(Nairobi) — Cameroonian authorities should immediately conduct an effective and thorough investigation into the torture and killing of Eric Ohena Lembembe, an activist and journalist who was found dead at his home in Yaounde on the evening of July 15. Lembembe, executive director of the Cameroonian Foundation for AIDS (CAMFAIDS), was an outspoken activist who defended the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people.
Lembembe's friends discovered his body on Monday evening after being unable to reach him by telephone for two days, and went to his home. They found his front door padlocked on the outside, but could see Lembembe's body lying on his bed through the window. Lembembe's friends alerted the police, who broke down the door. According to one friend, Lembembe's neck and feet appeared to have been broken, and his face, hands, and feet had been burned with an iron.
Lembembe was one of Cameroon's most prominent LGBTI rights activists. On behalf of CAMFAIDS, he collaborated closely with Human Rights Watch and two other Cameroonian organizations, Alternatives-Cameroun and the Association for the Defense of Homosexuals (ADEFHO), in researching and launching a March 2013 report on prosecutions for consensual same-sex conduct. He also participated in drafting a submission for Cameroon's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in May 2013 at the United Nations Human Rights Council. Lembembe was also a contributor to the blog "Erasing 76 Crimes" and authored several chapters in a book on LGBTI rights around the world, From Wrongs to Gay Rights. His organization assiduously documented arrests, violence, and blackmail against LGBTI people in Cameroon.
"Eric was an inspiring activist whose work was deeply appreciated by human rights activists in Cameroon and around the world," said Neela Ghoshal, senior LGBT rights researcher. "Advocating for equal rights in Cameroon, where LGBTI people face severe discrimination and violence, takes tremendous courage. Eric's activism paved the way for a society based on equality and nondiscrimination."
Lembembe's killing follows several attacks on the offices of human rights defenders, including those working for equal rights for LGBTI people. On June 26, 2013, unidentified assailants burned down the Douala headquarters of Alternatives-Cameroun, which provides HIV services to LGBTI people. A few days earlier on June 16, the Yaounde office of human rights lawyer Michel Togue, who represents clients charged with same-sex conduct, was burgled, and his legal files and laptop stolen. Both Togue and Alice Nkom, another lawyer who represents LGBTI clients, have received repeated death threats by email and SMS, including threats to kill their children. Although activists have reported all of these incidents, the Cameroonian authorities have not apprehended a single suspect.
"We don't know who killed Eric Lembembe, or why he was killed, but one thing is clear: the Cameroonian authorities' utter failure to stem homophobic violence sends the message that these attacks can be carried out with impunity," Ghoshal said. "The police should not rest until the perpetrators of this horrific crime are brought to justice. President Biya should break his silence on the wave of homophobic violence in Cameroon and publicly condemn this brutal attack."
U.S. State Dept. statement on murder of Cameroonian activist
STATEMENT BY DEPUTY SPOKESPERSON MARIE HARF
Murder of Cameroonian LGBT and AIDS Activist Eric Ohena Lembembe
We deplore the brutal murder of Eric Ohena Lembembe, who was found tortured to death in his home in Yaounde yesterday. We condemn this terrible act in the strongest terms and urge the Cameroonian authorities to thoroughly and promptly investigate and prosecute those responsible for his death.
Eric Ohena Lembembe was the Executive Director of Cameroonian Foundation for AIDS (CAMFAIDS), an organization dedicated to the fight against AIDS and for the human rights of LGBT people in Cameroon. Just two weeks ago, Mr. Lembembe spoke out against the recent break-ins at the offices of groups advocating for gay rights. The local office of one organization, Alternatives-Cameroun, was set on fire on June 26th.
The United States actively promotes respect for the human rights of all people, including LGBT individuals, in Cameroon and around the world. We will continue to support activists, like Mr. Lembembe, who stand up for the human rights of all people, regardless of who they are or who they love.
Following is an All Out press release
NEW YORK - Prominent Cameroonian gay rights activist and Executive Director of the Cameroonian Foundation for AIDS, Eric Ohena Lembembe, was found dead in his Yaounde home on Monday night. His body had extensive signs of torture.
Lembembe was a leading voice for lesbian, gay, bi and trans (LGBT) people in Cameroon, fighting to tell the stories of LGBT people and organizations facing arrests, violence, and blackmail.
"The global movement for love and equality is poorer for the loss of Eric Lembembe, because brave activists like him in Cameroon, and other countries where it's illegal to be gay, are an inspiration to human rights defenders everywhere," said Andre Banks, Executive Director and Co-Founder of All Out. "Fighting against brutal homophobia, Eric worked towards a day when Cameroonians did not have to live in fear because of who they are or who they love. To honor his commitment and his life, we call on President Biya to make sure these violent, deadly attacks against LGBT people do not continue, starting with the investigation of Eric Lembembe's death."
According to Human Rights Watch, friends found Lembembe's body after he had been unreachable for two days. One friend reported that his neck and feet appeared broken, and that his face, hands, and feet had been burned.
The torture and murder of Lembembe comes during a period of violent anti-gay attacks against advocates working for equal rights for LGBT people in the country.
Last month, arsonists set fire to the offices of Alternatives-Cameroon, a center that serves LGBT people with medical care in Douala. A few days earlier, the office of Michel Togue, a human rights lawyer defending clients charged with "same sex conduct", was burgled. He also received repeated death threats.
