After attacks, LGBTI defenders in Cameroon seek safety

Cameroonian authorities should end their ‘absurd and despicable’ silence, then act to protect local human rights organizations and activists. Douala, Cameroon, July 2, 2013 — At the Access Center of Alternatives-Cameroon, life returns to normal. Gradually. New furniture arrives. New construction is under way. Some employees, though still frightened, go about their business. From time … Continue reading →

After death threats, burglars strike Cameroon LGBT defender

Anti-gay hooligans continue to harass Michel Togué, one of the few lawyers in Cameroon who accepts LGBT people as clients. Following death threats that he has received by phone and mail in recent months, his offices were burglarized on June 16. The burglars took his laptop, passport, USB memory devices, and a variety of confidential … Continue reading →

Cameroon: Two lesbians sentenced to nine months

“The case of Clarisse Z. and Jeanine N., two young lesbians, each 27 years old, is unlike any of the other cases of homosexuality that I have defended until now.” — Michel Togué, Cameroonian lawyer and human rights defender. A defendant isn’t usually the person whose complaint prompts a police investigation, but in the case … Continue reading →

Peaceful celebration in Cameroon a year after mob attack

Three associations in Cameroon’s capital city organized a week’s activities to commemorate this year’s International Day Against Homophobia (IDAHO). Unlike last year, the activities were not disrupted by anti-gay violence. La version française: “Yaoundé célèbre IDAHO 2013 avec faste et sérénité” IDAHO 2013 IN CAMEROON Time: around 6 p.m., May 17. Location: The Bastos Roundabout … Continue reading →

Gays in Cameroon, beware this blackmailer

Denounced for two years in gay activist groups’ press releases, Albert Edward Ekobo Samba, who passes himself off as a gay man on the Internet, continues to trap gay men with the help of accomplices posing as police. Here’s what some of his latest victims have to say: Ghislain F., a 31-year-old gay man who … Continue reading →

Cameroon LGBT groups learning to be businesslike

Governance, paperwork, management techniques, human resources, financial conflicts of interest — those are some of the training modules discussed in workshops held Jan. 22 to 25 for nine representatives of three community-based organizations serving the community of men who have sex with men (MSM). “This training was needed because most of these young associations have … Continue reading →

Two gay men freed into ‘living hell’ in Cameroon

After three days in police custody in Cameroon, two gay men were released yesterday, but their daily life remains a nightmare. “I’m upset and depressed. Because of what has happened to us [an attack by a gay-bashing crowd, death threats, police detention], I am more and more stressed. I fear that tomorrow morning our lifeless … Continue reading →

Cameroon police re-arrest 2 gay men whom court freed

Two gay men, released from a Cameroon prison in January, have again been arrested. They have been held in police custody for the past two days, since shortly after they were attacked in a local marketplace on Sunday, March 24. The incident began when Jonas Singa Kumie and Franky Djome (Franky Ndome), variously described as … Continue reading →

Sharpening AIDS-fighting skills in Cameroon

AIDS fighters in Cameroon have been improving their skills through workshops that expand their knowledge of the disease and the challenges it creates for sexual minorities. Jules Eloundou, president of the anti-AIDS group Cameroon Humanity First, said before workshops held in Yaoundé on Jan. 9-11, “Some of our peer educators do not have the basic … Continue reading →

In Cameroon, anti-gay voices grow louder

In Cameroon, the topic of homosexuality is no longer taboo. Both in Yaoundé and Douala, on the street, in taxis, restaurants, bars, offices and markets, on the radio and on television, it is difficult to spend a day or even an hour without the conversation reverting to this topic. Opposition to homosexuality has become the … Continue reading →