Criminal
A unified 2016 Penal Code over two procedural traditions
The Penal Code was recodified in 2016, replacing the 1967 text, and applies nationwide. The Criminal Procedure Code of 2005 was itself an attempt to fuse anglophone and francophone procedure into a single instrument, and it introduced habeas corpus alongside the civil-law instruction.
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Tribunaux de Première Instance and de Grande Instance try offences; military courts have jurisdiction over terrorism offences and over civilians in specified cases.
- Deadline — Garde à vue: 48 hours, renewable twice with authorisation
- Deadline — Habeas corpus application under the 2005 Code: heard by the President of the High Court
Governing law
- Loi n° 2016/007 portant Code pénal
- Loi n° 2005/007 portant Code de procédure pénale
- Loi n° 2014/028 portant répression des actes de terrorisme — tried before military courts
In practice
The 2005 Criminal Procedure Code is the clearest example of Cameroonian bijuralism attempting synthesis rather than parallel operation: it retained the investigating magistrate from French procedure while importing habeas corpus and a stronger adversarial trial from the common law. The 2014 anti-terrorism law is the most criticised departure, because it routes civilians to military jurisdiction.