Just two weeks before his death, Lemembe decried these recent attacks on human rights defenders in Cameroon. "There is no doubt: anti-gay thugs are targeting those who support equal rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity." Lemembe wrote in a statement published by Human Rights Watch.
"Unfortunately, a climate of hatred and bigotry in Cameroon, which extends to high levels in government, reassures homophobes that they can get away with these crimes," Lembembe wrote.
Cameroon, where homosexuality is illegal, prosecutes more people for homosexual activities than any other sub-Saharan African country, according to Human Rights Watch. Homosexuality is punishable by prison terms between six months and five years, and cases like Lembembe's can go uninvestigated and unpunished.
Last year, 130,000 people signed an AllOut petition calling on the Cameroonian President Paul Biya and Minister of Justice Laurent Esso to reverse the the three year jail sentence for Roger Jean-Claude Mbede. In 2012, Roger was found guilty of a crime for sending a text message to another man that said, "I'm very much in love with you." The petition also called for a moratorium on the laws that sent Roger to jail in the first place. Roger was charged and convicted under Cameroon's law that criminalizes "homosexual behavior."
"We are deeply saddened by this tremendous loss to our community," Andre Banks said. "Our hearts are with Eric's close loved ones. We will not rest until there is justice."
To see the live signature totals from All Out's petition visit:
www.allout.org/remember-eric .
Sources:
Cameroonian activists killed; the nation must respond: 76crimes.com/2013/07/16/cameroon-activist-tortured-killed-the-nation-must-respond/ .
Prominent Gay Rights Activist Killed in Cameroon:
abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/prominent-gay-rights-activist-killed-cameroon-19677284 .
Cameroon: Spate of Attacks on Rights Defenders:
www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/01/cameroon-spate-attacks-rights-defenders .
After attacks, LGBTI defenders in Cameroon seek safety:
76crimes.com/2013/07/05/after-attacks-lgbti-defenders-in-cameroon-seek-safety/ .
Cameroon: Leading LGBTI Human Rights Defender Fatally Attacked
From the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission
(Douala, Cameroon)—The International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) learned yesterday of the tragic death and alleged murder of Eric Ohena Lembembe, a Cameroonian journalist, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) human rights defender, and the executive director of the Cameroonian Foundation for AIDS (CAMFAIDS).
According to reports told to Damian Ugwu, IGLHRC Africa Regional Program Coordinator, currently in Cameroon, Lembembe's friends went to his home on Monday because they had been unable to reach him throughout the weekend. They found his door locked from the outside and observed his legs through a window. They contacted the police who arrived on the scene, broke open the door and found him dead.
Signs of bruising on Lembembe's body, including burns from irons pressed into his legs, suggest that he was tortured.
After recent attacks on Yaoundé-based human rights organizations, Lembembe said earlier this month, "There is no doubt: anti-gay thugs are targeting those who support equal rights on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. Unfortunately, a climate of hatred and bigotry in Cameroon, which extends to high levels in government, reassures homophobes that they can get away with these crimes."
"Everyone is devastated, sad, and emotionally distraught," said Ugwu after speaking with local human rights defenders and friends of Lembembe. "Some could not sleep because of fear. They think, 'I could be next.' No one knows what happened to Eric or who killed him, so people are afraid they might meet the same fate. Given the recent spate of homophobic attacks in Cameroon, there is strong speculation that Eric's death is connected to his sexual orientation and his work."
Lembembe's death follows anti-LGBTI violence over the past month including the arson attack on the office of Alternatives-Cameroun by unknown assailants. Additionally, the office of Michel Togue, a human rights lawyer, was reportedly broken into and documents stolen. Togue and Alice Nkom have both received repeated death threats for their defense of LGBTI individuals before the courts.
Anti-LGBTI discrimination is widely in evidence in Cameroon. "Both State and non—State actors in Cameroon harm LGBTI people," said Ugwu. "People do not express surprise at this kind of incident. It is only because people know Eric that there is attention. But LGBTI people who are not well-known or who are not activists are regularly subjected to otherwise invisible intimidation and violence."
The LGBTI movement in Cameroon is strong and made of diverse organizations. The movement's priorities, including those by CAMFAIDS, have increasingly articulated concerns beyond public health and HIV/AIDS to more explicitly address the rights of LGBTI people.
According to Ugwu, many LGBTI rights defenders and community members are now examining their safety and security.
"Some might go underground for a while," said Ugwu. "We spent a lot of time talking about this issue today. Almost everyone had something to say. I could hear one or two saying they would tone down their activism or operate from home instead of coming to public places where they might be associated with the LGBTI movement. Eric's death is very painful to the movement, but I do not see this as stopping LGBTI Cameroon in the long-term. I see a very committed movement."
Background
Homophobic and transphobic discrimination and violence in Cameroon is well-documented.
A 2012 joint submission to the United Nations Human Rights Council by seven Cameroonian organizations including CAMFAIDS, supported by Human Rights Watch (HRW) and IGLHRC, documents at least 18 instances of people being detained or arrested based on sexual orientation or gender identity under Article 347 bis of the Cameroonian Penal Code between 2010 and 2012.
The 2010 report, Criminalizing Identities: Rights Abuses in Cameroon based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity by two Cameroonian organizations, Alternatives-Cameroun and L'Assocation pour la Défense de l' Homosexualité (ADEFHO), along with HRW and IGLHRC further details the unique brand of abuses that people suffer on the grounds of their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity in Cameroon.
For more information, visit: www.iglhrc.org/region/cameroon .
