegation. Your Excellency, Mr. Salomon, ahead for your concluding remarks.

Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, distinguished members of the committee, ladies and gentlemen, as we come to the end of this two-session of dialogue, allow me, on behalf of the government of Cameroon and the delegation which I have the honor to lead, to sincerely thank you for the quality and the frankness of our exchanges. as well as the constructive and respectful spirit in which they have taken place. The many questions addressed to our delegation have given us an opportunity to present developments that have taken place in Cameroon since our previous review. to clarify certain aspects of our legal and institutional framework, and to report on the efforts undertaken to ensure the increasingly effective implementation of the rights guaranteed by the Covenant. They have also enabled us to hear the concerns of the Committee on the identified areas in which further efforts remain necessary. Cameroon does not, of course, consider that the progress already achieved exhausts the challenges that remain. The promotion and the protection of human rights is, for every state, a continuous process. It requires strong institution, adequate resources, constant adaptation of the legal framework and public policies, as well as the ability to grow, lesson from dialogue with international human rights mechanism. It is precisely in this spirit that our delegation approaches this review. We have sought to present to the committee with greatest possible transparency, not only the progress achieved, but also the difficulties that our country continues to face, particularly in an environment marked by economic constraints and significant security challenges. These difficulties, Mr. President, honorable member of the committee, do not, however, diminish Cameroon's commitment to further strengthening the rule of law, the administration of justice, the protection of fundamental freedoms, and the fight against all form of impunity and discrimination. We have taken carefully notes on the observation, question, and suggestion made through this dialogue. They will be brought to the attention to the relevant National Authority institution the concluding observation to be adopted by this committee by the committee will likewise receive the due consideration within our National followup mechanism where certain question could not be answer as as fully as We will have wish during our exchanges, Cameroon naturally remains ready to provide any additional information required in accordance with committee's procedure. In this regard, I wish to reaffirm Cameroon's commitment to sincere cooperation with this committee and more broadly with international regional mechanism for the promotion and protection of human rights. Allow me finally, Mr. President, to thank the Secretary of the Committee for its support throughout the preparation of and conduct of this review, as well as all the members of the Committee, the Cameroonian delegation, for their commitment and contribution to the quality of our exchange. Mr. President, distinguished members of the Committee, we conclude this dialogue with the conviction that It has been useful not only to the committee in the discharge of its mandate, but also to Cameroon as it pursue its efforts towards the increasingly effective protection of the rights guaranteed by the government. Cameroon will remain available to continue this dialogue and cooperation. I thank you.

Thank you, Your Excellency, Mr. Ahet. On behalf of the Human Rights Committee, I would like to thank the Cameroonian delegation for presenting its sixth periodic report and for the constructive dialogue held over the past two days. I appreciate the delegation's engagement and its efforts to address the Committee's questions. The Committee welcomes the progress described during our dialogue, including the institutional strengthening of Cameroon's Human Rights Commission and development of national strategies to address gender-biased violence and harmful practices. At the same time, dialogue has highlighted significant concerns that call for further efforts by the State Party. These include the need for further strengthen the independence and pluralism of Cameroon Human Rights Commission, persistent report of human rights violations in conflict affected regions, recurrent reports of torture and other ill treatment, including of detainees, political opponents and political defenders, the trial of civilians by a military court, the broad application of counterterrorism provisions, reports of de facto derogations that do not comply with Article 4 of the Covenant, and inadequacy of reforms to promote bilingualism and the participation of the English-speaking minority in public life. Members have also raised important concerns about restrictions on civic space, including intimidation of journalists and restrictions on peaceful assembly. the adequacy of protection and support for victims of gender-based violence, discriminatory provisions in family law, the criminalization of consensual same-sex relations, obstacles to access to safe and legal abortion, and the protection of indigenous people and the LGBTIQ community. Several critical matters raised by members, particularly regarding concrete data, judicial rulings, and the practical implementation of laws on the ground, require comprehensive clarification. We would appreciate receiving additional information in writing from the delegation within two working days, i.e. by Tuesday, 27 October at 13 hours. On behalf of the committee, I once again thank you, Honorable Mr. Salomon Yeheth and all members of the delegation for your engagement. I also thank civil society organizations for traveling to Geneva and for their valuable contributions. Finally, I thank my colleagues, the secretariat, the interpreters, and the technical team for their dedicated support. The meeting is adjourned.