[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 292 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 292

 Calling on the Government of Cameroon and armed separatist groups to 
   respect the human rights of all Cameroonian citizens, to end all 
 violence, and to pursue an inclusive dialogue to resolve the conflict 
                in the Northwest and Southwest regions.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 30, 2019

 Mr. Cardin (for himself, Mr. Young, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Lankford, Mr. Van 
 Hollen, Mr. Markey, Mr. Coons, Mr. Kaine, and Mr. Merkley) submitted 
   the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Calling on the Government of Cameroon and armed separatist groups to 
   respect the human rights of all Cameroonian citizens, to end all 
 violence, and to pursue an inclusive dialogue to resolve the conflict 
                in the Northwest and Southwest regions.

Whereas Paul Biya has held office as Cameroon's President since 1982, and won 
        reelection to a seventh term in October 2018;
Whereas Cameroon receives United States foreign aid and participates in the 
        Department of State-led Trans-Sahara Counter-Terrorism Partnership 
        (TSCTP) and United States-supported efforts to counter Boko Haram;
Whereas the Government of Cameroon has increasingly cracked down on political 
        expression, including by imprisoning opposition leaders and supporters, 
        banning opposition and civil society conferences, reinforcing troop 
        deployments to deter and disrupt protests, and restricting access to 
        Facebook and other social media platforms;
Whereas the Government of Cameroon has repeatedly restricted freedoms of 
        expression and the media nationwide by shutting down the internet, 
        harassing and detaining journalists, refusing licenses to independent 
        media, and intensifying political attacks against the independent press;
Whereas Boko Haram and an Islamic State-affiliated splinter group have 
        destabilized northern Cameroon since 2014, marked recently by a June 
        2019 attack on security forces in Far North Cameroon that killed dozens 
        of soldiers and civilians;
Whereas the Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon's Far North region has created an 
        estimated 263,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), causing an 
        escalating humanitarian crisis in difficult to access areas;
Whereas tensions between predominantly Christian farmers and predominantly 
        Muslim Fulani herders have contributed to religious and communal 
        tensions throughout West and Central Africa in recent years, including 
        in the Northwest region of Cameroon;
Whereas members of the Government of Cameroon's Rapid Intervention Battalion 
        (BIR), which receives United States counterterrorism training and 
        support, have been accused of torture and extrajudicial killings and may 
        be in contravention of congressionally mandated ``Leahy human rights 
        vetting'' requirements;
Whereas the 2018 Department of State Human Rights Report documented torture and 
        abuse by Cameroonian security forces, ``prolonged arbitrary detentions 
        including of suspected Anglophone separatists by security forces,'' and 
        violations of freedoms of expression and assembly;
Whereas, following Cameroon's October 7, 2018, elections, the African Union 
        Election Observation Mission stated that ``the current [legal] framework 
        needs to be strengthened in order to safeguard the democratic principles 
        of separation of powers, fairness, and independence and impartiality,'' 
        which the Department of State echoed, emphasizing that electoral 
        irregularities ``created an impression that the election was not 
        credible or genuinely free and fair'';
Whereas Anglophone Cameroonians have long felt marginalized by official actions 
        and policies of the Government of Cameroon;
Whereas, while the Government of France has condemned attacks by armed 
        separatists, it has a meaningful role to play in pushing the Government 
        of Cameroon to lift restrictions on freedoms of expression and the 
        media, end arbitrary detention, and engage in inclusive dialogue with 
        Anglophone leaders;
Whereas, beginning in late 2016, protests organized by lawyers, teachers, and 
        students were violently repressed by the Government of Cameroon, leading 
        to numerous deaths and imprisonments, including of journalists and 
        lawyers;
Whereas, in January 2017, the Government of Cameroon ordered the suspension of 
        internet services in the northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon, 
        the suspension lasting for 93 days and having a major, debilitating 
        effect on the economy, educational institutions, freedom of expression, 
        and social communication of the region's residents;
Whereas the conflict escalated in late September and early October 2017, when 
        Cameroonian security forces brutally cracked down on unarmed civilians 
        peacefully demonstrating, resulting in at least 20 people dying and 
        leaving over 100 injured;
Whereas, in 2017, armed separatist groups launched a campaign to pressure school 
        officials in the Anglophone region to go on strike as part of a boycott 
        against the Government of Cameroon, and began burning school buildings 
        and threatening education officials with violence if they did not 
        comply;
Whereas human rights monitors have documented armed groups killing traditional 
        leaders and targeting civilians who are perceived to be supporting or 
        working with the Government of Cameroon, and armed militants have killed 
        Cameroonian security force personnel;
Whereas numerous credible reports from human rights monitors, including the 
        United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, have documented the 
        excessive use of force by Government of Cameroon security forces against 
        Cameroonians living in the Anglophone regions, including the burning of 
        villages, the use of live ammunition against protestors, arbitrary 
        arrest and detention, torture, and sexual abuse;
Whereas the Department of State has expressed serious concern over the 
        Government of Cameroon's use of force to restrict free expression and 
        the use of violence against individuals protesting the government's 
        policies in the Anglophone regions;
Whereas both the Government of Cameroon security forces and armed groups have 
        been documented targeting and brutally killing civilians in the 
