Researching Cameroonian Law
By Charles Manga Fombad
Charles Manga Fombad is a Professor of law in the Department of Law, University of Botswana. He
holds a Licence en Droit (University of Yaounde), LL.M. and Ph. D. (University of London) and a
Diploma in Conflict Resolution (University of Uppsala). He was, from 2003-2006, Professor
Honorarius of the Department of Jurisprudence, School of Law, University of South Africa. Professor
Fombad is the author of 4 books and has published more than 45 articles in international refereed
journals, more than a dozen book chapters as well as numerous other publications and conference
papers. In 2003, Professor Fombad received the Bobbert Association Prize for the best first article in
the Journal for Juridical Science. He was also awarded the Wedderburn Prize in 2003 for a paper that
appeared in the "Modern Law Review." In two successive years, 2004 and 2005, he received a special
commendation from the University of Botswana Research Awards Committee for research excellence.
He has been a member of the editorial board of several international journals. He is presently the
founding editor-in-Chief of the "University of Botswana Law Journal" and Consultant Editor of the
"BIAC Journal of Business, Management and Training." Professor Fombad teaches several courses at
the undergraduate and postgraduate level. His research interests are in legal history, torts, media law,
constitutional law, and international law.
Published June/July 2007
Table of Contents
Introduction
Historical Note
The Cameroonian Legal System
Sources of Cameroonian Law
The Constitution
Legislation
Judicial Precedent
Customary Law
Law Reporting
Current Court System Structure
Judicial Officers
Government
Legal research guides, legal web sites directories, law lists, libraries' and legal citation guides
Selected Bibliography of Cameroonian Secondary Law Books
Introduction
Cameroon, with a total land area of 475,440 square kilometers, is located in Western Africa, bordering
the Atlantic Ocean, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon and the Republic of Congo to the South, Central African
Republic and Chad to the east, Lake Chad to the north and Nigeria to the west. The population of
17,340,702 million (2006), is made up of an extraordinary diversity of about 250 tribes speaking at
least 280 different indigenous languages. To this complex mix is superimposed a bi-cultural division
between a minority Anglophone community from the former British trust territory of Southern
Cameroons, who make up about 20% of the population and occupy two of the ten administrative
provinces in the country, and a dominant Francophone community from the former French Cameroun
who make up 80% of the population and occupy the rest of the eight administrative provinces. The
English and French languages are constitutionally recognized as the official languages, though most
official communications are usually in the dominant French language. However, Pidgin English, a
common lingua franca in English-speaking West Africa, is widely spoken in the Anglophone provinces
and in some of the major towns in the Francophone provinces which have a substantial Anglophone
community.
Historical Note
The Portuguese are considered to be the first Europeans who arrived on Cameroon's coast in the
1500s, but malaria prevented any significant settlement and conquest of the interior until the late
1870s. The country's name is derived from "Camaroes," meaning shrimps, so-called by the Portuguese
explorer Fernando Po, who named the River Wouri "Rio dos Camaroes" (Shrimp River), after the
many shrimps. However, it was at the Berlin Conference of 1884 that all what is now Cameroon and
parts of several of its neighbors became the German colony of "Kamerun." Their presence lasted until
1916 when, during the First World War, a combined British and French expeditionary force defeated
the Germans in Cameroon and proceeded to divide the territory into two unequal parts. The British
took control of two disconnected portions which they labeled Northern and Southern Cameroon
respectively, whilst the French took the larger portion, constituting about four-fifths of the territory.
This arbitrary division was later recognized by the League of Nations which conferred mandates on
there two powers to administer the territories on June 28, 1919. The mandates were later superseded
by trusteeship agreements on the creation of the United Nations in 1945. The British administered
their portion as part of their neighboring colony of Nigeria whilst the French made theirs part of their
colony of French Equatorial Africa. In a UN-conducted plebiscite of February 11, 1961, Southern
Cameroon voted in favor of gaining independence by reuniting with the French Cameroun, which had
already become independent on January 1, 1960, whilst Northern Cameroon voted in favor of
remaining as part of Nigeria. On September 1, 1961, the Southern Cameroon and the newly
independent French Cameroun were formally reunited as the "Federal Republic of Cameroon."
