Gender-Based Violence: Legal Campaign Launched

While violence against women was once a forbidden topic, surging Gender Based violent (GBV) acts have made it a cause for concern. According to the National Institute of Statistics, at least 39 percent of women in Cameroon have experienced physical violence on or before the age of 15. A recent investigation by Griote TV recorded 76 cases of femicides in 2024 in Cameroon. Similarly, a GBV victim, Diane Yangwo, who was beaten to death by her husband in Douala in November 2023, further sheds light on the dreaded trend. The court’s ruling that slammed a fiveyear imprisonment sentence accompanied by a financial fine of FCFA 52.000, sparked a social media outrage.

While speaking at the conference, Yvonne Akoa, President of the Cameroon Association of Female Jurists (CAFEJ), blamed the widespread nature of Gender-Based Violence in Cameroon on the penal code’s legal vacuum. “There is no crime without a law,” she emphasized. “The absence of a law that clearly defines and penalizes GBV leads to cases being judged with leniency. This is unjust,” she regretted.

To curb the rising GBV vices, APDL has partnered with the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and the Family (MINPROFF), Cameroon Association of Female Jurists (CAFEJ), and “Association Lutte Contre les Violences Faites aux Femmes” (ALVF) to launch a three-month campaig...