2017 action plan:

Rights abuses by the military pre-occupy NCHRF

By Rachel NtubeNgwese

The national commission on human rights and freedoms (NCHRF) has presented new measures to step up the respect of human rights and the practice of democracy in the country in 2017. This was in its 2017 plan of action presented to the Yaoundé public last week.

                The commission promises to focus its 2017 activities in two main sectors: reinforcing human rights in the military and fighting to abolish obnoxious traditions notably early marriages and female genital mutilation in some communities.

                Results of baseline surveys conducted to evaluate the competence of the Cameroon military in the respect of human rights and the impact of harmful traditional practices on human rights violation, revealed that despite the fact that military officials are drilled on human rights issues during their training, there is no practical application of the acquired skills in the execution of their duties.

                The violation of human rights by the military personnel, especially during strike manifestations and other peace keeping activities is too rampant and has attracted the concern of the NCHRF and its financial partners.

                 The Commission also frowns against traditional practices such as early marriages and female genital mutilation that are not only harmful to women and the girl child, but constitute a violation of the fundamental human rights of victims.

                The convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women of 18 December 1979 and the protocol to the African charter of  human and people’s rights in reference to the rights of women more particularly protects the right to dignity of the woman and the girl child as well as their physical, moral and psychological integrity. It also obliges state parties in its article 2 to pursue by all appropriate means, polices to eliminate all laws, stereotypes practices and prejudices that impair the wellbeing of women and girls.

                This not withstanding it has been observed that over 20 countries throughout Africa, the Middle East and Asia still practice female genital mutilation. In Cameroon, this practice is most prominent amongst the Ejagham tribe in Manyu Division of the Southwest region and the Hausa and Arab Shuas in North Cameroon.

                Meanwhile, early marriages are very prevalent in Akwaya sub division in Manyu, Meme and Ndian divisions of the south west and in the Northern region.

                To mitigate the effects of these practices on the rights and future of young girls, and to improve on the capacity of the military in the country in the practical respect of human rights, the commission and its financial partners including the European union, plan Cameroon and other non-governmental organizations who recently have reconfirmed their engagement to finance the commissions activities will in the coming year pay more attention to the military domain and the elimination of harmful tradition practices that hinder the rights of young girls.