Cameroon: RSF outraged by Amadou Vamoulké's 20-year prison sentence after unfair trial
Almost two years after being sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment for “embezzlement of public funds” – and having already been arbitrarily detained for eight years – the former director-general of Cameroon’s national radio and TV broadcaster CRTV, Amadou Vamoulké, has just been sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment for a similar offence. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is outraged by the court’s latest decision, which increases his sentence to 32 years, and calls on the authorities to immediately release the journalist, who is in a worrying state of health.
“Nothing that I have experienced, seen or heard gives me any reason to hope that the sentence will be consistent with reality and the truth,” Amadou Vamoulké stated in his speech before the Special Criminal Court during his trial on 13 August for “embezzlement of public funds.” The 73-year-old journalist expected little from the Cameroonian justice system, and he was right. On 28 August, the former director general of Cameroon’s national radio and TV broadcaster, CRTV, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after 178 successive postponements – a sad world record.
"This disgraceful sentence closes eight years of relentless judicial harassment against a journalist renowned for his rigor and integrity. Everything about this case is problematic: in terms of substance, there is evidence that proves Amadou Vamoulké's innocence; in terms of procedure, the two judgements were handed down illegally under Cameroonian law. How can a journalist be sentenced to a total of 32 years in prison, all on the basis of unfounded accusations and without tangible proof? It is imperative that the authorities take action and free this journalist, who is suffering from a number of health problems."
The journalist, renowed in the industry for his integrity, was arrested on 29 July 2016 and has remained behind bars ever since. In December 2022, Vamoulké had already been sentenced to 12 years‘ imprisonment after being found guilty of embezzlement of public funds, including illegally collecting holiday expenses amounting to 16 million CFA francs (around €24,300) and paying additional salaries to CRTV staff from the Ministry of Finance without authorisation from the board of directors. The journalist's total sentencing, therefore, amounts to 32 years of imprisonment. Vamoulké's lawyers appealed against this decision to the Supreme Court on 28 August.
Alain Massé, former Director General of Radio France and coordinator of the International Committee for the Rehabilitation and Release of Amadou Vamoulké, described the decision as “dreadful, feared and clearly expected.” According to Massé, “Vamoulké's imprisonment is the result of his integrity.” Vamoulké, who Massé calls the “Mr Clean of the public media,” reduced his salary and benefits when he joined CRTV. The Committee has decided to launch a fund to support him.
Vamoulké suffers from severe neuropathy, as certified by two neurologists, and from five other pathologies requiring medical care that is difficult to obtain locally. Back in 2020, the UN called for his release and a group of experts said they were “deeply concerned” by the “seriousness of the journalist's condition.”
Cameroon, one of the most dangerous countries for journalists, ranked 130th out of 180 countries in RSF's 2024 World Press Freedom Index.
