English PEN is seriously concerned about the health of Le Devoir editor Robert Mintya, who has been imprisoned pending trial for alleged forgery since February 2010. Mintya has recently been transferred to hospital after being attacked by another prisoner, but reportedly has limited access to medical care. We recall the 22 April death in custody of Cameroun Express editor Germain "Bibi" Ngota Ngota, attributed to lack of medical attention, and urge the Cameroonian authorities to ensure that Mintya receives adequate care as a matter of the utmost urgency. We also call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mintya and co-defendant Serge Sabouang, editor of La Nation, as well as of our Honorary Member singer-songwriter Lapiro de Mbanga (aka Pierre Roger Lambo Sandjo), all detained in violation of their right to freedom of expression. We are also calling for an end to the harassment of recently released publisher Lewis Medjo.

Robert Mintya, editor of the newspaper Le Devoir, was reportedly beaten around the head by another prison inmate on 8 August, causing him to lose consciousness. He was admitted to the prison infirmary and on 25 August was transferred to Yaoundé central hospital. However, he reportedly has only limited access to medical care. This is all the more alarming given that editor Germain "Bibi" Ngota Ngota, a co-defendant in the same case, died in prison on 22 April. Ngota's health had deteriorated since his imprisonment and according to his death certificate he died from a lack of medical attention.

Mintya and Ngota were arrested and briefly detained in early February 2010, along with Serge Sabouang, editor of the newspaper La Nation, and Simon Hervé Nko'o, journalist for the weekly newspaper Bebela. The arrest was in response to the journalists' investigation of allegations of corruption involving Laurent Esso, Secretary General of the President's Office, and the state-run oil company, National Hydrocarbons Company (SNH), of which Esso is also board chairman. Nko'o, who was reportedly tortured while in custody, went into hiding following his release.

Mintya, Sabouang and Ngota were re-arrested on 26 February and charged with forging Esso's signature in a document and using it in an attempt to discredit him. They were transferred to Kondengui prison in the capital Yaoundé on 10 March; Ngota died on 22 April. Mintya and Sabouang reportedly face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. The whereabouts of Nko'o, who is now said to have forged the document in question, are still not known.

It is thought that the attack on Mintya may have been reprisal for his implication of other people in the forgery case. Mintya was reportedly told that he would be freed if he signed a statement saying that he had been led astray and he wrote a number of letters to Esso apologizing for the forgery, some of which were published in L'Anecdote, a newspaper that supports Esso. When he failed to secure his release, Mintya reportedly wrote more letters accusing other leading Cameroonian personalities of being behind the forgery.

English PEN also protests the continuing imprisonment of our Honorary Member singer-songwriter Lapiro de Mbanga (real name: Pierre Roger Lambo Sandjo) and the ongoing harassment of Lewis Medjo, journalist and publisher of the Douala weekly newspaper La Détente Libre, who was recently released from prison.

Mbanga's final appeal and request for parole have still not been considered by the Supreme Court despite having served more almost two and a half years of a three-year prison sentence for allegedly taking part in anti-government riots in 2008. We believe that Mbanga, who is known as an outspoken critic of the Cameroonian government both as a songwriter and an opposition party member, is being punished for his critical views, in violation of his right to freedom of expression. (For more information on Mbanga's case, please click here.)

Medjo, who was released from prison on 16 May after serving 20 months in prison for allegedly "publishing false news" about President Biya, has recently been summoned by the police who questioned and threatened him about his sources for an article. Some contributors to his newspaper have reportedly also received anonymous threats since his release. Medjo suffered serious health problems while in prison which went largely untreated, causing him to lose hearing in one ear.

Useful links:

• - Report on the attack on Mintya by Reporters Without Borders (31 August 2010) (English) (French)
 - Letter to President Biya on the investigation into Ngota's death from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) (6 May 2010)

Please send appeals:

•    Expressing serious concern for the health of Le Devoir editor Robert Mintya, who has been transferred to hospital after being attacked by another prisoner, but reportedly has only limited access to medical care;
•    Reminding the Cameroonian authorities that Cameroun Express editor Germain "Bibi" Ngota Ngota, who was imprisoned on the same charges, died in custody on 22 April 2010 due to lack of medical attention, heightening concerns for Mintya's well-being, and thus making it imperative that he receive adequate care;
•    Calling for the immediate and unconditional release of Mintya and co-defendant Serge Sabouang, editor of La Nation, as well as for that of singer-songwriter Lapiro de Mbanga (aka Pierre Roger Lambo Sandjo), all of whom the WiPC believes are detained in violation of their right to freedom of expression;
•    Calling too for an end to the harassment of La Détente Libre publisher Lewis Medjo, who was released from prison in May but has reportedly since been subject to police and other threats.

Send appeals to:

President Paul Biya
Fax: 237 22 22 08 70
Email: cellcom@prc.cm
Messages may also be sent via the Presidency's website: http://www.prc.cm/index_fr.php?link=messenger/write_pr

Mr. Philemon Yang, Prime Minister
Fax: 237 22 23 57 35
Email: spm@spm.gov.cm

Please copy appeals to the diplomatic representative for Cameroon:

His Excellency Ekaney Nkwelle
Cameroonian Embassy
84 Holland Park
London
W11 3SB
Fax: 44 (0)20 7792 9353
Email: info@cameroonhighcommission.co.uk