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CPDM MILITIA AND FORCES OF LAW ND ORDER BRUTALISE
OPPOSITION LEADERS
As indicated in our earlier Communiqué today, the
Leaders of the SDF, UDC, UPC, MDR and MLDC, opposition
political parties represented in the National Assembly
were effectively at Carrefour Warda today to hold
their Grand Patriotic Rally to continue their actions
in protest against the law on Elections Observatory
and their demand for the creation of an Independent
Electoral Commission.
There was a stand-off with the security forces until
8 p.m. TODAY when the governor of the Centre Province
Mr. Siegfried Etame massouma arrived and asked the
forces to allow the people to leave. At this point,
the police broke their cordon around The National
Chairman, Hon Ndam Njoya, the SDF MPs, members of NEC
and other party members that were around. As the
cordon was broken, members of the SDF and other
opposition parties who had been kept at bay by riot
police also allowed them to come to the released
officials. As they arrived there, armed policemen,
gendarmes and members of PRESBY and several others in
civilian dress gave chase. They caught and beat all
the drivers, seized the keys of the Chairman's car and
several others and deflated their tyres and removed
the shoes of the drivers so that they only went around
barefoot. Some of the people brutalised include:
Chief Alexander Taku, National Secretary for Education
and Propaganda
Dr. Fomulu Nelson, Dr of the National Chairman,
Mr. Alhadji Sani, Provincial Chairman of the SDF,
Centre,
Mr. Dang Amidou, Provincial Secretary, Centre,
Mr. Fezeu Gaston, Provincial Organising Secretary,
Centre,
Mr. Julius Afonwi, Private Secretary of the Chairman,
Mr. Kuiche Martin, photograher of the SDF,
Mr. Ngozeu Kemegni Philibert
Mr. Mbuh Emmanuel Khan, Driver of Hon. Yoyo (who was
driving the Chairman)
Mme Fotso Jeanette,
Mlle Tchakonte Clarate
Mr. Mbah Emmnuel Mudo
The driver of Chief Taku
The Driver of Chie Tchatchouang
Earlier during the day, the security forces became
very excited and kept closing in on the leaders,
seemingly in a bid to suffocate those they were
surrounding. In the process, they shoved the Chairman
carelessly around several times, ripping off his watch
in the process; brutalised Hons. Tchatchouang,
Moukouri Manga Bell and Kwi Josephl and talked
arrogantly and very rudely to several MPs and
officials. They did not allow anybody to leave the
cordon even to urinate. They kept promising that
PRESBY would come and handle them, and indeed PRESBY
came! They mingled with the security forces freely and
sang provocative songs.
The fact that the stand-off lasted till 8 p.m. before
the Governor of the Centre Province came and gave the
release order suggests clearly that this was a plan
with the Administration to give PRESBY the chance to
attack members of the opposition under the cover of
night. Further, the support given PRESBY by the
security forces buttresses this feeling.
This brutal response to a peaceful outing of the
opposition by the regime, especially the release of
drugged hoodlums on leaders of the opposition is a
clear indication that the regime believes that it can
cow the opposition by repression. This is a very
serious mistake indeed!
As we close this Communiqué, the Chairman is still
around Carrefour Warda with the Governor of the
Province whom he asked to be called back. He is
insisting that the Governor should ask CPDM thugs to
bring back the car keys they took from the drivers.
We shall come back when we identify all those who are
arrested and where they are kept.
Yaoundé, 13th January 2001-01-13
Prof. T. ASONGANYI
Secretary General.
The end
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