STATEMENT BY THE CAMEROON HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION TO MARK THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF THE WORLD’S INDIGENOUS PEOPLES

            

                                            9 August 2024

Theme._-Access to citizenship: a fundamental right for indigenous peoples_

The Commission recalls that the adoption of the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (AChHPR) in 1981 by the African Union (AU) represented a significant milestone in the advancement of indigenous rights in Africa. This was achieved through the establishment of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights (ACnHPR), as well as a Working Group of Experts on Indigenous Populations, Communities and Minorities in Africa (WGIP).

The Commission welcomes the contextualisation of the celebration of the International Day of the World's Indigenous People in Cameroon in 2024, under the theme "Access to citizenship: a fundamental right for indigenous peoples". This contextualisation follows on from the reflections launched in 2023, according to which "citizenship education for indigenous peoples would enable them to effectively exercise their right to participate in areas of public life and bring about the desired changes for their empowerment". 

The Commission clarifies that the technique of the right to difference applied to indigenous peoples concerns all the principles contained in national laws and in African and universal human rights instruments, such as equality, respect for human dignity and non-discrimination; and that the technique of the right to difference consists in applying to these peoples legal instruments containing specific rights, such as the right to self-determination and the right to practise, promote and teach their customs and practices.

The Commission welcomes the decision of the Head of State to instruct the Minister of State Property, Surveys and Lad Tenure (MINDCAF), through the Minister of State, Secretary-General of the Presidency of the Republic, to report Order No. 01683/A/MINDCAF/SG/D1 /D12 of 20 June 2024, exercising the State's right of first refusal on land title No. 175/Mfoundi, issued in favour of the J. Bastos Company of Central Africa, over land situated in the "Ekoudou" locality, Yaoundé I Sub-division, Mfoundi Division, and the retrocession of the said land to the Mvog Balla Ekobena and Ekobena indigenous communities.

The Commission endorses the Government's initiatives to further protect the rights of vulnerable indigenous peoples (VIPs), in particular by raising awareness, between September 2023 and August 2024, of 38,668 VIP children, including 21,080 girls and 17,588 boys, in the context of educational talks on the importance of education, citizenship and hygiene, jointly organised throughout the entire national territory by the Ministry of Social Affairs (MINAS) and the Ministry of Youth and Civic Education (MINJEC).

The Commission notes, with regret, the persistence of certain difficulties faced by the indigenous population, such as the high number of indigenous peoples who have neither civil status documents (notably the birth certificate) nor national identity cards, due to geographical remoteness and the complex and costly administrative procedures involved in obtaining these documents which place them out of reach of these indigenous populations. The Commission equally deplores the low level of participation of indigenous peoples in decision-making processes on issues that affect or may affect them.

The Commission recommends to the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and the Family, each in its own sphere, to increase awareness raising campaigns among indigenous populations about the issues concerning the establishment of birth certificates and national identity cards, to enable indigenous children attending school to complete their education.

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