The Cameroonian Legal System
The legal system, like most in Africa, is a relic of the colonial era. However, it is unique in that it
consists of two distinct and often conflicting legal systems, the English common law and the French
civil law operating in some sort of tenuous coexistence. This makes Cameroon one of the few examples
of such a dual legal system in the world.
Three major periods can best explain the nature and evolution of the legal system namely, the precolonial, the colonial and the post-independences periods.
In the pre-colonial Cameroonian society, there existed diverse unwritten indigenous laws and usages
which applied in varying degrees to the different ethnic groups. The only exception was in the north
where the Foulbe tribes, who originally invaded the territory from North Africa in the early nineteenth
century, had introduced Islamic laws. Despite the differences in the structures, content and
institutions which applied these indigenous and Islamic laws or traditional laws as they are referred to
today, there were many similarities. A German attempt to ascertain and codify the different traditional
laws was frustrated by the outbreak of the First World War, but the results from the six tribes that
were studied showed that there were substantial similarities in basic concepts and practices. The
traditional system of justice was administered by a series of ad hoc bodies ranging from the family
head, quarter head, chief and the chief's council. Perhaps the most remarkable and controversial
aspect of this system of justice was the extensive use of trial by ordeal. The commonest examples of
this involved drinking poisonous concoctions, putting the hands in boiling palm oil or water, or
holding a red-hot iron bar. If the accused came to no harm, then his innocence was considered as
proven.
During the German colonial period, a rudimentary system of administration was established. Two
parallel systems of Courts, one exclusively for Europeans where German law was applied, and the
other exclusively for Cameroonians, where traditional law under the control and supervision of the
Germans was applied.
The League of Nations' agreement with the French and British conferred on these two powers, in
Article 9, "full powers of administration and legislation." The two powers were authorized to
administer Cameroon in accordance with their laws and as an integral part of their territory, subject to
such modifications as may be required by the local conditions. This was the basis for the almost
wholesale exportation of the English common law and the French civil law to Cameroon. There were
significant differences in the policies they pursued in introducing their respective systems of justice.
The British, like the Germans and French, also operated two parallel systems of courts, but unlike
them, this was not separated on racial lines. One structure was for the traditional sector of the
population, mainly Cameroonians, and the other was for the modern sector, mainly Europeans or
those Cameroonians who opted for it. The applicable law was based on Section 11 of the Southern
Cameroons High Court Law (SCHCL), 1958, which provided for the application of English common
law, the doctrines of equity and statutes of general application which were in force in England on
January 1, 1900. On the basis of this, a number of English statutes as well as Nigerian laws and
Ordinances were made applicable to Southern Cameroons. Through the system of "indirect rule,"
traditional institutions and laws were retained provided they were not repugnant to natural justice,
equity and good conscience or incompatible with any existing laws. In French Cameroun, the French in
line with their policy of assimilation made a strict distinction between citizens, who were defined as
either French nationals or Cameroonians who had evolved and were honored with that status (and
there was hardly any), and the ordinary Cameroonians who were derogatorily referred to as
"sujet"(indigenous people). Based on this, two systems of justice were administered; one for the
Cameroonian population in accordance with traditional laws, and another, for French nationals in
accordance with French law. French administrators presided over the traditional courts and used the
local chiefs and notables merely as assistants or assessors.
The federal system that came into existence in 1961 was based on a two-state federation consisting of
West Cameroon, made up of the former Southern Cameroons, and East Cameroon, made up of the
former French Cameroun. Until the country became the "United Republic of Cameroon" in 1972 when
a unitary system of government was introduced, the two federated states had each retained their
inherited colonial system of justice although this was under the control of a Federal Ministry of
Justice. However, the early history of the independent and reunified Cameroon was marked by strides
towards complete political and legal unification. By 1964, two Federal Law Reform Commissions had
been created to draw up a Penal Code, a Criminal Procedure Code and several other Codes. Its only
achievement was the 1967 Penal Code which remains the only reasonably successful legislation that
reflects the country's dual legal culture, although it was substantially based on the French Penal Code.
