The Observatory for the protection of the rights of man, joint programme of the International Federation of the “ligues droits de l'homme” (FIDH) issued a note yesterday, June 26, where he worries "pursuit of arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Mr. Célestin Yandal, president of the collective of Touboro youth", one of the districts of the Department of the Mayo Rey in the North of Cameroon.
The Observatory has particularly highlighted the fact that Célestin Yandal, for the fifth consecutive time, was unable to appear before the public prosecutor of Tcholliré (capital of the Department of the Mayo Rey) as part of his trial June 19, 2014.
President of the association of youth of Touboro is in pre-trial detention at the Garoua central prison since December 5, 2013.
According to the facts charged by the judicial authorities, explained FIDH, Célestin Yandal is charged with five counts of indictment. Two fall within the investigative judge and three of the Attorney.
The first accused him of «attempted assassination of a certain Abdou, one of the henchmen of the Lamido of Rey Bouba» (district of the Department of the Mayo Rey), and "theft aggravated at Dogari (soldier of the Lamido), stating that Mr. Yandal and his colleagues allegedly assaulted him have stolen 92 000 FCFA from him.
The Prosecutor meanwhile charged the president of Touboro youth for: "destruction of the effigies of the head of State during the September 30, 2013's legislative and municipal elections", "destruction of the barrier of the Lamido of Rey-Bouba" and " single menace and violation of the home of a Djavor leader.”
Célestin Yandal was first detained at the gendarmerie in Ngaoundéré in the Adamawa region from November 23 to December 5, 2013, before being transferred in the night of December 5, 2012 at 2 o'clock in the morning, to Ngaoundéré in Tcholliré.
Since then, he is detained at the central prison of Garoua while waiting for judgment in the context of his trial.
FIDH supports, according to the information in its possession, that Célestin Yandal was arrested by abuse of power on the part of Lamido of Rey Bouba, Aboubakary Abdoulaye, who is also one of the vice-presidents of the Cameroonian Senate.
This last wanted to stop "fourteen youth of this locality for disturbing public order in Touboro during altercations with the Lamidos men who had come to racketeering populations of this locality", explains the Observatory.
The Federation demanded that Mr. Yandal be released "immediately and unconditionally because his detention is arbitrary in that it applies only to punish his activities in defense of human rights. The request was addressed to the president of the Republic of Cameroon.
