Excesses Are Punishable By Law

Cameroonians henceforth know that the various freedoms enshrined in the country’s constitution, those found in many international conventions and charters ratified by Cameroon have limits and drifts in their exercise expose the perpetrators to sanctions. Magistrates and other actors in the judicial system have been urged to apply the law without fear or favour as their mission is to ensure the respect of the law. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Daniel Mekobe Sone in a succinct didactic presentation under the theme, “Excesses in the expression of freedoms in Cameroon,” stated the provisions of the various legislations and legal instruments with regard to freedom in the domains of politics, communication and press, socials, trade unions, religion and business. He more than impor tantly cited the regulations that punish drifts in the exercise of the freedoms.

Political Freedom

Chief Justice Mekobe Sone talked of the freedom to form political parties, militate in them and participate in elections. The political parties also have to organize rallies and other public manifestations within the framework of the law. The violation of the freedoms are now rife as some political party officials organize rallies without authorization from the local administrative authorities. “The forum of social networks and virtual democracy do not change our laws. Worse still, is the fact that some people have chosen to express their political will through terrorist movements instead of through a political party,” he said, stating that such attitude is simply the rejection of political freedom.

Freedom of Communication, Press

Concerning this domain of freedom, Daniel Mekobe Sone regretted that the emergence of new information technologies and internet in particular, have virtually revolutionise the practice of press freedom and increased risks in communication drifts. As a major drift, he said cyberspace has become a level ground where freedom of the press is exercised without the fear of God or man, a court where every person is tried and convicted without any possible appeal, perfect area for defamation, insults and conditional threats or simple threats and perfect ground for scam and slander. Cyber space, he said, has also become “ breading ground for hatred, tr...