Based on the unitary Constitution of 1972, Ordinance no.72/4 of August 26, 1972, which has since been
amended several times, created a civilian- style unitary system of Courts to replace the different court
structures that had operated in the two states. Nevertheless, article 38 of the Constitution provided for
the continuous application of the different laws that were in force in the two legal districts provided
these were not inconsistent with any new laws. As a result of this, despite the unified court structure,
the two pre-independence legal systems continued to operate. The 1972 Constitution has been
amended on several occasions, though the most significant and substantial was in 1996 in response to
pro-democracy nation-wide strikes and demonstrations that had started in the early 1990s.
Since the reunification of the two portions of Cameroon, successive Constitutions have indirectly
sanctioned the co-existence of the English and French legal systems in the country. With respect to
this, the 1996 amendment states in Article 68:
"The legislation applicable in the Federal State of Cameroon and in the Federated
States on the date of entry into force of this Constitution shall remain in force insofar
as it is not repugnant to this Constitution, and as long as it is not amended by
subsequent laws and regulations."
The Cameroonian legal system can therefore be described as bi-jural in which French law applies in
the eight French speaking provinces and English law substantially applies in the two English speaking
provinces, although most of the uniform laws that are now being introduced are essentially based on
French legal concepts.
Sources of Cameroonian Law
The legal system as well as the sources of law applicable in the country has been significantly shaped
by the dual English-French colonial legal heritage that has given rise to its dual legal system in the
country. The main sources of Cameroonian law are the Constitution, legislation, judicial precedents
and customary law.
The Constitution
Since independence and the reunification of the former British Southern Cameroons and the French
Cameroun, the country can be said to have had at least three different Constitutions and numerous
constitutional amendments. What can be considered to be the first Constitution was in reality the
Constitution under which French Cameroun became independent on 1 January 1960. The second
Constitution was in reality simply an amendment of the 1960 Constitution of the French Cameroun in
1961, when the British and French administered parts of the country were reunited and was styled as
the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Cameroon, which ushered in a highly centralized federal
system. On 2 June 1972, after a referendum, a new unitary Constitution was adopted and the name of
the country was changed to the United Republic of Cameroon. In 1984, the appellation "United
Republic" was replaced with "Republic." What is currently in force is this 1972 Constitution although it
was substantially amended in a rather controversial manner in 1996 with a new text of 69 articles
replacing the old text of 39 articles.
Although not explicitly so-stated, the Cameroonian Constitution is treated as the supreme law of the
land. Article 2(1) vests national sovereignty in the people who exercise this either through the
President of the Republic and members of Parliament or by way of referendum.
Legislation
The Cameroonian Constitution distinguishes between parliamentary power to legislate (le pouvoir
législatif) in Article 26 and the governmental power to issue rules and regulations (le pouvoir
réglementaire) in implementation of parliamentary legislation in Article 27.
Article 26 is the principal provision in the Constitution that specifies in considerable details the scope
of the Cameroon Parliament's legislative competence. This article, in broad terms, identifies six areas
that fall within the reserved legislative domain (domaine de la loi).
The parliamentary power to legislate has been complimented by governmental power to issue
regulations in implementation of such legislation. Express governmental intervention in the legislative
domain under the Cameroonian Constitution is provided for on two different occasions. The first is
provided for by Article 27, which states that "matters not reserved to the legislative power shall come
under the jurisdiction of the authority empowered to issue rules and regulations." This has the effect of
giving the Government the right to enact "laws" in its own right by way of "rules and regulations" in all
matters not reserved for Parliament under Article 26. The President of the Republic (Article 8(5)), the
Prime Minister (Article 12(3), and a host of other government officials share this general power to
issue rules and regulations. The second major instance of governmental intervention is provided for in
Article 28 of the Constitution. According to this provision, Parliament may, on matters falling within
its reserved legislative domain, "empower the President of the Republic to legislate by way of
ordinance for a limited period and for given purposes." To be valid, such ordinances must be tabled
before the bureau of the National Assembly and the Senate for purposes of ratification within the time
limit laid down by the enabling law.
