Soldiers who killed civilians receive light sentences

Three Cameroonian soldiers have been sentenced to prison for their role in the killing of at least 21 civilians in the country's troubled Anglophone region, reports BBC News. The jail terms for the crimes, which took place six years ago in the Northwest region, range from five to 10 years per person. A military court previously found the soldiers guilty of murder, arson and destruction – a rare occurrence in a country where military personnel are seldom convicted of crimes against civilians. Nevertheless, lawyers for the victims said they were disappointed with the length of the jail terms handed down, calling them ‘insignificant’. The convictions centre on the events of 14 February 2020, when soldiers, supported by a local militia of ethnic Fulanis, raided the village of Ngarbuh and killed civilians. The victims included 13 children, according to Human Rights Watch. The authorities initially denied responsibility for the attack on Ngarbuh but later backpedalled following international pressure and the findings of an investigation ordered by the country's President, Paul Biya. Alongside the three soldiers, a militia member also received a jail term for murder, arson and destruction. One of the victims' lawyers, Sother Menkem, said: ‘The sentence was so mild, I even qualify it as friendly because we are talking of a massacre.’ The military court rejected the victims' demand for compensation, a move decried by another of their lawyers, Richard Tamfu. Human Rights Watch and legal representatives of the victims have insisted that the soldiers were acting on the instructions of their superiors and therefore criticise the fact that no senior military officer was prosecuted at the trial.

Full BBC News report