to amass land, and access economic resources, while the Southern Cameroonians play the minutest
role at the local or national level.
9. It is further alleged that several towns in Southern Cameroon were denied basic infrastructure,
hence denying them the right to development. It is alleged that the Respondent State, relocated or
located various economic enterprises and projects, such as the Chad-Cameroon Oil Pipeline, the deep
seaport, and the oil refinery to towns and cities in Francophone Cameroon, notwithstanding their lack
of economic viability, thereby denying employment opportunities and secondary economic benefits to
the people of Southern Cameroon.
10. The Complainants allege further that the Francophones have monopolistic control of the Ministry
of National Education. That the Respondent State has under funded primary education in Southern
Cameroon, it failed to build new schools, understaffed primary schools, and it is closing all teacher
training colleges. They allege further that the Respondent State“Cameroonised” the GCE from the
University of London, leading to mass protests which forced government to create an independent
GCE Board. That, upon unification, diplomas awarded by the City & Guild, a technical education
institution based in England, were replaced by the Certificat d’Aptitude Professionale (CAP) and
the BAC Technique. These measures have resulted in persistent high levels of illiteracy in many areas
in Southern Cameroon.
11. The Complainants allege that political unification and the application of the civil law system
resulted in the discrimination against Anglophones in the legal and judicial system. Southern
Cameroonian companies and businesses were forced to operate under the civil law system. The
Companies Ordinance of the Federation of Nigeria, which was until then applicable in Southern
Cameroon, was abolished. Many Southern Cameroonian businesses went bankrupt, following the
refusal by Francophone banks to lend them finances, in some cases, unless their articles of
association were drafted in French.
12. They allege that Anglophones facing criminal charges were transferred to the Francophone zone
for trial, under the Napoleonic Code, thereby adversely affecting their civil rights. The Complainants
state that the common law presumption of innocence upon arrest is not recognised under the civil law
tradition, since guilt is presumed upon arrest and detention. The courts conduct trial in the French
language without interpreters. Furthermore, they allege that Southern Cameroon court decisions are
ignored by the Respondent State.
13. The Complainants allege that the entry by the Respondent State as a State Party to
the Organisation pour l’Harmonisation des Droits d’Affaires en Afrique (OHADA), a treaty for the
harmonisation of business legislation amongst Francophone countries in Africa, constituted
discrimination against the people of Southern Cameroon on the basis of language. OHADA stipulates
that the language of interpretation of the treaty shall be French. The Complainants argue that the
Constitution recognises English and French as the official languages of Cameroon. They argue
therefore that by signing the OHADA treaty, Cameroon violated the language rights of the English
speaking people of Cameroon. They allege that any company not registered under the OHADA law
cannot open a bank account in Cameroon.
14. The Complainants allege further that, on 3rd April 1993, representatives of the people of
Anglophone Cameroon adopted the Buea Declaration, which declared the preparedness of the
Anglophones “… to participate in the forthcoming constitutional talks with their Francophone
brothers…”. The Declaration stated that;
1. “…the imposition of the Unitary State on Anglophone Cameroon in 1972 was unconstitutional,
illegal and a breach of faith,
2. That the only redress adequate to right the wrongs done to Anglophone Cameroon and its
people since the imposition of the Unitary state is a return to the original form of government of
the Reunified Cameroon,
3. That to this end, all Cameroonians of Anglophone heritage are committed to working for the
restoration of a federal Constitution and a federal form of government, which takes cognizance
of the bicultural nature of Cameroon and under which citizens shall be protected against such
violations as have been enumerated.