Judicial Precedent
Unlike legislation, the role of judicial precedent as a source of law in Cameroon depends on whether
one is in the English speaking Anglophone or French speaking Francophone provinces of the country.
The English legal system on which the law applied in the Anglophone provinces is based treats judicial
precedent differently from the way the French civil law on which the law applied in the Francophone
provinces is based. The English law doctrine of binding precedent or stare decisis under which judicial
precedent is a major source of law was received in the Anglophone provinces as part of the general
reception of English law. Its actual operation to render judicial precedent an effective source of
Cameroonian law is however subject to the complexities of the judicial organization of the courts in the
country.
The courts within the country operate within a unified but decentralized court structure at the summit
of which is a single Supreme Court for the whole country that operates more like the French Cour de
Cassation rather than an English Court of Appeal. The highest court within each of the provinces is the
Appeal Court. For the two Anglophone provinces, the doctrine of binding precedent operates in the
sense that the precedents laid down within each province constitute binding authority within that
province. However, judicial precedent as a binding source of law in the English provinces plays but a
rather limited role because of the "provincialized" system. Although appeals may be taken from the
Court of Appeal to the Supreme Court, these are not usually handled as appeals in the strict sense of
the word and the decisions taken by the Supreme Court are at best only of persuasive authority. To this
extent, whilst judicial precedents remain important source of law in the Anglophone provinces,
because of the way the courts are structured and actually operate, it may not be as significant as it
should have been.
Generally, the attitude towards judicial precedent in Francophone Cameroon is different. Judiciary
precedent is not regarded as a primary source of law. However, precedents, especially of the superior
courts, although not strictly binding, are of highly persuasive value in the Francophone courts.
Customary Law
As pointed out earlier, in pre-colonial Cameroon, there existed a wide variety of what is today known
simply as traditional or customary law. In this regard, the Moslem law that was in place in large areas
of the northern part of the country was also treated as part of customary law. Both the British and the
French recognized and enforced customary law. However, not every custom or usage was recognized
and enforced as customary law. For example, in Anglophone Cameroon, section 27(1) of the Southern
Cameroons High Court Law, 1955, provided for the recognition and enforcement of only customary
law which is not repugnant to natural justice, equity and good conscience or incompatible either
directly or by implication, with any existing law. Generally, today in Cameroon, customary law has very
limited application. It only applies to certain persons and governs only a few matters. It applies only to
persons traditionally subject to it, effectively meaning the rural population and even then, only if they
desire that this law should regulate their relationship. The only exception to this is in the northern part
of the country, where sharia law and sharia courts still play a large part in regulating the lives of rural
people.
Law Reporting
Whilst laws enacted by Parliament and some subsidiary legislation are published in the Official
Gazette of the Republic of Cameroon, which is printed by the National Printing Press, there is no
regular and efficient system of law reporting in Cameroon. Since the 1960s, a number of short-lived
but commendable efforts in this direction have been started but quietly abandoned.
The Bulletin des Arrêts de la Cour Suprème, begun in 1960, appeared only sporadically. FrançoisXavier Mbouyom's collection of administrative cases from 1962 to 1975 was essentially a private
venture that was not very authoritative. The series, "West Cameroon Law Reports," ceased publication
after just three volumes; 1962-1964, 1965-1967, and 1968. Despite its stated objective to continue from
where these stopped, "The University of Yaoundé Law Reports," appeared only once, in 1985 and
covered cases decided between 1968-1970 and 1971-1973. The most recent attempt, the "Cameroon
Common Law Report," that started in 1997 appears only sporadically. A number of decided cases were
reported in two journals that appeared in the 1990s, viz the Lex Lata, and the Revue de Legislation et
de Jurisprudence Camerounaise.
