Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105) - Cameroon (Ratification: 1962)

Article 1(a) of the Convention. Imposition of sentences of imprisonment involving the obligation to work as punishment for expressing political views or views ideologically opposed to the established political, social or economic system. In its previous comments the Committee noted that, under section 24 of the Penal Code, as amended by Act No. 90-61 of 19 December 1990, and section 49 of Decree No. 92-052 establishing the prison system, sentences of imprisonment involve the obligation to work. It emphasized that where an individual is, in any manner whatsoever, compelled to perform prison labour as punishment for expressing certain political views or opposition to the established political, social or economic system, this falls within the scope of the Convention. In order to be sure that certain provisions of national law are not used as the basis for imposing prison sentences on persons who, express certain political views or opposition to the established political, social or economic system, the Committee asked the Government to provide information on the application of these provisions in practice, including copies of court decisions issued on the basis thereof. The following provisions are concerned:

• -section 113 of the Penal Code, under which any person issuing or propagating false information that may be detrimental to the public authorities or national unity shall be liable to imprisonment of three months to three years;
• -section 154(2) of the Penal Code, under which any person guilty of incitement, whether in speech or in writings intended for the public, to revolt against the Government and the institutions of the Republic shall be liable to imprisonment of three months to three years;
• -section 157(1)(a) of the Penal Code, under which any person guilty of incitement to obstruct the enforcement of any law, regulation or lawfully issued order of the public authority shall be liable to imprisonment of three months to four years;
• -section 33(1) and (3) of Act No. 90-53 concerning freedom of association, under which board members or founders of an association which continues operations or which is re-established unlawfully after a judgment or decision has been issued for its dissolution, and persons who have encouraged the assembly of members of the dissolved association by allowing continued use of the association’s premises, shall be liable to imprisonment of three months to one year. Section 4 of the Act declares that associations founded in support of a cause or for a purpose contrary to the Constitution, or associations whose purpose is to undermine, inter alia, security, territorial integrity, national unity, national integration or the republican nature of the State, shall be null and void. Furthermore, section 14 provides that the dissolution of an association does not prevent any legal proceedings from being instituted against the officials of such an association.

The Government indicates in its latest report that the Penal Code is being reformed and that, since the adoption of the Freedom of Association Act in 1990, cases involving offences relating to the expression of certain views are no longer taken to court. The Committee duly notes this information. It also points out that both the Human Rights Committee (HRC) and the Committee against Torture (CAT), in their concluding observations in 2010 with respect to Cameroon, express their concern regarding the large number of journalists who have been imprisoned or are facing prosecution. The HRC “reiterates its concern about provisions in the Penal Code which render it a criminal offence to spread false news and about how journalists in a number of cases have been prosecuted for this or related crimes, such as the crime of defamation, as a consequence of their reporting”. The HRC also expresses its concern at the low number of accredited NGOs and asks Cameroon to ensure that any restriction on freedom of association is strictly compatible with international standards (CCPR/C/CMR/CO/4, paragraphs 25–26, and CAT/C/CMR/CO/4, paragraph 18).

In view of the above, the Committee once again requests the Government to send copies of any court decisions issued on the basis of the abovementioned provisions of the Penal Code and the Freedom of Association Act. The Committee hopes that during the revision of the Penal Code, to which the Government refers in its report, the explanations provided by the Committee on the scope of the protection afforded by the Convention will be taken into account in such a way that no prison sentence (which in Cameroon entails compulsory labour) can be imposed on persons who, without using or advocating violence, express certain political views or opposition to the established political, social or economic system.