Resource Information Center: Cameroon
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| Response to Information Request Number: | CMR99001.BOS |
|---|---|
| Date: | December 10, 1998 |
| Subject: | Cameroon: Information on the Centre National d¿Etudes et de Recherches (CENER) and the Director of Propaganda/Information for the Social Democratic Front (SDF) in 1995 |
| From: | INS Resource Information Center |
| Keywords: | Cameroon / Arrested Persons / Detained Persons / Detention / Intelligence Services / National Security / Political Opposition / Political Parties / Prison Conditions / Prisons |
Query:
What information is known about the Centre National d¿Etudes et de Recherches (CENER)?
Who was the Director of Propaganda/Information for the Social Democratic Front (SDF) in 1995?
Response:
The RIC found the Centre National d¿Etudes et de Recherches (CENER) mentioned as being part of the Cameroon security force and a location where detainees have been held (AI 16 Sept. 1997, 23, 29). Around 1984 the National Intelligence Service¿s name was changed from the CENER to the Directorate General for External Research (DGRE) (Country Reports 1994, 1995, 29).
The Social Democratic Front (SDF) was started in 1990 in the English-speaking town of Bamenda in western Cameroon. The party was legalized in 1991 and the party¿s president had a strong showing in the October 1992 elections (Political Handbook of the World: 1998, 1998, 150). Information on who occupied the position of the Director of Propaganda/Information for the SDF in 1995 could not be found among the sources contacted by the RIC. Attached is a document from the SDF to the U.S. Ambassador to Cameroon that lists the organizational structure and expresses the SDF¿s concerns about the volume of asylum claims based on membership in the SDF. In this information packet there is no position listed as the Director of Propaganda/Information. There is a position listed as the Secretary for Information/Propaganda.
This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the RIC within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References:
Amnesty International (AI). 16 September 1997. Cameroon: Blatant Disregard for Human Rights. (AI Index: AFR 17/16/97). London: Amnesty International.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1994. 1995. United States Department of State. Washington, DC: United States Government Printing Office.
Political Handbook of the World: 1998. 1998. Edited by Arthur S. Banks. Binghamton, NY: CSA Publications.
Attachments:
U.S. Department of State, Washington D.C. 2 July 1998. Letter to U.S. INS Forensic Document Laboratory.
Amnesty International (AI). 16 September 1997. Cameroon: Blatant Disregard for Human Rights. (AI Index: AFR 17/16/97). London: Amnesty International.