Current Court System Structure
The courts in the country can be divided into two main categories viz, courts with ordinary jurisdiction
and courts with special jurisdiction. The former, have powers to hear all matters, such as, civil,
criminal and labor disputes. Safe for the Supreme Court which has jurisdiction over the whole national
territory, the ordinary courts are highly decentralized. Within this category there are two types. The
first are courts which have original jurisdiction in the sense that they have the power to hear matters at
first instance. These consist of:
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Traditional Law Courts, which operate at village or tribal level
Magistrates' Courts, which operate at sub-divisional level, although they usually cover several
subdivisions, and
High Courts, which operate at divisional level, but they also often cover several divisions
The second consists of courts with appellate jurisdiction. While the High Court has limited appellate
jurisdiction, the main appellate courts are the Court of Appeals which are located in the headquarters
of each of the ten provinces. The Supreme Court sometimes operates as an "appellate" court, in the
sense that it can quash, on an application to it, a judicial decision which it considers to have mistakenly
interpreted the law. It does not decide the matter itself, but usually instructs a lower court of similar
standing to the one from which the matter came to do so. Nevertheless, the Supreme Court has
exclusive jurisdiction over all administrative, institutional and constitutional disputes in the country.
Since it is usually saddled with a heavy backlog of administrative and institutional disputes, and has
generally been slow and inefficient, a party who "appeals" a matter from the provincial Courts to it
usually does so more to delay and frustrate the other party than to achieve anything else.
Courts with special jurisdiction deal with either specified matters provided for by law, or a particular
class of persons. Besides the Constitutional Council, the amended Constitution also provided for the
creation of a set of Administrative and Audit Courts decentralized along the lines of the ordinary
courts. With the perennial problem of shortage of qualified personnel, it is not surprising that no steps
have been taken to create any of these courts. Perhaps, the most that can be expected is that,
administrative and audit matters could be added to the list of matters which the ordinary courts
handle. However, three Courts with special jurisdiction operate. First is the Court of Impeachment,
which has powers to try the President for treason, and ministers as well as some senior pubic officials
for conspiracy against the security of the state. Second, there is the Military Court located in Yaoundé.
Its jurisdiction is defined in such broad and vague terms that civilians have been brought and
convicted by it in circumstances where their cases would have been dismissed by the ordinary criminal
courts. Finally, there is a State Security Court that has exclusive jurisdiction to try felonies and
misdemeanors against the internal and external security of the state and related offences.
Judicial Officers
The Ministry of Justice directs, coordinates and supervises Government policy with regard to the
administration of justice as well as oversees and supervises its key actors. The latter are made up of
persons who dispense or demand justice, such as judges of the bench and prosecuting judges and the
auxiliaries of justice who ensure the smooth operation of the administration of justice by either
assisting the judge, for instance Court Registrars and judicial police officers, or assisting the parties
such as, advocates and notaries.
The judges who preside over Traditional Law Courts are usually appointed by the Minister of Justice
from notables and other persons knowledgeable in the customs and traditions of the area to be served.
Other judges are appointed from persons with at least a Master's degree in law who have undergone a
two- year training at the National School of Administration and Magistracy (ENAM) in Yaoundé. Entry
into the school is by competitive examination, and on graduation, the intending judge may be
appointed either to the bench or to the prosecution department. As a career profession, a judge's
progress depends on seniority and the ability to impress senior judges, although increasingly, political
loyalty and reliability is beginning to count.
An intending advocate must be a Cameroonian with a law degree who has obtained a certificate of
proficiency to practice. This certificate is issued only after two years of pupilage followed by passing a
qualifying examination. All advocates are members of the Cameroon Bar Association which amongst
other things maintains discipline amongst members of the profession.
As regards the auxiliaries of justice, Court Registrars who are appointed after studies in ENAM, assist
judges by authenticating their acts as well as keeping a minute's book in which they record all incidents
which take place during judicial hearings. Judicial police officers, who may be either police or
gendarme officers, help the judge in carrying out criminal investigations .Besides advocates, other
auxiliaries of justice who are primarily there to assist the parties in legal proceedings, include; notaries
who draft legal documents which are then regarded as authentic and enforceable; process-servers who
are responsible for judicial and non-judicial notifications, and; auctioneers who appraise and value
property for sale.
