Tchiroma Says He Files Criminal Complaints Against Biya, Senior Officials in Switzerland
By Wilson Musa
YAOUNDÉ, Cameroon — Opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary says he has filed two criminal complaints before Swiss judicial authorities against President Paul Biya and dozens of senior Cameroonian political, military and security officials, alleging serious human rights violations committed during the country’s post-election crisis.
In a communiqué dated July 11, 2026, Tchiroma announced that the complaints had been lodged under the principle of universal jurisdiction, accusing the named officials of responsibility for alleged massacres, torture, enforced disappearances and other acts of repression following the disputed October 12, 2025 presidential election.
“It is with solemnity that I have this day referred to the judicial authorities of Switzerland two criminal complaints, based on their universal jurisdiction, concerning the massacres and other acts of repression perpetrated against our fellow citizens, whose only crime in the eyes of the Yaoundé usurping regime is to demand truth in the results of the presidential election of October 12, 2025,” Tchiroma wrote.
The former minister, who describes himself in the statement as “President-Elect of the Republic of Cameroon,” said one complaint concerns victims of the broader post-election violence, while the second relates specifically to the case of opposition figure Anicet Ekané.
According to the communiqué, President Biya heads a list of individuals named in the complaints, alongside more than 20 senior civilian, police and military officials. They include Secretary General at the Presidency Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh, Minister of Territorial Administration Paul Atanga Nji, Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Defence Joseph Beti Assomo, Constitutional Council President Clément Atangana, Elections Cameroon Director General Erik Essousse, Electoral Board Chairman Enow Abrams Egbe, senior police and military commanders, intelligence officials and other security personnel.
Tchiroma said Switzerland was chosen because of President Biya’s regular stays in Geneva.
“As you know, my predecessor as head of our country, Mr. Paul BIYA, regularly stays in Switzerland at the InterContinental Hotel in Geneva, several long months each year, for reasons of personal convenience or health; our judicial action is therefore of primary importance in the fight I am waging in general against impunity,” he wrote.
The reference to Biya as his “predecessor” reflects Tchiroma’s claim that he won the 2025 presidential election, a claim that has not been recognized by Cameroon’s electoral authorities.
In the communiqué, Tchiroma accused the government of continuing to suppress dissent months after the election, citing the detention of opposition activists and elected officials.
“Similarly, it remains established today that the illegal and illegitimate regime in Yaoundé continues to deprive thousands of our compatriots of their liberties under inhumane conditions,” he stated.
He specifically referred to activist Jacques Bertrand Mang, whom he described as having been “harassed, arrested, and imprisoned on fallacious grounds,” and Mayor Joseph-Espoir Biyong, whom he said had been summoned by police.
Calling for accountability, Tchiroma said those responsible for the alleged abuses should face justice regardless of where they may seek refuge.
“The memory of our dead, martyrs of our struggle for truth in the ballot box, demands that the perpetrators, accomplices, executors, and those who gave such orders be prosecuted, tracked down, and judged wherever they might seek to take refuge to escape their responsibilities, and that they be severely punished,” the communiqué reads.
He added that the campaign would not stop with Switzerland.
“I have instructed my lawyers to petition, as the situation demands, all law-abiding States that are signatories to the aforementioned international conventions on the possibility of judicial proceedings based on universal jurisdiction, so that justice may be rendered to all our compatriots,” he wrote.
The principle of universal jurisdiction allows courts in certain countries to investigate and prosecute grave international crimes—including torture, crimes against humanity and enforced disappearances, even when the alleged offenses occurred outside their territory, subject to the laws and procedures of the country where the complaint is filed.
As of publication, Swiss judicial authorities had not publicly confirmed receipt of the complaints or announced whether formal proceedings had been opened. CNA could not independently verify the status of the filings.
The Swiss complaints come a month after Tchiroma announced that he had filed similar criminal complaints in France. On June 12, 2026, he said he had submitted two complaints before French judicial authorities against President Biya and several senior Cameroonian officials, also invoking the principle of universal jurisdiction over alleged abuses committed during the post-election crisis. Tchiroma said in Saturday’s communiqué that the Swiss filings “follow on from the judicial action I initiated on June 12, 2026 before the French judicial authorities on this same basis,” adding that his legal team intends to pursue similar actions in other countries that recognize universal jurisdiction.
