After nearly three months of retention, the body of Anicet Ekanè, a figure of the Cameroonian opposition who died on December 1, 2025, has been released by the authorities in Yaoundé. It was by a letter dated February 23, 2026, that Me Meli Hyppolite, Anicet Ekanè's lawyer, informed the central hospital of Yaoundé that Jeanne Sogue, the widow of the deceased, was now taking charge of the body.
The council specified that the government commissioner had lifted the seals on the body, which had been in the hospital since his death. This decision comes 85 days after the body was sealed.
This release comes two days after the Movement for the Rebirth of Cameroon (MRC) publicly demanded that the Cameroonian State return the body of the president of the African Movement for New Independence and Democracy (Manidem). Maurice Kamto, a leading figure in the MRC, denounced an "incomprehensible" retention, seeing it as a possible "political assassination". The MRC described these practices as "barbaric and inhuman, worthy of the most obscurantist dictatorships".
Anicet Ekanè was arrested at his home in Douala on October 24, 2025, then transferred to Yaoundé and imprisoned at the State Secretariat for Defense (Sed). According to several sources, he was allegedly deprived of his respiratory assistance device despite requests from his counsel. He died on December 1 in controversial circumstances. The government commissioner had justified the sealing by the need to shed light on the causes of death, via an investigation.
Anicet Ekanè, an opposition figure, had sponsored Maurice Kamto's candidacy in the last presidential election, a sponsorship invalidated by Elecam and the constitutional council. He had also supported Issa Tchiroma's candidacy. His death in detention sparked strong reactions, both in Cameroon and abroad, with accusations of medical negligence and calls for an independent investigation. Human Rights Watch had notably pointed to the lack of respect for the rights of detainees in Cameroon.
The family can now organize the funeral, but the results of the investigation into the circumstances of the death have still not been communicated.
