In today’s Press Statement, Heather Nauert, Department Spokesperson Washington, DC challenged the government to respect the rule of law and shun hate speech while resolving ongoing conflicts in Cameroon.
Heather Nauert began by congratulating the people of Cameroon over what she called, hitch free election on October 7th.
“The United States congratulates the people of Cameroon for largely peaceful elections on October 7. We urge all parties – including the government – to respect the rule of law, resolve peacefully any disputes through established legal channels, and avoid hate speech. While we welcome the Cameroonian Election Commission’s demonstrable improvement over the 2011 elections, there were a number of irregularities prior to, during, and after the October 7 election.
These irregularities may not have affected the outcome but created an impression that the election was not credible or genuinely free and fair. We commend the African Union Election Observation Mission for its preliminary statement, notably that “the current framework needs to be strengthened in order to safeguard the democratic principles of separation of powers, fairness, and independence and impartiality.”
The United States also urged all the actors to address the current impasse in the anglophone regions. “The United States encourages both sides involved in the conflict affecting the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon to focus on resolving differences through peaceful dialogue and to allow unhindered access to humanitarian aid workers”.