Menu

Amnesty International said Cameroonian security agents shut down its press conference today in Yaoundé, the country's capital city. The human rights organisation said about a dozen security agents, in uniform and plain clothes, entered the venue of the press conference and ordered managers to close it down.   

Amnesty said the aim of the press conference was to present more than 310,000 letters and petitions signed by people around the world, asking President Paul Biya to release three students imprisoned for 10 years by a military court for sharing an SMS joke about Boko Haram.    

The students, Fomusoh Ivo, Afuh Nivelle Nfor, and Azah Levis Gob, shared a forwarded SMS in December 2014 that said: “Boko Haram recruits young people from 14 years old and above. Conditions for recruitment: 4 subjects at GCE, including religion.” The message, sent by Ivo's friend, was intended as a comment on the difficulty of finding a good job without being highly qualified. The joke was that even the armed group Boko Haram would not recruit those without good exam results.

One of their teachers saw the text and reported it to the police. Ivo and his friends were all arrested and transferred to prison on January 14, 2015. The three students were found guilty of ‘non-denunciation of terrorism related information’ on November 2, 2016.  They have appealed their conviction and sentence. The appeal is now set for June 15 after several delays.

As part of Amnesty, annual Write for Rights campaign 2016, over 310,000 actions were taken from people across the globe, asking that Fomusoh Ivo Feh and his friends be immediately released. Celebrities such as Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Group, and Patrick Mboma, a former Cameroonian football striker, sent letters to the authorities, and solidarity messages to Ivo and his two friends.

“These students have done nothing more than share a private joke, but their conviction and sentence could see them spend a decade behind bars and destroy their future prospects,” said Alioune Tine, Amnesty International’s West and Central Africa Director. “We join more than 310,000 people across the world in calling on the authorities in Cameroon to release these students, allow them to re-join their families, and realise their dream of continuing their studies and finding a job.”

Amnesty said it had written a formal letter on May 19 informing the relevant authority about its press conference. On May 22, the organisation sent a reminder. No reason was given for shutting down the event, Amnesty said. Another event planned for later today by one of Amnesty International’s local partners, to discuss the human rights situation in the country, was also cancelled.