Cameroonian journalist Wazizi mourned

Journalist unions in Cameroon have condemned the death of their colleague, Samuel Ajiekah Abuwe, popularly known as Wazizi.

The broadcaster died Tuesday at the Yaoundé Military Hospital, having been held incommunicado for 300 days.

Reports say he was tortured before he died.

The Cameroonian military have not responded to the BBC’s requests for comment.

Wazizi's lawyer Edward Lyonga Ewule told the BBC he was devastated:

"We have struggled for more than nine months today to see that Wazizi gets justice. Now we hear he is dead, it is very disturbing. I am so devastated, I am down-cast, I am heart-broken.”

Breaking news!
Cameroonian Journalist Reportedly Dies in Jail

Buea journalist, Samuel Wazizi is reported dead. According to Equinoxe Television, the journalist died within a few days in detention from wounds and injuries sustained after his arrest. pic.twitter.com/gYMo8nnr9U

— Mimi Mefo Info (@MimiMefoInfo) June 2, 2020

Wazizi was arrested in August last year in Buea in the South-West region on charges of complicity with separatist fighters in the troubled Anglophone regions of Cameroon.

His colleague, Joseph Weno, told the BBC he was arrested for speaking truth to power:

"He was very vocal on the issue of the Anglophone crisis.He spoke out and condemned the excesses of the military when there was need for it, and he equally condemned the excesses of the separatists when the need arose, and that's it."

Journalists across the country now say they will be going on strike in the days ahead to press for justice to be served to their colleague.