[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 503 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 503

  Condemning the actions taken by the Government of Cameroon against 
           Henry Fossung and others, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 19, 2005

Mr. McCotter submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
                the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Condemning the actions taken by the Government of Cameroon against 
           Henry Fossung and others, and for other purposes.

Whereas Henry Fossung is a highly regarded statesman and national chairman of 
        the Southern Cameroons National Council, the motto of which is ``The 
        Force of Argument, Not the Argument of Force'';
Whereas Henry Fossung served as Cameroon's ambassador to the Central Africa 
        Republic, Chad Republic, Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung is highly educated, with a masters degree in 
        international law/relations from the American University in Washington, 
        D.C. and degrees from Blackstone School of Law, Johns Hopkins 
        University, and the Institute of Higher Overseas Studies, and has 
        lectured at Brown University, among other notable institutions;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung has served on numerous international committees and 
        conferences, including the United Nations Committee on Disarmament and 
        Law of the Sea, has countless decorations and honors to his credit, and 
        has authored several books and articles;
Whereas on January 15, 2005, under the direction of the Divisional Officer for 
        Buea and the Provincial Delegate for National Security, more than 200 
        members of the Government of the Republic of Cameroon's militia and 
        police surrounded, fired their weapons at, and invaded the residence of 
        Ambassador Fossung and arrested Ambassador Fossung and his houseguests, 
        including women who were cooking food at the time, a 2-year-old toddler, 
        and elderly and disabled individuals;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung and his guests were taken into custody and detained 
        in a government facility for up to 2 days;
Whereas the Divisional Officer told Ambassador Fossung that he was arrested for 
        hosting a gathering of more than 2 people without permission from the 
        Government of the Republic of Cameroon;
Whereas there was no warrant of criminal charges issued to Ambassador Fossung or 
        the others arrested;
Whereas 6 members of the militia knocked Ambassador Fossung to the ground, 
        stripped him naked, and dragged and kicked him, causing severe injury, 
        including a permanent injury to his left eye, a fractured ankle, and 
        head and groin injuries;
Whereas several of the other detainees were also beaten or mistreated;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung and his guests were held in 2 small cells with over 
        50 other prisoners, with no drinking water and no toilet, and were 
        denied medical treatment and food for up to 1\1/2\ days;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung's residence was vandalized and looted by the militia 
        and police and thousands of copies of books and other writings were 
        seized and destroyed, while Ambassador Fossung and his family were held 
        against their will;
Whereas the militia and police confiscated money, jewelry, and ball-point pens 
        belonging to the detainees, and extorted bribes from visitors attempting 
        to bring food to the detainees;
Whereas Ambassador Fossung's dog also fell victim to the brutality of the 
        militia and police;
Whereas these actions of the Government of the Republic of Cameroon constitute 
        gross and reprehensible violations of international law and basic human 
        rights;
Whereas the Government of the Republic of Cameroon continues to harass and 
        intimidate Ambassador Fossung and members of the Southern Cameroons 
        National Council and to purge the country of all political dissent;
Whereas any citizen of the Republic of Cameroon who dares to speak critically of 
        the reigning government lives in fear of persecution, torture, and 
        assassination; and
Whereas there are numerous documented accounts of citizens of the Republic of 
        Cameroon being imprisoned, beaten, and murdered for political reasons: 
        Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) strongly condemns the actions taken by the Government 
        of the Republic of Cameroon against Ambassador Henry Fossung, 
        his family, his house guests, and the members of the Southern 
        Cameroons National Council;
            (2) affirms that the United States continues to hold the 
        Government of the Republic of Cameroon responsible for 
        upholding all the rights of its citizens and nationals, 
        regardless of political views or beliefs;
            (3) urges the Government of the Republic of Cameroon to 
        extend to all Cameroon's citizens, including political 
        dissidents, Ambassador Fossung, and the Southern Cameroons 
        National Council, the rights guaranteed by the Universal 
        Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations and other 
        international covenants on human rights, including the freedoms 
        of thought, conscience, and religion and equal protection of 
        the law;
            (4) calls upon the President of the United States to 
        continue to--
                    (A) assert the concerns of the United States 
                Government regarding violations by the Government of 
                the Republic of Cameroon of the rights of Cameroon's 
                citizens, including Ambassador Fossung and members of 
                the Southern Cameroons National Council;
                    (B) emphasize that the United States regards the 
                human rights practices of the Government of the 
                Republic of Cameroon, including its treatment of 
                political dissidents such as Ambassador Fossung and 
                innocent civilians, as having a negative impact on the 
                relations between the United States and the Republic of 
                Cameroon;
                    (C) urge the Government of the Republic of Cameroon 
                to emancipate members of the Southern Cameroons 
                National Council by granting those rights guaranteed by 
                the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United 
                Nations and other international covenants on human 
                rights;
                    (D) cooperate with international organizations, 
                including the United Nations and its agencies, in 
                efforts to protect the human rights of freedom of 
                thought and speech of all citizens and nationals of 
                Cameroon, through joint appeals to the Government of 
                the Republic of Cameroon; and
                    (E) initiate an active and consistent dialogue with 
                other governments that are influential with the 
                Government of the Republic of Cameroon in order to 
                persuade that government to rectify its human rights 
                practices.
                                 <all>