Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounces a trial amid ineffective investigation and impunity for army crimes in the northwestern town of Ngarbuh.
It is at lazy speed that the trial of 21 individuals accused of being involved in the murders of 21 civilians, perpetrated on February 14, 2020 in Ngarbuh, castigates HRW.
"When the trial began, it was hailed as a step toward justice and the fight against impunity for military abuses in Cameroon's Anglophone regions," said Ilaria Allegrozzi, senior Central Africa researcher at Human Rights Watch.
"But two years after the massacre, the families of the victims are still waiting for justice, even as security forces continue to commit serious human rights violations," Allegrozzi said.
Two years ago to the day, the Cameroonian army, accompanied by Mbororo militias, killed 21 civilians in Ngarbuh, including 13 children and a pregnant woman. During this retaliatory operation, five houses were burned. And other inhabitants beaten. The people of Ngarbuh were suspected of hiding separatist fighters.
Following the massacre, the government denied the involvement of the security forces. But later, the Yaoundé regime acknowledged that the soldiers had tried to cover up the truth about the killings.