        Anglophone regions, including women and children;
Whereas in February 2019, the Department of State announced it would withhold 
        some security assistance to Cameroon, citing credible allegations that 
        the Cameroonian military carried out human rights violations;
Whereas United States citizen Charles Wesco was senselessly killed near the town 
        of Bamenda, Cameroon, on October 30, 2018, after being caught in what 
        the Department of State has characterized as ``cross fire'';
Whereas the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 
        stated in March 2019 that at least 530,000 were internally displaced in 
        areas affected by the Anglophone conflict;
Whereas the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 
        has estimated that $298,900,000 is required to provide humanitarian 
        assistance throughout Cameroon, and only 21 percent of the appeal has 
        been funded as of July 2019;
Whereas the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported 
        that it had registered roughly 36,000 Cameroonian refugees from the 
        Anglophone regions in Nigeria as of April 2019;
Whereas some Cameroonian diaspora organizations in the United States and 
        Cameroonian-based civil society organizations are working to address the 
        needs of Cameroonian internally displaced persons on the northwest and 
        southwest regions of the country and refugees in Nigeria;
Whereas 47 Anglophone activists were forcibly returned from Nigerian custody to 
        Cameroonian authorities in January 2018, despite many having reportedly 
        submitted asylum claims in Nigeria; and
Whereas 10 of the 47 individuals forcibly returned from Nigeria now face charges 
        before a military court that would be punishable by the death penalty, 
        while the other 37 reportedly remain in detention without charge: Now, 
        therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) urges all parties to the Anglophone conflict in 
        Cameroon, including political opposition groups, to--
                    (A) agree to an immediate ceasefire;
                    (B) guarantee unfettered humanitarian assistance;
                    (C) exercise restraint and ensure that protests 
                remain peaceful; and
                    (D) engage in inclusive dialogue with civil society 
                to get to a political solution that respects the rights 
                and freedoms of the people of Cameroon;
            (2) strongly condemns the abuses committed by Boko Haram, 
        state security forces, and armed groups in the Anglophone 
        regions, including extrajudicial killings and detentions, the 
        use of force against nonviolent civilians and protestors, and 
        violations of the freedoms of press, expression, religion, and 
        assembly;
            (3) affirms that the United States Government continues to 
        hold the Government of Cameroon responsible for upholding the 
        rights of all citizens, regardless of their religious beliefs, 
        political views, or the regions in which they reside;
            (4) urges the Government of Cameroon to--
                    (A) initiate a credible, inclusive, good, and full-
                faith effort to work with religious, cultural, and 
                community leaders in the Anglophone region and the 
                Cameroonian diaspora to engage in meaningful dialogue 
                and address grievances and seek nonviolent solutions to 
                resolve the conflict, including possibly involving an 
                independent mediator in such negotiations;
                    (B) respect the fundamental rights of all 
                Cameroonian citizens, including political activists, 
                faith leaders, and journalists;
                    (C) ensure that any security operations are 
                conducted in accordance with international human rights 
                standards, including efforts to ensure security forces 
                only use force under appropriate circumstances;
                    (D) investigate all allegations of human rights 
                abuses, including religious freedom violations, 
                committed in the Anglophone regions and take the 
                necessary measures to prevent arbitrary detention, 
                torture, enforced disappearances, deaths in custody, 
                and inhumane prison conditions;
                    (E) promote the rule of law through more 
                transparent accountability mechanisms;
                    (F) improve election processes and reform electoral 
                institutions;
                    (G) promptly charge or release all those detained 
                in the context of the Anglophone crisis, including all 
                Anglophone activists arrested in Nigeria, and ensure 
                that any future detainees are treated with due process, 
                in accordance with Cameroon's penal code and 
                international human rights norms;
                    (H) ensure that detainees are treated fairly and 
                humanely, with proper judicial proceedings, including a 
                registry of those detained by the Cameroonian security 
                forces, and with full access to legal resources;
                    (I) release human rights defenders, civil society 
                activists, political prisoners, journalists, trade 
                unionists, teachers, faith leaders and any other 
                citizens who have been arbitrarily arrested and 
                detained without trial or charge; and
                    (J) work with United States law enforcement to 
                thoroughly investigate and prosecute Charles Wesco's 
                murder; and
            (5) urges the armed groups in Anglophone areas to--
                    (A) engage with government officials to peacefully 
                express grievances and credibly engage in nonviolent 
                efforts to resolve the conflict;
                    (B) immediately stop committing human rights 
                abuses, including killings of civilians, torture, 
                kidnapping, and extortion;
                    (C) end the school boycott and immediately cease 
                attacks on schools, teachers, and education officials, 
                and allow for the safe return of all students to class; 
                and
                    (D) immediately release all civilians illegally 
                detained or kidnapped.
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