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Copyright and Citation Considerations for This Thesis/ Dissertation COPYRIGHT AND CITATION CONSIDERATIONS FOR THIS THESIS/ DISSERTATION o Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use. o NonCommercial — You may not use the material for commercial purposes. o ShareAlike — If you remix, transform, or build upon the material, you must distribute your contributions under the same license as the original. How to cite this thesis Surname, Initial(s). (2012). Title of the thesis or dissertation (Doctoral Thesis / Master’s Dissertation). Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/102000/0002 (Accessed: 22 August 2017). PROMOTING DEMOCRACY IN CAMEROON: THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY by MBANWI HONORE FOKWA THESIS Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree DOCTOR OF LITERATURE AND PHILOSOPHY in POLITICAL STUDIES at the UNIVERSITY OF JOHANNESBURG SUPERVISOR: PROF YOLANDA SADIE JANUARY 2019 i DECLARATION I, Mbanwi H. Fokwa, hereby declare that this thesis submitted for the D Litt et Phil in Political Studies to the University of Johannesburg is my original work and has not either in its entirety or in part been previously submitted to another University for a degree. ii ABSTRACT This study assessed the role of Cameroon’s democracy-advocating Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) (both formal institutions and informal groupings) in promoting democracy since the first multiparty presidential and legislative elections held in 1992 (mindful of their former active role in the country’s transition to a multiparty system). In other words, it endeavoured to establish whether approximately 25 years after the first multiparty elections CSOs are playing a role in championing political reforms and if not, to ascertain the reasons for their lack of commitment to the democratic future of the country. This is a qualitative study consisting of a literature analysis as well as 42 semi- structured personal interviews conducted from December 2017 to January 2018. In order to establish the current role of CSOs in promoting democracy in Cameroon, the study focused on various aspects, which in general has a bearing on the functioning and advocacy of CSOs as highlighted in the literature. These aspects also served as the analytical framework for this study. The study first assessed the state of democracy in Cameroon. Despite the fact that most of the formal requirements for democracy are contained in Cameroon’s Constitution, in practice, it falls short of meeting its essential elements. Besides abolishing his presidential term limit in 2008 by changing the Constitution, Biya, the president for 36 years, managed to sustain his power through patronage and clientelist networks, virtually exclusive control of political appointments and state institutions and on the other hand, by punishing detractors and curtailing political dissent. The Biya regime has considerable influence on the ability of CSOs to effectively play their role in the democratic process. It employs a variety of tactics to weaken and silence those that it regards with suspicion, which results in a restrictive environment for CSOs to operate in. On the one hand, Biya co-opts active civil society leaders into neo-patrimonial or patronage/clientelist networks and on the other, his government clamps down on perceived anti-establishment CSOs and civil society protests. CSOs are further weakened by the creation of ‘bogus’ CSOs to counter the influence of the ‘authentic’ CSOs in fostering democratic governance. Additionally, the anglophone/francophone crisis has created divisions within the CSOs, thus iii constraining CSOs to challenge the government about the democratic shortcomings in the country. This is particularly the case with the CBA, the students’ unions at tertiary level as well as religious institutions such as the Roman Catholic Church, which were active in the 1990s. Required government procedures to be met in order to establish new CSOs, is another method used by the government to restrict the establishment of CSOs that might challenge the government in one way or another. The government also restricts certain CSOs such as the former politically active Cameroon Bar Association (CBA) from engaging in political issues. Another way the government silences the critical voices from CSOs and suppresses dissent, is by utilising the ambiguous provisions of the anti- terrorism law, which was enacted in 2014. The repressive environment has resulted in CSOs mostly working at micro-level within the system. They are concerned with their own parochial organisational goals which can be termed as ‘soft’ (less contentious) issues that demand less political wrangles with the authorities. In this regard, in terms of the electoral process, they have been sensitising the citizens to their civic right to register for elections and vote while some have also been involved in election monitoring. They are also involved in, for example, promoting women’s rights and their participation in politics; land rights for the vulnerable in society; championing the rights of detainees; promoting juvenile justice and the right to internet access; promoting peace by intervening in national and ethnic conflicts; holding the government accountable particularly in terms of the international agreements it has ratified; and promoting good governance such as empowering the population regarding budget tracking and enhancing service delivery as well as making efforts to curb corruption. Therefore, they are not engaged with broader (national) contentious democratic issues that threaten the regime or the political status quo. Furthermore, given the repressive political environment, civil society activists have changed their tactics. In fear of being detained, they no longer speak out publicly against the government or organise demonstrations and protest marches. Besides the inherent shortcomings of these strategies, the leaders of CSOs are also handicapped in terms of their capabilities and abilities. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this study is a strong testimony to the enabling grace of God, the most beneficent and the most merciful, whose hand worked through varying circumstances to make it possible for me to actualise my dream. It is however, important to acknowledge my indebtedness to the following people whose influence is really appreciable: My greatest intellectual debt is owed to my supervisor, Professor Yolanda Sadie, whose intellectual acuity, understanding, guidance and patience came to bear to enable this work to come out this thorough. I am deeply indebted to my brother, Beaufils Fokwa and his wife, Scholastica Akiy for making it possible for me to further my studies. In addition, I am especially grateful to my wife, Glory Kah who has been very patient, understanding, loving and encouraging particularly during the darkest hours in the course of my studies. In the same light, I cannot but mention my beloved mother, Mrs. Regina Fokwa for her moral and spiritual support. My sincere thanks also go to all my respondents for their cooperation in allowing me to interview them which greatly contributed to the successful completion of this work. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Contents page Title page ……………………………………………………………………………….............i Declaration …………………………………………………………………………………......ii Abstract ………………………………………………………………………………………...iii Acknowledgements …………………………………………………………........................v Table of contents ……………………………………………………………………………..vi Abbreviations………………………………………………………………………………….ix Chapter 1 – Introduction, aim and scope of the Study 1.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................ 1 1.2 Aim of the study ................................................................................................................................ 6 1.3 Literature review ........................................................................................................ 7 1.4 Research method .......................................................................................................................... 26 1.5 Contribution to scientific knowledge ……………………………………………………29 1.6 Research structure ……………………………………………………………………….29 Chapter 2 – Civil society in the promotion of democracy: an analytical framework 2.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………….31 2.2 The origins of civil society in the democratic process ……………………………...32 2.3 The role of civil society in promoting democracy……………………………………..36 2.4 The methods employed by civil society in fulfilling its democratic role……………………………………………………………………………………………..43 2.5 The challenges encountered by civil society in promoting democracy ………....50 2.6 Conclusions……………………………………………………………… ……………...61 vi Chapter 3 – Political rule in Cameroon and the restrictions on civil society, 1966- 1992 3.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………..65 3.2.1 Background: Ahidjo’s one-party rule and its control of CSOs (1966- 1982).……………………………………………………………………………………68 3.2.2 President Biya’s political reforms in the 1980s……………………………………..74 3.2.3 The ‘third wave’ of democratisation and the resuscitation of civil society in the 1990s.…………………………………………………………………………………84 3.2.4.1 Multipartism, political changes and the clamour for political reforms……….......88 3.3 Conclusions …………………………..……………………………………………………95 Chapter 4 – The
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