Cameroonian rapper Gaston Philippe Abe Abe, better known by his stage name, Valsero, was freed this morning after almost nine months of detention. His release is a moment of celebration for Valsero and his family and a triumph for all those who have fought for his freedom and the freedom of other imprisoned artists, PEN America said today.

On October 5, Cameroon’s president announced through a tweet that he would end the proceedings against “some” opposition leaders, including those from the Cameroon Renaissance Movement. A military court in the capital Yaoundé this morning ordered the release of over 90 people, among them Valsero, as well as opposition leader Maurice Kamto, former economic adviser to the president Christian Penda Ekoka, and Cameroonian lawyer Michèle Ndoki.

“We are overjoyed that Valsero is finally free to reunite with his family and make music in peace,” said Julie Trebault, director of the Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) at PEN America. “The fallacious charges against him, which included rebellion against the state, terrorism, insurrection, inciting public disorder, and propagating false information, are emblematic of the lengths authoritarian rulers will go to suppress dissenting voices and restrict artistic freedom of expression. The international mobilization for his release and demonstrations of solidarity, from artists and musicians to human rights groups and activists, demonstrate the ongoing strength of music and art to unite people around a common cause and inspire social change.”

Valsero was arrested on January 26 in Yaoundé on the margins of a peaceful demonstration protesting last year’s national elections, which many deemed to be rigged in support of the current president, Paul Biya. Maurice Kamto, the opposition leader, had organized marches all over the country on that day, but the protestors were met with widespread police suppression, and both Kamto and Valsero were detained. Valsero is not a member of the opposition party. 

Source: PEN

The military court hearing case for Cameroonian musician Valsero which was to commence on 6 April in Yaoundé has been postponed once again to 8 October.

Valsero was presented to the court on 6 September along with chief opposition leader Maurice Kamto and 87 of his followers to face eight charges. The charges include insurrection, incitement to insurrection, group rebellion, criminal association, complicity, riotous assembly, disturbance of public order and hostility to the homeland, which carries the death penalty.

AFP reported that the court was forced to postpone the case after one of the accused Christian Penda Ekoka who is the ex-economic adviser to President Paul Biya, got sick.

“When he was arrested on 28 January, he was already sick, and the first days (in the cell), he did not have his medication”, the defendants lead council Sylvain Souop told the local journalists.

The accused persons were arrested about eight months ago in relation to the 26 January protests in Douala, known as the White Marches. The demonstrations were organised by the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement (MRC) following widespread suspicion of fraud during the October 2018 presidential election.

President Paul Biya, who has been in power since 1982, won those elections with 71% of the vote while MRC leader Maurice Kamto garnered 14%.

Valsero was arrested on 26 January and taken to Yaoundé Principal Prison. Kamto and his allies Penda Ekoka, Albert Dzongang and Paul Eric Kingue were detained on 28 January.

 The defendant’s French lawyer Antoine Vey told Africa News on 5 September that “There is no justification for Kamto and his supporters to be incarcerated for eight months in these conditions. None of them took part in acts of violence, none called for acts of violence or rebellion; there is no reason for their arrest outside the political alibi.”

Before the court hearing postponement, the lawyers to the plaintiff had forwarded to the military court a list of 31 witnesses, including two ministers, the chief of the police and other high-ranking army and police officers.

Human rights groups and activists, including musicians, have denounced the jurisdiction of the military court to try these civilians. Amnesty International launched an online petition in April 2019 that calls on the Cameroonian authorities to free Valsero and the other detained protesters.

Culled from Musicinafrica.net

The arrest, ongoing detention, and charges against Cameroonian rapper Gaston Serval Abe, known as Valsero, are inexcusable violations of freedom artistic expression, PEN America said in a statement today. Arrested earlier this year in the vicinity of a pro-democracy demonstration, Valsero will appear before a military court Friday and could face the death penalty. He’s charged with rebellion against the state, terrorism, insurrection, inciting public disorder, and propagating false information.

“Valsero, along with his sound engineer, has been imprisoned for over six months for merely attending a peaceful march in protest of the last election results in Cameroon,” said Julie Trébault, director of the Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) at PEN America. “This is clearly a targeted attempt to silence an internationally known and beloved rapper who strives, both through his music and his activism, to critique the government and inspire social change. His ongoing detention in poor conditions and the exaggerated charges against him are an intolerable affront both to artistic freedom and human dignity. We urge the Cameroonian government to immediately drop the charges against Valsero and uphold its domestic and international commitments to protect freedom of expression and ensure that artists are free to create without fear”.

