Peace activist Abdul Karim Ali has been arbitrarily detained since 11 August 2022. He was interrogated repeatedly about a video he made on 9 July 2022 denouncing a Cameroonian military chief for allegedly torturing civilians. Two of his friends have since been detained alongside him. The three men were then remanded to custody on 2 February 2023 on accusations of ‘hostility against the fatherland’, ‘failure to report’, ‘secession’, and ‘rebellion’. Abdul Karim’s detention appears to be based on the video or his activism for peace, in direct violation of his right to freedom of expression. The Cameroonian authorities should drop the charges against them unless they can promptly produce reliable evidence of an internationally recognisable crime.
