Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Government of Cameroon on the (a) arrest and detention of activists, (b) ban on civil society organisations and (c) shut down of the internet in English-speaking regions of Cameroon; and if he will make a statement.

The British High Commission Yaoundé is closely following the situation in the North West and South West regions of Cameroon following on from the demonstrations and strikes by lawyers and teachers. We are engaged with the Government of Cameroon and will continue to raise this with them.

We have called for restraint by all involved, including in the use of force. We have reiterated the obligation to uphold human rights standards and encouraged the use of transparent legal means to address concerns. We have regularly called for issues to be resolved through broad-based dialogue, with a range of interlocutors, and a return to normality in the two regions.