Critics say Valsero is being persecuted for his work, which often includes political themes. Songs like “Çe pays tue les jeunes” (“This country kills the youth”), “Ne me parlez plus de ce pays” (“Don’t talk about this country to me anymore”),  and the well-known “Lettre au president” (“Letter to the President”) have earned both the ire of the government and admiration of fans across Cameroon. Many of his new songs reference current crises in Cameroon and the current government, in power for nearly four decades.

Although his work fell afoul of censorship laws, his 2008 debut album, “Poltiquement instable” (“Politically unstable”), became a runaway success, earning him the title “The General” from fans across the country. Beyond his rap career, he is also an engaged activist, starting initiatives such as “Jeune et Fort” (“Young and Strong”), which promotes education through citizenship, democracy, and electoral culture, and his new “Our Destiny” association, which aims to empower young people to take control of their existence for the benefit of the country.

Valsero was arrested on January 26 in Yaoundé on the margins of a peaceful demonstration protesting last year’s national elections, which many deemed to be rigged in support of the current president, Paul Biya. Maurice Kamto, the opposition leader, had organized marches all over the country on that day, but the protestors were met with widespread police suppression, and both Kamto and Valsero were detained. Valsero is not a member of the opposition party.

Source: Pen.org

In a career spanning six decades, Afro-European star saxophonist Manu Dibango has played a fusion of everything from jazz, funk and traditional rhythms from his native Cameroon, creating music that he says “builds bridges”.

The 85-year-old, who was born is Cameroon but moved to France as a teenager, has played with such greats as Herbie Hancock and Fela Kuti, and is credited with inspiring an array of musicians including Michael Jackson.

“We are the builders of bridges between the West and Africa,” he told AFP in an interview at the Jazz in Marciac festival in southern France, where the towering saxophonist with the shaved head and spangly shirts is a regular.

Dibango shot to global prominence in 1972 with the afrobeat hit “Soul Makossa”, a highly catchy track that was spotted by DJs in New York on the B side of a single containing a song for the Cameroonian national football team.

He claims Michael Jackson pilfered a line from that track for his 1983 hit “Wanna Be Startin’ Something” on the Thriller album, but settled the matter out of court.

The king of Afro-jazz bears no grudge against the king of pop, whom he credits with giving the track a second life and making it into a standard that has since been reprised by other stars, including Rihanna and, more recently, Beyonce.

Producing a follow-up to such a hit would have daunted a lesser musician, but Dibango proved himself the master of reinvention and musical fusion.

“In the morning I tell myself, ‘Look, I’m still alive. What can I be doing?’. My problem is: ‘What’s my agenda’ and not ‘Ah, yesterday was great’,” the performer said.

Despite having lived longer in Europe than in Africa Dibango refuses to be put in a box and warns against doing the same with music.

“I’m just a guy who is a musician and not a European nor an African musician,” he says, warning against a “blinkered” approach to music whereby “if you’re an African musician you play the djembe, balafon or kora and if you play the sax, oops, it’s more black American and you’re no longer really African for some people”.

It’s worse again for players of the piano and guitar, instruments also seen by some as “un-African”, even though, Dibango says, “there are pianos in every hotel in Africa and in every orchestra there are guitars!”

“These are fantasies that people project onto you. And maybe part of our life is to chase them away,” he said.

But it’s “very hard, even for me”, he admitted.

– Living life in stereo –

Born in Douala in what was then the French-administered part of Cameroon, Dibango was influenced by a wide variety of genres from a young age. His uncle played the harmonium and his mother ran a choir.

“I have the harmony of Bach and Handel in my ear, with Cameroonian lyrics,” he said, adding with his trademark optimism: “It’s a gift to be able to have at least two possibilities. In life I prefer to be stereo than mono”.

At the age of 15 his parents sent him to study in France but he soon got turned onto jazz and soul and began playing the saxophone and keyboards in clubs.

The musician takes his success with a pinch of salt.

“You have to treat failure and success alike. You always have to stay afloat.”

He still gets excited about new musical collaborations, like for instance playing with a philharmonic orchestra this summer.

