The Supreme Court of Cameroon has annulled the appeal trial of Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and his nine co-defendants, known as the "Nera 10," on Thursday, March 19, 2026. This decision marks a new turn in a case that has lasted for over eight years and involves key figures in the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon.
The Supreme Court has ordered a retrial, completely nullifying the previous procedure due to procedural flaws. According to a statement from the Vice-Presidency of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, the hearing took place in the morning in Yaoundé. The Supreme Court's decision is final: the verdict and all the proceedings of the Court of Appeal are declared null and void, and the case is referred back to a new panel of the Court of Appeal.
Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, the former self-proclaimed president of the "Republic of Ambazonia," and his fellow detainees were arrested in January 2018. They were subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment by a military tribunal in 2019 on charges of terrorism and secession. Their detention and trial conditions have been regularly denounced by international NGOs as symbols of human rights abuses in the Northwest and Southwest regions.
The annulment of the trial constitutes a legal victory for the defense, implicitly recognizing prior dysfunctions. The Supreme Court did not simply correct a sentence but considered that the very form of the judgment was flawed, invalidating the previous evidence or debates. For the defense lawyers, this decision offers an opportunity to completely re-examine the case, hoping that the substantive arguments on the political nature of the charges will finally be heard. Although the detainees remain in prison, a new trial could take place in the next six to twelve months, under increased scrutiny from Western chancelleries. This case highlights the persistent challenges related to the Anglophone crisis and underscores the importance of ensuring a fair trial for all.
The question remains whether an impartial trial is truly possible after eight years of detention, or whether this annulment only delays an inevitable political conviction. The international community remains attentive to the evolution of this case, which represents a crucial test for the rule of law in Cameroon.
