PhD Thesis Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup A thesis approved by the Faculty of Environmental Sciences and Process Engineering at the Brandenburg University of Technology in Cottbus in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the award of the academic degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Environmental Sciences by Master of Arts Terence Onang Egute from Oshie, Momo Division, Northwest Region, Cameroon Supervisor: Prof. Dr. iur. Eike Albrecht Department of Civil and Public Law with References to the Law of Europe and the Environment, BTU Cottbus, Germany Supervisor: Prof. Dr. hab. Konrad Nowacki Department of Environmental Law and Comparative Administrative Law, University of Wroclaw, Poland Day of the oral examination: 26.11.2012 DOKTORARBEIT Modernes Recht und Lokale Traditionen bei der Erhaltung des Walderbes in Kamerun: Eine Fallstudie über Korup Von der Fakultät für Umweltwissenschaften und Verfahrenstechnik der Brandenburgischen Technischen Universität Cottbus genehmigte Dissertation zur Erlangung des akademischen Grades eines Doktors der Philosophie (Ph.D.) in Umweltwissenschaften vorgelegt von Master of Arts Terence Onang Egute aus Oshie, Momo Division, Northwest Region, Kamerun Gutachter: Prof. Dr. iur. Eike Albrecht Lehrstuhl Zivil- und Öffentliches Recht mit Bezügen zum Umwelt- und Europarecht der BTU Cottbus, Deutschland Gutachter: Prof. Dr. hab. Konrad Nowacki Lehrstuhl Umweltrecht und Vergleichendes Verwaltungsrecht der Universität Wroclaw, Polen Tag der mündlichen Prüfung: 26.11.2012 Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup Declaration I hereby declare that this dissertation is the result of my original research carried out at the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus, Germany within the framework of the doctorate programme Environmental and Resource Management. I hereby admit that this dissertation has never been published by another person or submitted to any examination board for the award of any other degree. All the sources used have been duly acknowledged. ________________________________ Terence Onang Egute B.A. (Buea), M.A. (Cottbus) iii Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to my son Terry Onang Egute and beloved wife Mrs. Emilienne Enghewo Egute who were deprived of my presence during this research but remained the primary source of motivation for my success; and finally to my parents Mr. Samuel Echoimbe Egute and Mrs. Elisabeth Afor Egute for their consistent financial and moral support throughout my academic career. iv Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup Acknowledgement I owe my first supervisor Prof. Dr. iur. Eike Albrecht a debt of gratitude for his academic guidance and invaluable support in course of my research. Special thanks go to my second supervisor Prof. Dr. hab. Konrad Nowacki for his supervisory role. My sincere gratitude goes to my research assistants especially Mr. Eric Elong Ebolo for his valuable assistance during my field work. I would like to thank the Conservator of Korup National Park Mr. Pascal Dongmo for assisting me to successfully carry out my research in Korup. My appreciation also goes to the officials of the Mundemba Court of First Instance especially the State Counsel Magistrate Njukeng George Ajapmua for his invaluable contribution. Dr. Jonie Banyong Fonyam, head of the Department of Law at the University of Buea; leading legal experts at the TA Abie and Associates Law Firm Bamenda, Barrister Kelvin Awananyah Egute and Barrister Theophil Amana Abie deserve special appreciation for providing insights into Cameroonian environmental law and also customary law. The traditional rulers of the sample villages especially Chief Ekokola Adolf of Esukutan village deserve my special appreciation for his contribution. Special thanks go to Mr. Klaus Zehbe and Mr. Ingmar Piroch for assisting in translating the abstract of this dissertation from English to German. I would also like to thank my entire family especially my uncle Mr. Mathew Amandong Egute for his moral support in course of my research. The staff of the Department of Civil and Public Law with references to the Law of Europe and the Environment and also Centre for Law and Administration (ZfRV) at BTU Cottbus deserves special thanks for their company and encouragement during my work. Finally, I would like to thank my friends in Germany and also members of the Cameroonian Students Union in Cottbus for their company in course of my studies. v Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup Abstract Cameroon’s forests are exceptionally rich in biodiversity but are among the