CHAPTER 1

                                        GENERAL INTRODUCTION

• BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction from the government. The term freedom of expression is usually used synonymously but, in legal sense, includes any activity of seeking, receiving, and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used.[1]

The right to freedom of expression is recognized as a human right under article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and recognized in international human rights law in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Article 19 of the UDHR states that “everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference” and “everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice”. The version of Article 19 in the ICCPR later amends this by stating that the exercise of these rights carries “special duties and responsibilities” and may “therefore be subject to certain restrictions” when necessary “[f]or respect of the rights or reputation of others” or “[f]or the protection of national security or of public order (order public), or of public health or morals”.[2]

Freedom of speech and expression, therefore, may not be recognized as being absolute, and common limitations or boundaries to freedom of speech relate to libel, slander, obscenity, pornography, sedition, incitement, fighting words, classified information, copyright violation, trade secrets, food labeling, non-disclosure agreements, the right to privacy, dignity, the right to be forgotten, public security, and perjury. Justifications for such include the harm principle, proposed by John Stuart Mill in On Liberty, which suggests that “the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilized community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others.”[3]

The idea of the “offense principle” is also used in the justification of speech limitations, describing the restriction on forms of expression deemed offensive to society, considering factors such as extent, duration, motives of the speaker, and ease with which it could be avoided. With the evolution of the digital age, application of freedom of speech becomes more controversial as new means of communication and restrictions arise, for example the Golden Shield Project, an initiative by Chinese government’s Ministry of Public Security that filters potentially unfavorable data from foreign countries.

Freedom of speech and expression has a long history that predates modern international human rights instruments.[4] It is thought that the ancient Athenian democratic principle of free speech may have emerged in the late 6th or early 5th century BC.[5] The values of the Roman Republic included freedom of speech and freedom of religion.[6]

Concepts of freedom of speech can be found in early human rights documents. England’s Bill of Rights 1689[7] legally established the constitutional right of freedom of speech in Parliament which is still in effect.[8]

One of the world’s first freedom of the press acts was introduced in Sweden in 1766, mainly due to classical liberal member of parliament, Ostrobothnian priest, Anders Chydenius.[9] Excepted and liable to prosecution was only vocal opposition to the King and the Church of Sweden.

The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, adopted during the French Revolution in 1789, specifically affirmed freedom of speech as an inalienable right. Adopted in 1791, freedom of speech is a feature of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.[10] The French Declaration provides for freedom of expression in Article 11, which states that:

The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.[11]

Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted in 1948, states that:

Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.[12]

Today, freedom of speech, or the freedom of expression, is recognised in international and regional human rights law. The right is enshrined in Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights and Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.^[17] Based on John Milton‘s arguments, freedom of speech is understood as a multi-faceted right that includes not only the right to express, or disseminate, information and ideas, but three further distinct aspects:

1. the right to seek information and ideas;
2. the right to receive information and ideas;
3. the right to impart information and ideas

International, regional and national standards also recognise that freedom of speech, as the freedom of expression, includes any medium, whether it be orally, in written, in print, through the Internet or through art forms. This means that the protection of freedom of speech as a right includes not only the content, but also the means of expression.[13]

• STATEMENT OF THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

Freedom of expression is not only a fundamental human right but also constitutes one of the essential elements in the establishment of a democratic society. No country can seriously profess to be a democracy, or pretend to be making efforts towards this, if its citizens cannot freely express their opinions. Recent moves to introduce freedom of expression in Cameroon have come at a particularly difficult time. Like most African countries, it is on the horns of a dilemma. As it struggles to cope with an ever deepening economic crisis, it has come under strong internal and external pressure to democratize. The winds of change which blew into Africa at the end of the 1980s, when former communist-bloc single-party régimes collapsed, appeared to herald the beginning of a new era. But as leaders are increasingly pressed by impatient citizens to unfreeze their political, social, and economic rights, tyrants and dictators posing as democrats seem to be determining the nature and guiding principles of the new order.

It is based on the foregoing that thus researcher decided to embark on this research to discover causes of the various problems highlighted above despite legal provisions within national and international frameworks and to make recommendations to address the issues raised.

• RESEARCH QUESTION

This researcher seeks to answer the following questions.

• GENERAL RESEARCH QUESTION

Is there any framework for the protection of the right of freedom of expression in Cameroon?

1.3.2    SPECIFIC RESEARCH QUESTIONS

• What is freedom of expression?
• Is there any international legal framework for the guarantee of the right of freedom of expression?
• Is there any institutional and legal framework for the protection of freedom of expression in Cameroon?
• How effective is the framework for the protection of the right of freedom of expression and what are the challenges encountered?
• What policy recommendations can be made to address the problem?

1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE

This research has both general and specific objectives;

1.4.1 General objective

• To critically examine the protection of the right of freedom of expression in Cameroon.

1.4.2 Specific objectives

• To examine the international legal framework for the protection of the right of freedom of expression.
• To critically examine the institutional and legal framework protecting the rights freedom of expression in Cameroon.
• To assess the effectiveness and limitations of the framework for the protection of the right of freedom of expression in Cameroon.
• To make policy recommendations that can address the problems raised.