“It’s another form of dialogue. The language is not the same when you are 70 (musicians). The result and the goosebumps you get are on another level. It’s as if you’re travelling in first class,” he enthused.

Source: AFP

Singer Stevie Wonder will undergo a kidney transplant in September.

The Grammy award-winning singer broke the news while performing on stage at London’s British Summer Time Hyde Park concert on Saturday, July 6.

Stevie Wonder told the crowd that he already has a donor in place and will take some time off to recuperate.

The 69-year old singer has won 25 Grammys, including Album of the year three times in four years, in 1973, 1974 and 1976.

His last Grammy award for the Album of the year was for his most famous work, ‘’ Songs in the key of Life’‘.

Reuters

The annual Manyu convention (MECA-USA) has opened in the American capital of Washington DC.

The annual event which brings together all Manyu sons and daughters in the United States is marked by traditional dances and a display of Manyu culture.

The two-day event is designed to raise funds for the financing of development projects in Manyu Division in the South West region of Cameroon.

The event will end on Saturday, July 5, 2019 with a fund-raising gala that is expected to bring in thousands of dollars to the coffers of MECA-USA which the umbrella organization of all Manyu organizations.

By Kingsley Betek in Washington DC.

They say he who finds a wife finds a good thing. But what about he who finds two wives? A happy African man is living the dream after bagging himself not one but two wives. In a few photos making rounds on social media, the lucky groom could not help but wear a smile as he proudly stood by his pair of blushing brides.

Of course this chap walked with a pep in his step because his wedding night was going to be something he would never forget. It was a wedding attended by a few guests who did not want to miss the once in a lifetime opportunity.

The brides were draped in nearly identical white gowns paired with gloves and over the top headgears. The must attend event appeared to have taken place in Cameroon as a photo of the country’s president Paul Biya hang in the venue’s background. Completely overjoyed, the groom took his pen and with one stroke signed his wedding certificate like a true boss. His wives watched closely as they contemplated how the throuple would have a beautiful union. It was a wedding attended by a few guests who did not want to miss the once in a lifetime opportunity.

Tuko news

Tani, an eight-year-old Nigerian chess champion in New York, may be living in the United States as an immigrant but he could be meeting a former American president soon.

When the story of his witty exploits was shared on Twitter, the 42nd US president Bill Clinton reacted to the fact Tani had defied all odds to win his category at the New York State chess championship.

Here is a youngster who was introduced to the game a little over a year ago. “Refugees enrich our nation and talent is universal, even if opportunity is not,” the president wrote.

“This story made me smile. Tanitoluwa, you exemplify a winning spirit – in chess and in life. And kudos to your hardworking parents. You all should stop by my office in Harlem; I’d love to meet you,” he added.

Incidentally, Tani’s three-hour weekly chess practice is in Harlem whiles he practices more often on his father’s laptop.

Full name, Tanitoluwa Adewumi, the chess whiz kid, has been widely covered by international media and local portals back home. His story was first broken by a New York Times, NYT, columnist, Nicolas Kristof.

Tani, his brother and mother currently live in a New York City homeless shelter as immigrants awaiting refugee status. Their next hearing is slated for later this year.

The Adewumis – whose name denote they hail from Nigeria’s southwest according to reports arrived in the United States in 2017 having escaped Boko Haram insurgency – meaning, they must have been living in the northeast, be it Borno, Adamawa or Yobe states.

Mr Adewumi, works as a licensed real estate salesman and doubles as an Uber driver as his wife and sons await asylum request hearing scheduled for August.

The NYT piece that set Tani’s story on a media blitz was achieved after an interview with the family at their shelter in Manhattan. “I want to be the young grandmaster,” Tani told Kristof.

Whiles his biggest achievement yet is as New York State Primary Chess Champion (Top Players K – 3rd Grade), he has won a handful of trophies playing the game.

His mother Oluwatoyin Adewumi was a pillar in his love for chess having backed him in the early stages when he expressed interest in a game that was entirely new to him. Her appeal to Tani’s programme patron had his fees waived.

His patron and tutor spoke highly about Tani’s abilities and grasp of the game. Shawn Martinez his tutor said, “He is so driven. He does 10 times more chess puzzles than the average kid. He just wants to be better.”

A GoFundMetext page set up by NYT readers has far exceeded the target set. As at midday March 20 (GMT), 3,588 contributors had raised $188,253 despite the initial goal being $50,000.

Africa News