Philip Njaru and Swim: Difference between pages

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'''SWIM''' may refer to:
'''Philip Afuson Njaru''' is a [[Cameroon]]ian [[investigative journalist]]. He has been internationally recognized for his work, but has faced widespread harassment from local authorities in his home country. In September 2008 he applied for [[political asylum]] in Norway.


==Work==
== Sport ==
*[[Swimming]]
His harassment began in May 1997, when the Chief of Post for the Immigration Police in [[Ekondo-Titi]], a town close to the [[Nigeria]]n border, responded to Njaru's allegations of various corruption by warning Njaru "that he would 'deal with him', should he continue to publish 'unpatriotic' articles, accusing police officers of corruption and alleging that constable P.N.E. had raped a pregnant Nigerian woman".<ref name="UN">{{cite web |url=http://www.scribd.com/doc/40142/Njaru-v-Cameroon-HRC-Decision |title=Njaru v Cameroon HRC Decision |accessdate=2008-09-14 |work= |publisher=hosted by Scribd |date=3 April 2007 }}</ref> According to Njaru's statement, he was eventually kicked and beaten to unconsciousness by the Chief of Post in October 1997.<ref name="UN">b</ref> Complaints to the local authorities were fruitless because "his complaint had disappeared from the Registry".<ref name="UN">c</ref> In February 1998, Njaru, hospitalized, was approached by the constable P.N.E., who arrested him, threatened him and slapped his face.<ref name="UN">d</ref>


== Abbreviation ==
Njaru spent parts of 1998 in hiding in [[Bekora Barombi]]. He was found and approached by the constable P.N.E.<ref name="UN">e</ref>
*[[System Wide Information Management]]


Around May 1999, Njaru wrote a newspaper article where he alleged ill-treatment of civilians conducted by the [[Cameroon Navy|11th Navy Battalion]] based in Ekondo-Titi. In late May Njaru was approached by the local [[captain (Navy)|captain]] who asked Njaru "to stop writing such articles and to disclose his sources". Refusing to do this, Njaru five days later found his house encircled by armed soldiers, and escaped to [[Kumba]].<ref name="UN">f</ref> Here, he was assaulted by police in June 2001, with no particular reason stated.<ref name="UN">g</ref> Njaru complained to the local authorities, but later learned that "his complaint had not been received".<ref name="UN">h</ref>


{{disambig}}
Later, while still living in the Southwest Province, Njaru was threatened again in October and December 2003.<ref name="UN">h</ref>

In 2006, he was accused by local police of working for the [[Southern Cameroons National Council]], a [[Southern Cameroons]] [[secession]]ist organisation. He was arrested on a bus, beaten and his gear confiscated, according to a piece written by former executive director of the [[World Press Freedom Committee]] Marilyn Greene.<ref>{{cite news |first=Marilyn |last=Greene |title=Cameroonian Journal: Greasing Wheels and Palms |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/200808280771.html |work=IJNet |publisher=International Journalists' Network |date=3 April 2006 |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref>

In August 2008, Njaru wrote a long complaint about alleged police fraud, arbitrary arrests and extortion of Nigerian immigrants, again in the town of Kumba.<ref>{{cite news |first=Nformi Sonde |last=Kinsai |title=Cameroon: Massive Police Extortion/Fraud Uncovered |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/200808280771.html |work=The Post |publisher=hosted by allAfrica.com |date=28 August 2008 |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref>

===International attention===
In 2005 Njaru filed a case to the [[United Nations Human Rights Committee]], evoking the [[International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights]] and citing "unlawful arrest, ill-treatment and torture, threats from public authorities and failure to investigate" as the reasons for his complaint.<ref name="UN">i</ref> The Committee found that Cameroon (the State party) failed to cooperate, not responding regarding the substance of Njaru's claims. Citing previous cases, the Committee found that Njaru's claims should be given weight.<ref name="UN">j</ref> Concluding the case in 2007, the Committee commented "that the author [Njaru] is entitled (...) to an effective remedy" and that the state of Cameroon "is under an obligation to ensure that similar violations do not occur in the future".<ref name="UN">k</ref>

