Poor Governance Enables Violence Against Women in Cameroon

Violence against women (VAW) remains a pervasive issue in Cameroon, exacerbated by significant gaps in its legal framework and systemic failures in governance and enforcement. Despite ratifying key international instruments like CEDAW and the Maputo Protocol, Cameroon lacks a comprehensive national law specifically addressing domestic violence. Victims are often left to rely on general provisions of the Penal Code, which are inconsistently applied, while discriminatory customary laws and societal attitudes further undermine women's rights. The absence of a dedicated domestic violence law, coupled with weak institutional support, underfunded ministries, and judicial reluctance to prioritize women's protection, creates an environment where abuse thrives with impunity. This article examines the legal and practical challenges, highlighting how poor governance perpetuates violence against women in Cameroon.

The plight of women like Adiza in Cameroon's Far North region, confined and beaten by her husband for nearly three decades, is a stark illustration of the pervasive violence against women (VAW) that continues to plague the nation. This harrowing account, while individual, reflects a systemic failure to protect women from abuse, a failure deeply rooted in inadequate legal frameworks and poor governance. The issue extends beyond physical violence to encompass psychological, sexual, and economic forms of abuse, trapping countless women in cycles of suffering with little recourse.

Cameroon has long grappled with high rates of gender-based violence, with official data indicating that nearly four in ten women and girls in relationships have experienced physical, sexual, psychological, or economic violence in their lifetime, a figure that can soar to 64 percent in some regions. This article posits that the persistent prevalence of VAW in Cameroon is a direct consequence of a fragmented legal landscape, characterized by the absence of a dedicated domestic violence law, discriminatory statutory and customary provisions, and a profound lack of political will to ensure effective enforcement and victim support. It argues that addressing this crisis requires not only legislative reform but also a fundamental shift in governance, institutional capacity, and societal attitudes.

Cameroon's legal framework for addressing violence against women is a complex interplay of national statutes, customary laws, and international obligations. At the national level, there is no specific, comprehensive law that explicitly criminalizes domestic violence as a distinct offense. Instead, victims are compelled to seek redress under general provisions of the Penal Code, such as those pertaining to grievous harm (Article 277), assault occasioning grievous harm (Article 279), simple harm (Article 280), slight harm (Article 281), rape (Article 296), forced marriage (Article 356), and assault on a woman with a child (Article 338). While the 2016 Penal Code (Law no 2016/007 of 12 July 2016) did expand the scope of criminal offenses to include female genital mutilation, breast ironing, sexual harassment, and expulsion from the marital home, and removed the exemption for rapists who marry their victims, it still falls short of a holistic approach to domestic violence.

Internationally, Cameroon has demonstrated a commitment to women's rights by ratifying the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) in 1994 and its Optional Protocol in 2005. Furthermore, Cameroon signed the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa, commonly known as the Maputo Protocol, in 2006 and ratified it in 2012. These international instruments obligate the Cameroonian government to eliminate discriminatory laws, prevent violence against women, and ensure effective remedies for survivors. However, the practical implementation of these commitments remains a significant challenge, often undermined by domestic legal inconsistencies and societal norms.

The primary legal lacuna in Cameroon's approach to violence against women is the absence of a dedicated domestic violence law. This forces victims to navigate a patchwork of general criminal provisions, which are often ill-suited to the nuanced dynamics of intimate partner abuse. For instance, marital rape is not explicitly criminalized under Cameroonian law, leaving a significant protection gap for women within marriage. Moreover, the existing Civil Code and Civil Status Registration contain discriminatory provisions that legally designate husbands as the heads of household and primary administrators of matrimonial property. These provisions weaken women's decision-making power over residence, employment, and property, effectively trapping them in abusive marriages and enabling economic violence.

Poor governance manifests in several critical areas. Law enforcement agencies frequently treat domestic abuse as a “private matter,” leading to a reluctance to intervene or adequately investigate complaints. This perception is often reinforced within the judicial system, where customary rules, which may grant men “disciplinary rights” over their wives, are sometimes applied, and judges show reluctance to fully apply ratified international legal instruments. The absence of legal provisions for protection orders further leaves victims vulnerable, with no immediate legal mechanism to separate them from their abusers.

Despite the existence of the Ministry of Women’s Empowerment and the Family, tasked with promoting women's rights and family protection, it is reportedly underfunded, and its national action plans against gender-based violence are not widely known or effectively implemented. This lack of institutional capacity and resources means that essential support services, such as safe homes and legal aid, are severely limited, forcing many survivors to return to abusive environments. Furthermore, the government has failed to meet its own targets for reducing gender-based violence, and a revised Family Code, drafted over two decades ago to address these issues, remains unadopted, signaling a persistent lack of political will.

The interplay between statutory and customary law also presents significant challenges. In many rural areas, customary law continues to govern marriage, inheritance, and property rights, often disadvantaging women and conflicting with modern legal principles. This dual legal system creates inconsistencies and further complicates women's access to justice. The ongoing armed conflicts in various regions of Cameroon have also exacerbated the prevalence of violence against women, adding another layer of complexity to an already fragile protection system. The lack of comprehensive data collection on gender-based violence further obscures the true scale of the problem, hindering effective policy formulation and intervention strategies.

The pervasive violence against women in Cameroon is a critical human rights issue, deeply entrenched by a combination of inadequate legal frameworks, discriminatory societal norms, and systemic governance failures. The absence of a dedicated domestic violence law, coupled with the inconsistent application of existing criminal provisions and the persistence of discriminatory customary practices, leaves countless women vulnerable and without effective legal recourse. The state's failure to adequately fund and empower institutions responsible for women's protection, alongside judicial reluctance to enforce international obligations, perpetuates a cycle of abuse and impunity.

For legal practitioners in Cameroon, navigating this complex landscape requires a deep understanding of both statutory and customary laws, as well as the international instruments that, in principle, should offer protection. Attorneys representing victims must be prepared to creatively apply general Penal Code provisions and advocate for the enforcement of international human rights standards, despite domestic challenges. There is an urgent need for continued advocacy for the adoption of a comprehensive domestic violence law and the long-delayed Family Code. Practitioners should also monitor the reported finalization of a new bill on violence against women at the Prime Minister's Office, as this could signal a crucial step towards legislative reform. Ultimately, achieving meaningful change will require not only legislative action but also a concerted effort to strengthen judicial capacity, increase funding for victim support services, and challenge deeply ingrained patriarchal attitudes that enable violence against women.