We, Lawyers of the Cameroon Bar Association, of Common Law
Extraction, which comprise the North West and South West Regions of
Cameroon,
Mindful of the
Constitution of the Republic of Cameroon;
Mindful of the Charter of
the United Nations;
Mindful of the Universal
Declaration of the Human Rights;
Mindful of the United
Nations International Covenant on Social, Economic and Political Rights;
Mindful of the United
Nations Convention on the Protection of Minorities;
Mindful of the United
Nations Declaration against all forms of Discrimination;
Mindful of the African
Charter of Human and Peoples Rights;
Mindful of the
non-implementation of the United Nations General Assembly resolution 1608 (XV)
of 21st April 1961 on the future of the trust territory of the Cameroons under
the United Kingdom administration.
Mindful of all human
rights treaties duly ratified by Cameroon.
Mindful of the United
Nations Trusteeship Agreement on Trust Territories
Considering the need for
the proper Administration of Justice in Cameroon
Considering the movement
of judicial personnel in recent years without regard to the Bi-Jural and Dual
Educational System of the Country.
Meeting this ninth day of
May, 2015 at Bamenda in the North West Region of Cameroon, after carefully and
assiduously deliberating on a wide range of issues affecting the nature and
quality of the administration of justice and the rule of law in Cameroon,
especially as they negatively impact the minority English-speaking members of
this Bi-Cultural, Bi-Jural, Bi-Lingual Nation, take the following
resolutions;
1. We strongly condemn and
oppose the bias nature of law making in Cameroon and particularly condemn the
past discriminatory amendments of the Constitution; we demand Government to
immediately take measures to call for a constitutional conference or a
referendum for the amendment of the constitution.
2. We note the deliberate
and well planned program of whittling away and replacement of the Common
Law-inspired rules of Criminal Procedure, Civil Procedure, and of
Evidence, with a system and culture of French-inspired or copied
Civil Law and strongly and unequivocally reject this process and practice and
demand the restoration of the referred Common Law-inspired Rules of practice
and Procedure. The spirit of interpretation of harmonized laws
within the South West and North West Regions should be common law inspired; in particular,
the Criminal Procedure Code (CPC), OHADA UNIFORM ACTS, Cima Code,etc
3. We oppose and reject the
progressive replacement of Common law inspired rules and principles of
substantive law in such areas as contract, tort, land law, family law, etc. and
call for their restoration within the Common Law jurisdiction in strict respect
of the bi-jural nature ofour country and in keeping with the Country’s
Constitution;
4. We strongly condemn the
absence of independence of the Country’s Judiciary and the domination and
control of the judiciary by the executive with the resulting loss of a truly
transparent, credible and independent system of administration of justice and
its attendant unpredictability and call for an immediate review of the justice
sector of the country with a view to rendering it more Just, Functional, more
credible, less corrupt, independent, dependable and reliable in the
service of justice and a truly democratic society;
5. We deplore the lack of
independence of the Cameroon Bar Association.
PROPOSALSFOR A NEW DIRECTION IN THE JUSTICE SECTOR IN
CAMEROON:
1. We demand an Independent
Bar Association free ofany Government Supervision and Control.
2. We hereby propose a new
direction for the future of the Justice Sector in Cameroon and recommend the
creation, of a national, Independent Law Reform/Review Commission comprising
principally, Practicing Lawyers, Jurists and Judges.
3. We therefore recommend
that:
i.) The government should
halt any project on the harmonization of laws until the national law commission
is put into place and functional.
ii.) All Judicial Processes
and proceedings in the Common Law Jurisdictions should be conducted in the
English language - in criminal matters; this should be from interrogations
through investigations to hearing and Judgment.
iii.) The Two Divisions of
Common Law and Civil Law be clearly defined and operated side by side in ENAM
and the quota of intake in both divisions known in advance. Only common law
trained Magistrates to be posted in the South West and North West Regions and
Civil Law Trained Magistrates to the Civil Law Jurisdictions.
iv.) That the Educational
System in the South west and North West Regions should not be adulterated,
English speaking citizens should have their studies in the English language
from cradle to professional life. That all Public Examinations be organized in
two Poles; English and French with none being translated from the other and the
quota in both poles known in advance.
4. We demand the
establishment of TWO chambers of the Supreme Court of Cameroon that represent
the Common Law and Civil Law System, with Judges appointed to the Chambers from
Common Law and Civil Law backgrounds to address legal issues from both legal
cultures respectively. In this regard, we propose the appointment of
Judges from the Private Bar into the various Courts of Justice of the Common
Law System.
5. We recommend the
amendment of law no. 90/059 of19th December 1990 to organize practice at the
bar and make provision for the creation of Law Schools.
6. We propose the creation
of a National Council of Legal Education to ensure the direction of legal
education in the Common Law and Civil Law jurisdictions, develop curricula for
academic and professional training of lawyers and to set up and supervise a
system of continuing legal education for Lawyers, Prosecutors,
Judges/Magistrates and other judicialactors.
7. We also reiterate our
previous resolution unanimously endorsed at the Cameroon Bar Association’s
General Assembly in Buea on the 28th day of June 2014; that no Notaries be
appointed in the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon.
8. We have observed with
utter dismay that there has been and continues to be a lack of protection with
regard to the rights of the minority(Anglophone Cameroonians) as provided for
in the constitution of this bi-jural, bilingual and bi-cultural nation. It is
obvious that the rights of the Anglophones in Cameroon in the spheres of
education, socio-cultural values, administrative set ups etc, are continuously
and systematically being eroded with a view of imposing the socio-cultural and
administrative views of the French and or Civil heritage of the majority
Francophone Cameroon.
9. We demand that the State
should exercise its Constitutional duty to protect the Anglophone minority and
by so doing, protectour history, heritage, education and cultural values.
Consequently for the better protection of the minority Anglophone Cameroonians
and the Common Law heritage, we strongly demand a Federation.
10. We hereby give Government
a reasonable period from the date of deposit of these resolutions through the
Bar Council to react positively to our demands, failing which this conference
shall take the necessary disposition within the national legal frame work and
if dissatisfied, seek further redress from international dispute resolution
fora as shall be deemed appropriate.
DONE
AT BAMENDA THIS NINTH DAY OF MAY 2015
SIGNEDAND ENDORSED BY ALL PARTICIPANTS PRESENT AT THE
CONFERENCE.
