An appraisal of Juvenile trial under Cameroonian Criminal Law

ABSTRACT

Cameroonian criminal law also makes a distinction between adult and juvenile offenders. The Penal Code clearly states that any person below 18 years of age is a child. So a juvenile offender under Cameroonian law will mean every human being below the age of 18 years who commits an offence. This study examines the changes introduced by the new Criminal Procedure Code on matters of juvenile justice. In doing so, the researcher examines how the administration of youth justice has evolved in Cameroon. It also discusses the shortcomings in the treatment of juvenile delinquents since the enactment of the new Criminal Procedure Code in 2005.The study concludes that despites the existence of the Code , children under detention are still grossly abused across the country. Juveniles are incarcerated in prisons with adult offenders, some of whom are hardened criminals. It is therefore recommended that emphasis should be laid on increasing the reintegration of young people into the community following custody, and not the overuse of incarceration as a method for dealing with troubled youths.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

• Background

Before independence of Cameroon, the juvenile justice system was somewhat different in the English speaking regions and in the French speaking regions of the country.

In French regions, the major source of procedural law in the juvenile matters was: the Code D’instruction Criminelle and the French Code of Criminal Procedure of 1868. This code was introduced into French Equatorial Africa via Sénégal in 1903 and was rendered applicable to Cameroon by decree of 22 May 1924.[1] Other instruments were applicable such as:

– The Decree of 30 of November 1828 on special courts for minors.

– The Decree of 30 October of 1835 on the protection of minors;

-law No 58/203 of 26 December 1958 on forced labour.

-And law No 58/203 of December 1858 on the Adoption and simplification of criminal procedure and subsequent modification.

In Anglophone Cameroon, the major source of procedural law in juvenile justice matters was the Criminal Procedure Ordinance . This ordinance Was applied alongside the children and young person ordinance ( cap 32 of the la of Nigeria 1958).[2]

For about 50 years after political independence and the reunification. Difference continued to exist in the administration of juvenile justice in Cameroon. As there Were no immediately available notional laws of general application and also because of the carrying forward of ideas, value and priorities established under the different colonial administration in 2005, the Cameroon parliament passed a new criminal procedure code. Part of which replaced the colonial law on the administration of youth justice.[3] The section of the code dealing with juvenile justice is the amalgamation of the hitherto existing laws and the country that pertained to this area of justice.[4] It serves as the first formal instrument in Cameroon since independent. In Anglophone Cameroon the law governing juvenile matters is the 2005 criminal procedure code.

1.2 Statement of Problem

Like adults, young person’s have the responsibility to be a law abiding citizen, when a young person breaks the law, he/she must be charged, prosecuted and may be sentenced as the case may be. Cameroon has a good legal framework for juvenile justice system, In Anglophone Cameroon the legal framework is governed by the 2005 Criminal Procedure Code.  Under this laws, juveniles are treated differently from adults in matters of justice. To start with section 80 of the Penal Code guarantees that a juvenile aged less than 10 years cannot be criminally responsible and for a child aged more than 14 years but less than 18 years liability shall be diminish. Section 700 of the Criminal Procedure Code states that preliminary inquiry is compulsory for matters of minors aged above 14 and less than 18 years. Juveniles are frequently tried in violation of the existing laws. Although the Criminal Procedure Code has prescribed for the protection of minors in that the trial shall be conducted in camara, this same protection is not accorded to the minors who jointly commit with the assistance of adults.

1:3 Research Questions

The following questions shall guide this research;

• Who is a juvenile under Cameroonian law?
• What is the legal framework of the juvenile justice system in Anglophone Cameroon?
• How effective is the juvenile justice system in Anglophone Cameroon?
• What recommendation can be made to address the problem?