Government
Since 1972, Cameroon has had a strong centralized system of government dominated by the President.
This was reinforced in the 1996 amendment to the 1972 Constitution.
The President of the Republic is head of state and although the Prime Minister is described by the
Constitution as the head of government, he is actually appointed and serves at the pleasure of the
President of the Republic and is responsible for implementing policies laid down by the former. Since
1996, the president is elected to serve a term of 7 year, renewable once. He is empowered to name and
dismiss cabinet members, judges, generals, provincial governors, prefects, sub-prefects, and heads of
Cameroon's parastatal (about 100 state-controlled) firms, obligate or disburse expenditures, approve
or veto regulations, declare states of emergency, and appropriate and spend profits of parastatal firms.
Although the amended Constitution also provided for a certain degree of decentralization of powers,
these as well as many other provisions have remained a dead letter. Administratively, the country is
divided into 10 provinces, 58 divisions and 349 sub divisions, the heads of which are appointed by the
President.
The amended Constitution provides for a bicameral Parliament made up of the National Assembly and
the Senate. So far, only the National Assembly, made up of 180 members, elected for a term of five
years has been established. It meets briefly three times each year - in March, June and November.
Since 1990 when political opposition was legalized, the parliament now has representatives from some
of the more than 168 opposition parties that exist in the country. However, the former one party, the
Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM) virtually dominates parliament. Although
parliament is the main legislative authority, because of the dominance of the executive, it merely
rubber-stamps legislation put before it by the executive.
The amended Constitution also appears to provide for a separation of powers marked by what it refers
to as "Judicial power." The concept of judicial independence is apparently stated in Article 37(2) of the
Constitution, which provides that "the judicial power shall be independent of the executive and
legislative powers." In reality, the enormous powers given to the President of the Republic under the
Constitution to appoint, dismiss, promote, transfer and discipline judicial officers, especially judges
and prosecutors limits in a fairly significant way not only the independence of the judiciary but also the
effectiveness of the separation of powers.
Legal research guides, legal web sites directories, law lists, libraries' and legal citation
guides
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Droit Francophone - This is a collection of links to Cameroon legal websites including
Governmental sites, organizations, law faculties and journal Websites. Access to legislation,
the Constitution and background to the history and legal system of Cameroon are also
provided. This page forms part of the Droit Francophone gateway a site made freely available
by the Agence Intergouvernementale de la Francophonie which offers links to legal web
resources throughout the French-speaking world. The site is available in French only.
CamLaw - This is a site which aims to provide online legal research services to lawyers,
academics and business people seeking information about Cameroon Law and the legal
system. The site includes a selection of full text laws of Cameroon (in French and English)
covering criminal procedure, constitutional law and intellectual property. There is a
bibliography of books and articles dealing with Cameroonian law and a page of links to other
Cameroonian legal sites.
http://www.unpan.org/africa.asp - This site contains the full-text of the constitution of the
state of Cameroon as agreed with revisions on 18th January 1996. The document sets out the
nature and structure of government in the Cameroon, including the roles of the presidency,
executive and judiciary. It also documents the rights of the individual. At present the text is
offered in French only. The site is hosted through UNPAN - United Nations Online Network in
Public Administration and Finance.
Prime Minister's Office - This site contains full text laws of the Republic of Cameroon made
freely available on the Prime Minister's Office Website. Legislation is listed in reverse
chronological order and can be browsed or searched by keyword, date, ministry or type of law
(ordnance, decree, order or decision). The site can be viewed in French and English but some
of the laws are available only in French.
President of the Republic of Cameroon - This is the official website of the President of the
Republic of Cameroon. It provides access to a biography of the current incumbent and details
of his/her recent activities. The latter includes news of official engagements, press releases and
communiqués which cover current economic, social, political and foreign policy. Also
accessible are recent issues of Le Magasin du Palais which describe recent political events.
