Every morning, just like coffee. Torture in Cameroon

The British government is accused today of consistently failing to protect asylum seekers from Cameroon, a West African country where torture is widespread and systematic.

The charge is made by the Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture, a charity which in recent years has been called on to help an increasing number of Cameroon exiles.

A Medical Foundation report says that of the 60 Cameroonians it has treated over the past two years, virtually all had been subjected to beatings with implements ranging from truncheons to lengths of electric cable.

In addition, nearly all the women (93%), and a number of the men (33%) had been subjected to rape or other sexual assaults, 30% of the overall group had been given electric shocks, and 23% had been suspended in contorted positions.

Yet the claims of most asylum seekers from Cameroon fall on deaf ears in Britain. The Home Office refusal rate for Cameroonians ran at 81% in 2000, and climbed to 87.5% last year.

Psychologist Olivia Ball, author of the report, entitled: 'Every morning, just like coffee. Torture in Cameroon', said: "If you have been tortured in Cameroon, you are probably dead. If you have been tortured and have survived and escaped to Britain, our study shows that you are probably a young man or woman of around 28, married with children.

"You are likely to be Roman Catholic and speak French. This is probably not the first time you have seen the inside of a police lock-up, nor the first time you and your family have suffered grave human rights violations by agents of the state. You are a political, human rights or labour activist, although you may just have been in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Don't expect to be charged or brought to trial. You can expect to be beaten and ill-treated and kept in foul conditions. Stripped naked, you will be housed in a dark, airless overcrowded cell with no toilet. The guards may jokingly call your daily excursions from your cell for a beating or torture session un petit cafe. It's as regular as morning coffee.

"It may include beatings with truncheons, machetes and rifle butts, often on the soles of the feet. You may be tortured with electricity or suspended in some excruciating position. If you are a woman, your torture will almost certainly include rape."

Sherman Carroll, the Medical Foundation's Director of Public Affairs said: "It is time that the Home office stopped dismissing the bulk of asylum claims from Cameroon as unfounded.

"Cameroon's recently instituted multi-party system of democracy has dubious electoral integrity, with power highly centralised in the President, Paul Biya, who has held office since 1982.

"Cameroon is an active member of the UN where its voting record suggests a commitment to international peacekeeping and the rule of law. In reality, there remains a high degree of impunity for human rights violators in Cameroon. Some extrajudicial killings and arbitrary detentions have been investigated and/or punished. But of the several hundred extrajudicial executions committed by security forces reported in 2000, none was investigated."

The Medical Foundation for the Care of Victims of Torture has helped more than 30,000 people with medical treatment, psychological support and practical assistance at its north London treatment centre since it was established 15 years ago. It is the only organisation in Britain dedicated solely to helping torture survivors and their families.Copy of "Every morning, just like coffee. Torture in Cameroon, available from