IN THE MATTER OF A DECLARATION THAT THE INTERNET SHUTDOWN IN
THE SOUTHWEST AND NORTHWEST REGIONS OF CAMEROON IS A
VIOLATION OF THE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION
AND ACCESS TO INFORMATION AND FREEDOM FROM DISCRIMINATION IN
CAMEROON
I.
NOTICE OF LEGAL REPRESENTATION
I PRINCE AMAH JOHN SUH, an adult male Cameroonian Christian, Advocate, Solicitor and
Notary of the Supreme Court of Cameroon, Member of the Cameroon Bar Association and
Nigeria Bar Association, and of Prince Law Firm, Tiko Road, Mutengene, do hereby Give
Notice that, I have been duly constituted as amicus-counsel with instructions from Access Now
and Internet Sans Frontières, to issue these submissions, further to, and in support of the
submissions already filed in this matter now pending before the Supreme Court qua
Constitutional Council, by Barrister NKEA A. Emmanuel of Veritas Law Offices, Buea.
II.
SUBMISSION ON INTERNATIONAL LAW
1. Right to Freedom of Expression under International Law
The right to freedom of expression is affirmed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
(UDHR)1 and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).2 Article 19(2) of
the ICCPR states that the right to freedom of expression includes the right to seek, receive and
impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.3 Within the African
Union, the right to freedom of expression is guaranteed by Article 9 of the African Charter on
Human and Peoples' Rights (African Charter).4 This provision recognises that the right
encompasses the freedom to receive, express and disseminate opinions and information.5
The internet provides individuals with the means of communicating, disseminating, receiving
and seeking information and ideas instantaneously, on a global scale, and at a relatively low
1
UN General Assembly, Universal Declaration of Human Rights (hereafter UDHR), adopted by General Assembly
Resolution 217 A(III) of 10 December 1948.
2
UN General Assembly, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (hereafter ICCPR), 16 December
1966, United Nations Treaty Series, vol. 999.
3
Id., Article 19(2).
4
African Union, African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights (hereafter African Charter), 27 June 1981,
CAB/LEG/67/3 rev. 5, 21 I.L.M. 58 (1982), Article 9.
5
Id.