Corruption Crackdown or Political Witch Hunt?

In Cameroon, a book published March 7 by an imprisoned former government minister has sparked heated debate. The book's author, along with some fellow politicians and rights activists, say the government is using its crackdown on corruption as a pretext to target potential political rivals of longtime President Paul Biya.

At least two dozen former government officials have been arrested in Cameroon in the past eight years, including several ex-ministers and heads of state-owned corporations.

Ex-Health Minister Urbain Olanguena Awono said in his book, titled Mensonges d’Etat (or Lies of the State), that he and other detainees are “prisoners of conscience.”

Other detainees have recently published letters in local media saying their arrests and long detentions are politically motivated.

The roundup has become known locally as “Operation Sparrowhawk,” referring to a predator that hunts and eats other smaller birds.

But Cameroon's government spokesman, Issa Tchiroma Bakary, said at a news conference Thursday that people have been erroneously accusing the government of witch hunting, abuse of legal procedures and political persecution, whereas the president is simply asking those arrested to account for public funds.