He was also mentioned specifically in [[Amnesty International]]'s 2008 country report on Cameroon, as one case in a series of concerns about the [[human rights in Cameroon]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://thereport.amnesty.org/eng/Regions/Africa/Cameroon |title=Cameroon |accessdate=2008-09-14 |work=Amnesty International Report 2008 |publisher=[[Amnesty International]] |date=2008 }}</ref>

He has won "multiple international awards" for his investigative journalism,<ref>{{cite news |author= |title=UN Human Rights Committee Decision Against Cameroon |url=http://www.omct.org/index.php/index.php?id=&lang=eng&articleSet=Documents&articleId=7054&PHPSESSID=af9e736fc64cab9a01cba14574bd522a |work= |publisher=[[World Organisation Against Torture]] |date= |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref> among others the 2002 PEN-Novib Award, given by [[International PEN]] and [[Oxfam Novib|NOVIB]] for "brave efforts to resist censorship".<ref>{{cite news |author= |title=PEN-NOVIB Awards regognise writers, journalists |url=http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/51252/ |work= |publisher=[[International Freedom of Expression Exchange]] |date= |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref> He was also given the Hellman-Hammett Grant in 2003 by [[Human Rights Watch]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hrw.org/about/info/hellman2003.html |title=Human Rights Defenders - Hellman-Hammett Grants, Short Biographies of the 2003 Recipients |accessdate=2008-09-14 |work= |publisher=[[Human Rights Watch]] |date=2003 }}</ref>

==Defection attempt==
In September 2008 he travelled to the Global Investigative Journalism Conference in [[Lillehammer]], [[Norway]]. He represented the Ocean City Radio,<ref>{{cite web |last=Furuly |first=Jan Gunnar |url=http://www.gijc2008.no/participants/171 |title=Check the participant list! |accessdate=2008-09-14 |work=Global Investigative Journalism Conference 2008 |publisher= |date=4 September 2008 }}</ref> for which he has worked the past six years.<ref name="j">{{cite news |first=Terje I. |last=Olsson |title=Konferansedeltaker tør ikke reise hjem |url=http://www.journalisten.no/story/54383 |work=Journalisten |language=Norwegian |date=14 September 2008 |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref> He had previously been invited to the 2007 edition of the conference, held in [[Toronto]], but was denied entrance into [[Canada]]. However, although there were suspicions that Njaru might defect during the conference, no objections were raised towards his entrance into Norway. On the night before the last day of the conference, he applied for [[political asylum]] in Norway.<ref name="aft">{{cite news |first=Kristoffer |last=Rønneberg |title=Søker asyl i Norge |url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/article2652424.ece |work=[[Aftenposten]] |language=Norwegian |date=14 September 2008 |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref> According to Njoru himself, he had a "90% chance" of getting murdered if returning to Cameroon.<ref name="aft">b</ref> Commenting on the United Nations Human Rights Committee report, which called upon a remedy as well as future protection, Njaru stated that nothing had happened in this respect.<ref>{{cite news |first=Kini |last=Nsom |title=Cameroon: Govt Snubs UN Human Rights Commission |url=http://allafrica.com/stories/200806270837.html |work=The Post |publisher=hosted by allAfrica.com |date=27 June 2008 |accessdate=2008-09-14 }}</ref><ref name="aft">c</ref>

==Personal life==
Njaru is married, and has three children. They live in Cameroon.<ref name="j">b</ref> At the time of his defection attempt, he had not informed his family of the decision.<ref name="aft">d</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{BD|1960s||Njaru, Philip}}
[[Category:Cameroonian journalists]]
[[Category:Free speech activists]]

Revision as of 19:28, 10 October 2008

SWIM may refer to:

Sport

Abbreviation


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