President Biya grants clemency to February strike convicts, and other prisoners

President Paul Biya of Cameroon has granted presidential pardon to all those who where jailed
(mostly youths) as a result of the February upheavals in that Country and especially those whose jail terms have become final at the date of signature of the said decree signed on 20th May.

The clemency gives total remission for sentences in favour of those persons whose prison terms are equal to or below one year and 2/3 remission for sentence in favour of those persons whose prison terms are above one year.

But the pity does not apply to those convicts who had escaped at the date of signature of the said
presidential decree, as well as recidivists and those detained as a result of their conviction for an
offence committed during the period at which they were in detention.
It should be noted here that a total of 1.671 people (mostly youths) were arrested around the country after the violent strike of February 2008, which claimed lives and the destruction of both private and state properties amounting to several billion CFA. They include; 671, from littoral, 400, from the Centre, 100, from Southwest, 280, from West and 220, from the Northwest Provinces.

Consequently a host of them were summarily sentenced to various jail terms and fines of hundred of thousands CFA

Until the presidential pardon the young boys and girls, generally aged between 13 and 23, serving their jail terms in the different prisons the country.

An other presidential decree signed on the same day also gave clemency to other prisoners as follows; life-jail terms for those originally sentenced to death, 20 years remission for those originally sentenced to death but whose sentences had already been moderated, 20 years remission for those originally sentenced to life imprisonment but had not yet benefited any clemency, three years remission for those originally sentenced to life imprisonment but
whose terms had already been moderated to a fixed term, Two years remission for those originally sentenced to life imprisonment but had been reduced to 10 years or more, 15 months remission for those originally sentenced to terms equal to or below 10 years but above five years, 12 months remission for those originally sentenced to prison terms equal to or below five years but above three years, Eight months remission for those originally sentenced to prison
terms equal to or below three years but above one year, Six months remission for those originally
sentenced to prison terms equal to or below one year. For application, the decree states that minors who have been sentenced shall in addition benefit from one third of the applicable remission.

Meanwhile the said presidential pardon exempted those imprisoned on the following charges; Capital murder, aggravated theft, embezzlement of State funds, corruption, favoritism, trafficking, fake currency, customs and tax fraud, exams fraud, crimes related to legislation on arms, crimes related to forest laws, unlawful possession and traffic in drugs, unlawful possession and traffic in toxic waste, torture and unlawful possession and traffic in arms.