"Prisoners" without Crime Strike for Freedom

Disturbing developments from the Kondengui Central Prison  indicates that 71 Anglophones arrested during the upheavals in the North West and South West regions and detained in the penitentiary facility have unanimously begun an indefinite hunger strike. We learnt that the detainees have neither tasted food nor water  for the past 48 hours.

 The hunger strike we are told is provoked by the fact that since their arbitrary arrest, they are yet to be charged to court and their charges revealed.  They have been in prison  for over six months now under precarious conditions characterized  by improper medical care, poor feeding and clothing. They said they would rather starve to death than remain in prison indefinitely without any cause. Most  of the detainees lament that they are constantly harassed by their francophone inmates with the complicity of prison officials.

Attempts by prison administrators to make them retract their decision has proved futile.  As the detainees have insisted their core demands  for trial must be met or they would rather die seeking freedom.

The drastic move comes at a crucial phase in the trial of Barrister Felix Nkongho Agbor Balla, Dr Fontem Neba, Mancho Bibixy and 26 other Southern Cameroonians who are presently at the Yaounde Military Tribunal. We learnt they too have joint their comrades in arms.