most threatened forests in the Congo Basin. To safeguard the country’s forest heritage, the government resorted to the creation of protected areas such as the Korup National Park (KNP) but ignored the local traditional system of natural resource management and relied merely on modern law for its protection. But the protection of the park only through modern law has not yielded satisfactory results since it still faces numerous problems which exacerbate biodiversity loss. With many problems facing the park, there is growing concern with regards to government strategy to maintain its values and integrity merely through modern law. This dissertation aims at assessing the potentials of modern law and local traditional system of natural resource management as instruments for effective protection of the KNP in particular and other Cameroonian national parks in general. It further aims at exploring ways of adapting national law and policy to suit local reality. To realise the objectives of this study, legal science analytical method, instruments of both quantitative approach (questionnaire) and qualitative approach (semi-structured interviews) were used. An in-depth assessment of the degree of effectiveness of modern law application in Korup reveals that it is to a lesser extent effective and this impedes Cameroon’s adequate compliance with its biodiversity conservation obligations under international environmental agreements. The study finds that the park’s protection unit plays a commendable role in fighting against illegal activities but inadequate financial resources and logistics render the institution weak. Other institutions play a laudable role in enforcing the law but major weaknesses identified include bail abuses, leniency in punishing offenders and corruption. It was discovered that the Korup inhabitants are against resettlement and often reluctantly cooperate in enforcing modern law. The research reveals that cultural beliefs and traditional practices associated with totems, taboos and sacred forests exist in the Korup villages and contributed in protecting Korup forest heritage. It shows that the putting into practice of some aspects of the traditional cultural practices was often without conservation intention but paradoxically, this contributed to forest biodiversity conservation. The study finds that each village has customary laws and local bylaws which are binding on its inhabitants and contribute to rational use of forest resources. vi Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup The chieftaincy, village council and the Ekpe society are revealed as traditional institutions that govern the Korup people and manage forest resources through the traditional system ignored by the state. The research shows that statutory law recognises only the chieftaincy institution but reduces traditional rulers to mere auxiliaries of the government thereby weakening traditional institutions that ought to contribute in protecting Korup forest heritage. It recommends that in addition to fighting corruption and building the capacity of law enforcement institutions, the government should adequately integrate traditional rulers and institutions into the modern governance structure. It should legally recognise the role of traditional authorities in safeguarding Korup forest heritage through the traditional system. The study concludes that a management and conservation strategy that involves the people of Korup through their traditional institutions and system of natural resource management, will lead to effective protection and sustainability of the KNP and thus, contribute in enhancing Cameroon’s compliance with biodiversity-related international environmental agreements. Keywords: Modern Law, Customary Law, Local Tradition, Forest Heritage, Biodiversity, Conservation, Cameroon, Korup National Park vii Modern Law and Local Tradition in Forest Heritage Conservation in Cameroon: The Case of Korup Zusammenfassung Die Wälder Kameruns haben eine außerordentlich hohe Artenvielfalt, zählen aber zu den am stärksten gefährdeten Wäldern im Kongobecken. Um die Wälder als Erbe des Landes zu schützen, beschloss die Regierung, Naturschutzgebiete einzurichten, wie den Korup Nationalpark (KNP), ignorierte dabei aber das lokale und traditionelle System der Bewirtschaftung von Naturgütern und verließ sich lediglich auf moderne Rechtsinstrumente, um den Nationalpark zu schützen. Der alleinige Schutz des Parks durch moderne Rechtsinstrumente hat bisher keine zufriedenstellenden Ergebnisse gezeitigt, da diese mit verschiedenen Problemen behaftet sind, die den Verlust der Artenvielfalt verschlimmern. Auf Grund der