CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

The human rights are inherently possessed by all human beings. They are considered as ‘natural Rights’ with a divine origin that is to say these rights come from God our creator and it cannot be taken by any other person unless prescribed by the law.

The origin of human rights can be traced as far back as to when God created human beings and this is why it can be said that, human rights are “natural rights”. The law has provided protection for human rights that are not to be avoided by any man. Generally when we talk of human rights, we refer to rights such as: The right to life, marriage, movement, education, speech and freedom. These rights are universal in nature and all human beings on earth inherently possess the rights regardless of the sex, race, language, religion and status in the society. Forexample, human rights are protected in law, especially when it comes to human law.

From the moment a person is suspected of any offence right to the pronouncement of a condemnation, he is still entitled to protection of his person as a result of human rights. The criminal procedure code plays a major role in the protection of human’s rights. During the criminal procedures, which are carried out following relevant court processes, with this, the criminal procedure code of Cameroon seeks to protect the rights of persons who are considered suspects, accused and defendants from the time the crime is identified till the time of sentence.

The law instituting the criminal procedure code stipulates the rules which deal particularly with the investigation of offenses, the search and identification of offenders, the method of adducing evidence, the powers of those charge with prosecution, the organization composition and jurisdiction of courts in criminal matters, verdict, sentencing, setting aside of judgments in default and appeals, the rights of parties and the method of executing sentences. It is in that perspective that we are intending to carry out a research on the protection of human rights under the Criminal Procedure Code.

In Cameroon, human rights are addressed in the constitution. Before the adoption of the new Criminal Procedure Code, the criminal procedure was governed in Francophone Cameroon by the French “code “d’instruction criminelle”  of February 14th 1838 and its subsequent amendments. While in Anglophone Cameroon, it was governed by variety of common law texts, primarily the Nigerian “Criminal Procedure Ordinance” of 1958.

However, Cameroon’s new criminal procedure code came into effect on January 1st 2007. It was adopted by the parliament in July 2005, the new code, a hybrid system which merges key features of the French civil law and the common law systems, along to the custody law. The Criminal Procedure Code was created by law No 2005/2007 OF 27TH July 2005.

 1.2 Definition of Concepts  

These are the definitions of some key terms that are used to unlock this study, protection and human rights.

Protection

This is the act of protecting, protectionism, coverage and it can also be a document given by a notary public to sailors and other persons who travel abroad certifying that the bearer is a citizen.  It is also define as a legal or formal measure intended to preserve civil liberties and rights . However, from the first definition protection is explain in it general sense but we would precise on the second definition which is focus and related to protection in its legal sense.

Human Rights

This is defined as the freedoms, immunities and benefits that according to modern value (especially at an international level), all human beings should be able to claim as a matter of right in the society in which they live.

Human rights are also considered as “natural rights” with a divine origin as these rights are inherently possessed by man, that is to say, these rights come from God our creator and can not be taken by any other person unless prescribed by law. The law has provided protection for these human rights so that the rights are not violated by any person.

Generally, when we talk of human rights, we refer to Rights such as; the right to life, Freedom, Speech, movement, education, marriage and even worship. But in the context of criminal law, an accused persons is deprived of most of those rights, especially that of movement and freedom. Taking this factor in to consideration we are using human rights in this context in the sense of the protection of the person’s dignity and integrity.

1.3 Problem Statement

• How effective is the criminal procedure code of Cameroon in the protection of human rights
• How functional and operational is the criminal procedure code in the protection of human rights during a criminal proceeding.

1.4 Research Questions

These are surrounding questions of the topic that will be answered subsequently.

1. Are human rights taken into consideration in the Criminal Procedure Code
2. Does the criminal procedure code really provide protection for person during a criminal proceeding?
3. Are the rights possessed by all persons during a criminal proceeding as stipulated in the criminal procedure code really respected?
4. Are there any exceptions regarded during a criminal proceeding?
5. Is the defense of every suspect, accused and defendant really guaranteed as stipulated by the criminal procedure code of Cameroon during a criminal proceeding?
6. Is the presumption of innocence respected?

Check Out: Law Project Topics with Materials