Agbor Nkongho aka Balla (born Felix Agbor Anyior Nkongho) is an

Anglophone Cameroonian Anglophone Cameroonians are the people of various cultural backgrounds, most of who hail from the English language, English-speaking regions of Cameroon (Northwest Region (Cameroon), Northwest and Southwest Region (Cameroon), Southwest Regions). T ...

human rights lawyer who is the president of the Fako Lawyers Association, vice president of the African Bar Association in charge of Central Africa, founder and chairman of the Centre for Human Rights and Democracy in Africa and founder of Agbor Nkongho Law Firm an activist and freedom fighter who was arrested on 17 January 2017. Agbor Nkongho was born on August 23, 1970. He is a leading member of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC) which has been banned and its activities declared illegal in Cameroon.

Early life and career

Agbor Nkongho is a native from Manyu division,

Southwest Region, Cameroon The Southwest Region or South-West Region () is a region with special status in Cameroon. Its capital is Buea. , its population was 1,553,320. Along with the Northwest Region, it is one of the two Anglophone (English-speaking) regions of Came ...

. Popularly known as Agbor-Balla in the ghettos of Great Soppo, Buea where he grew up. He attended CBC Primary School Great Soppo Buea, before moving to Saint Joseph's College, Sasse, Buea where he passed the GCE Ordinary Levels in Form Four which was one class before the final year of secondary studies. He went to CCAS Kumba and then to the Musole GCE Evening Classes after he was wrongfully dismissed from CCAS Kumba for subversive writing popularly known as “Lavoir” which challenged was an article challenging abuses and wrong actions by school administrators, this marked his start of activism in his youthful days. Agbor Nkongho described his dismissal as a blessing in an interview, because it got him a meeting with Bate Besong, renowned Anglophone playwright, poet and critic. He studied at the

University of Yaoundé I A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Univ ...

and graduated with (LLB in English Private Law). He also studied at the

Nigerian Law School The Nigerian Law School is an educational institution set up to provide professional certification to graduates of law. The school was established in Lagos under the Legal Education Act 1962, now Legal Education (Consolidation Etc) Act Cap. L1 ...

, the Free University of Brussels, the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac (known simply as Notre Dame; ; ND) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, United States. Founded in 1842 by members of the Congregation of Holy Cross, a Cathol ...

and

Leipzig University Leipzig University (), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December 1409 by Frederick I, Electo ...

. He worked as a researcher at the Centre for International Law in Belgium, as an assistant legal officer at

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

International Criminal Court, a human right officer at

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

office in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, and Congo.

Arrest

On 17 January 2017, it was reported that Balla had been arrested with Fontem Neba who is a university lecturer in

Buea Buea is the capital of the Southwest Region (Cameroon), Southwest Region of Cameroon. The city is located in Fako (department), Fako Division, on the eastern slopes of Mount Cameroon, and has a population of about 800.000 inhabitants as of 2 ...

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

’s police ordered by the government. He was arrested in connection with the

Anglophone problem The Anglophone problem () is a socio-political issue in the modern Republic of Cameroon, rooted in the country's German, British, and French colonial legacies. Anglophone (English-speaking) Cameroonians form a minority population of around 16 per ...

after organizing peaceful protests to protect the culture and rights of the Anglophone Cameroonians in the form of sit down strikes with more than 2000 Anglophone lawyers,

Ghost town A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...

and shutdown of schools under the banner of the Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC), which was banned and its activities declared illegal few days before his arrest.

Charges and military court trial

It was reported by multiple sources that Balla and others were charged on eight counts and may face a death penalty for treason, terrorism, civil unrest, jeopardising the peace and unity of the Republic of

. Balla's trial was to begin on 1 February 2017 and later rescheduled for 13 February. On 23 March, Balla's trial at the Yaounde military court tribunal was adjourned for another hearing on 27 April, and then on 24 May and then 27 July. On 31 August, President

Paul Biya Paul Biya (born Paul Barthélemy Biya'a bi Mvondo, 13 February 1933) is a Cameroonian politician who has been serving as the second president of Cameroon since 1982. He was previously the fifth Prime Minister of Cameroon, prime minister under Pre ...

issued a presidential decree ordering the Yaounde military court tribunal to release Balla and others in connection with the protest in Northwest and Southwest regions of the country. On 15 April 2015, according to an interview, Balla told journalists in

, "I am ready to die in defense of Common Law".

Reaction of international bodies

The Law Society of Upper Canada reacted immediately to the arrest and detention of Balla and appealed to the Government of Cameroon to immediately and unconditionally release Balla and to respect the full functions of the lawyer professions without any intimidation. On 27 March 2017, the

Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights (formerly the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, or RFK Center) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit human rights advocacy organization. It was named after United States Senator Robert F. Kennedy ...

organisation urged the Government of Cameroon to immediately release Balla and to drop the charges against him. Professor Sean O’Brien, director for International Human Right Law, who taught Balla at the

, filed a petition to the

United Nations Human Rights Council The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is a United Nations body whose mission is to promote and protect human rights around the world. The Council has 47 members elected for staggered three-year terms on a United Nations Regional Gro ...

for the immediate release of Balla.

Release of Agbor Nkongho

On 30 August 2017, through a presidential decree, Balla, Neba Fontem and Paul Abine Ayah were released and all charges against them dropped.

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...

deputy regional director for West and Central Africa said that the decision by the government of Cameroon to release Balla and others was good news for everyone and condemned their arrest in the first place. Agbor Balla continues with his activities for the freedom of southern Cameroons. This has been done via the creation of Tasks Forces to liberate many in jail and He still continues to press on the government of La Republique du Cameroun to liberate all. By his political ideology, he is a believer of a two state federation of equal status in Cameroon as a solution to resolve the Anglophone crisis. A position he has maintained for over 17 years of his endeavours in the fight for the liberation of the Anglophone community in Cameroon. heOverseer.com

References