No news has been got about the whereabouts of Steeve Akam alias Ramon Cotta, the activist said to have arrested in Gabon and kept incommunicado for more than three weeks, prompting Maurice Kamto, MRC leader to demand Centre governor, Naseri Paul Bea, to show proof that he is ‘still alive’ ‘that he is not being tortured’.
“The MRC demands that the government shed light on the fate of Mr. Steeve AKAM, reassure his family and the public by providing public proof that he is still alive, and that he is not being hidden because he is in a pitiful condition due to torture. The MRC firmly condemns all acts of terror that the government is multiplying in anticipation of the upcoming elections in our country,” Maurice Kamto said in a statement issued on 7th August 2024.
“Are we facing a new Martinez Zogo case that the authorities are trying to cover up? It has been several weeks since Mr. Steeve AKAM, alias Ramon COTTA, was handed over to the Cameroonian authorities by the authorities of the Transitional Government of the sister Republic of Gabon, in violation of international treaties, under bizarre and inhumane conditions at the border between our two countries. The short video circulating about this extradition is chilling. It shows Mr. Steeve AKAM petrified, which attests to his torture, at least psychological”, writes Kamto.
“More than two weeks later, there is no news of the unfortunate compatriot. MRC militants have suffered several waves of violence, abductions, and secret detentions since the 2018 electoral hold-up. We also know enough about the cruel and inhumane practices in some of our security services to raise this red alert about the case of Steeve AKAM”, the MRC leader adds.
“With no news of him until now, we must fear that his torturers have already reserved for him the tragic fate meted out to Martinez Zogo by the DGRE; or, to be optimistic, that he has been so badly tortured that his torturers are hiding him, taking time to heal his battered body before presenting him to justice. Unfortunately, magistrates, particularly those of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, know that this is what happens in the security services, but out of careerism, they take no action to stop it, even though they have the right to visit all detention places and thus see and question the detainees,” Kamto regretted.
“The MRC demands that the Government dispel any doubts about the fate of Mr. Steeve AKAM, reassure his family and the public by providing public proof that he is still alive, and that he is not being hidden because he is in a pitiful state due to torture”, the MRC leader advised.
“The MRC firmly condemns all acts of terror that the authorities are multiplying as the upcoming elections approach in our country’, Kamto said.
The MRC leader balmed the Gabonese government for letting the activist off the hook.
“The MRC regrets that the transitional authorities of the Republic of Gabon have agreed to contribute to such an internationally illicit act and insists that the citizens of our respective countries must be treated with equal humanity and respect for their fundamental rights and dignity. Gabon, a brotherly country, cannot be proud of what Mr. Steeve AKAM has suffered, is suffering, or what might happen to him”, the statement concluded.
