Jean Marc Bikoko

On 19 December 2011, seven human rights defenders and union workers will appear for the ninth time before the Magistrates’ Court in Yaoundè. The seven union workers were initially arrested on 11 November 2010 for demonstrating illegally and disturbing public order.

This is following a demonstration organized by the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Public Sector (CSP) in front of the Prime Minister’s offices. More than a year after the trial opened, virtually no developments have been made and the CSP's work continues to be disrupted by the ongoing trial.

Numerous irregularities have occurred. Notably, a hearing was allegedly held during the week of 14 November 2011 in the absence of and without the knowledge of the accused union workers and their lawyer. The hearing had previously been announced for 25 November 2011. The defence lawyer issued a request for proceedings to be reopened in order to ensure that the seven human rights defenders could present their version of events.

The seven defenders were arrested on 11 November 2010 following a peaceful sit-in organised by the CSP, which the authorities had been informed of on a regular basis. The trial opened on 15 November 2010. At a hearing on 7 February 2011, the prosecutor presented the charges and the unionists pleaded not guilty. All subsequent hearings (21 March, 16 May, 20 June, 1 August, 3 October and 7 November) were postponed, with the sole exception of that of 20 June, at which the union workers took an oath to tell nothing but the truth. The postponements were justified by the alleged absence of either the examining judge or the prosecutor who had initiated proceedings. Sometimes no reason was given for postponement. At a number of these hearings, the seven human rights defenders were made to wait several hours before being informed that their case would not be examined.

During the 7 February hearing, the prosecutor presented his own evidence, namely a letter from the Divisionary Officer prohibiting the peaceful sit-in at which the defenders had been arrested. However, the defence put forward that in order to prohibit a demonstration, an order was required by law from an authority superior to that of the Divisionary Officer and that, in any case, the organisers had at no point been duly notified of the letter.

The seven union workers in question are Jean-Marc Bikoko, President of the CSP, Maurice Angelo Phouet Foe, Secretary General of the Autonomous Union for Education and Training (Syndicat National Autonome de l'Education et la Formation, SNAEF), Tobie Mbassi Ondoa, Executive Secretary of Cameroonian Federation of the Education Unions (Fédération Camerounaise des Syndicats de l’Education, FECASE), Joseph Ze, General Secretary of the Common National Union of teachers and École Normale teachers (Syndicat National Unitaire des Instituteurs et Professeurs des Écoles Normales, SNUIPEN), Eric Nla'a, accountant at the CSP, Nkili Effoua and Claude Charles Felein of SNUIPEN.

Front Line Defenders condemns all irregularities in the proceedings as well the dilatory nature in which the trial has been carried out, which is hindering the activities of the CSP, and other unions of which the accused are members, by delaying the closure of the trial and generating ever-growing legal fees that are considerably impacting the finances and work of these organisations.