However, most of the information is currently offered only in French.
http://www.spm.gov.cm/ - This is the official website of the Prime Minister of Cameroon. It
provides details on the current incumbent and his activities. This includes access to recent
press releases and speeches covering all aspects of political, economic, social and foreign
policy. The site also provides links to details of ongoing political programmes of the
government and recent legislative acts. The information is available in both English and
French.
WorldLII - This section of WorldLII's World Law service covering the Republic of Cameroon.
A range of browse and search features are available on the site. Browse sections highlight links
relating to Government, legislation, Parliament, other Web portals and subject areas including
cyberspace, telecommunications and taxation, revenue and customs. A stored search will
automatically search for materials relating to Cameroon on all of World Law. This section of
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WorldLII was developed from work initiated by the Australasian Legal Information Institute
(AustLII).
Constitution Finder: Cameroon (University of Richmond T.C. Williams School of Law) in
English and French.
La Constitution de Cameroun (Agence Intergouvernementale de la Francophonie) in French.
NATLEX: Cameroon (International Labour Organisation) database of national laws on labor,
social security and related human rights.
Multinational Collections Database: Cameroon (Law Library of Congress) provides
bibliographic information on materials in our reference collection.
Sources of Online Legal Information for African Countries (Jane Williams, via GlobaLex).
World Directory of Parliamentary Libraries: Cameroon (Germany Bundestag).
World Legal Information Institute: Cameroon (WorldLII).
World Legal Materials from Africa: Cameroon (Cornell Legal Information).
Portals to the World: Cameroon (Library of Congress).
Background Notes: Cameroon (U.S. Dept. of State).
Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments: Cameroon (U.S. Central
Intelligence Agency).
Consular Information Sheet: Cameroon (U.S. Dept. of State).
Country Information: Cameroon (U.S. Dept. of State).
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Cameroon (U.S. Dept. of State).
Governments on the WWW: Cameroon (Gunnar Anzinger).
Human Rights in Cameroon (Amnesty International).
International Religious Freedom Annual Reports: Cameroon (U.S. Dept. of State).
World Factbook: Cameroon (U.S. Central Intelligence Agency).
Selected Bibliography of Cameroonian Law Books
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Anyangwe, C. The Cameroonian Judicial System Yaounde: CEPER, 1987.
Anoukaha, F., Cissé-Niang, A., Messanvi F. J & Issa-Sayeph, Sûretés (OHADA), Bruxelles:
Bruylant, 2002.
Azevedo, M. (ed.), Cameroon and its National Character. Mississippi: EUGA, 1984.
Bokalli, V.E., and Sossa, D. E., Droit des Transports de Marchandises par Route. Bruxelles:
Bruylant, 2007.
Djuidje, B., Pluralisme Légslatif Camerounais et Droit International Prive. Paris:
L'Harmattan, 2000.
Enonchong, H.N.A. Cameroon Constitutional Law: Federalism in a Mixed Common-Law and
Civil-Law System. Yaounde: Centre d'Edition et de Production de Manuels et Auxiliaires de
L'Enseignement, 1967.
Etoundi, F.O., Biumla, J.M.M. Cinq Ans de Jurisprudence Commentée de la Cour Commune
de Justice et d'Arbitrage de l'OHADA (CCJA) (1999-2004. Yaoundé: Presse de l'Ama, 2005.
Fombad, C.M. Cameroon: Constitutional Law (in Blanpain, International Encyclopaedia of
Laws - Constitutional Law). The Hague, Kluwer Law International, 2003.
Fombad, C.M. Cameroon: Text of Constitution (in Blanpain, International Encyclopaedia of
Laws - Constitutional Law). The Hague, Kluwer Law International, 2003.
Johnson, W. The Cameroon Federation: Political Integration in a Fragmentary Society.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1970.
Kofele-Kale, N. An Experiment in Nation Building: The Bilingual Cameroon Republic Since
Reunification. Boulder: Westview Press, 1980.
Le Vine, The Cameroons from Mandate to Independence. Los Angeles: University of California
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