MINDEF produces legal training handbook for third category soldiers.

It was officially presented and handed to the Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Defence, Joseph Beti Assomo, in Yaounde yesterday. 

The Deputy Chief of Defense Staff, Major General Ebaka Hippolyte, handed the manual to Minister Beti Assomo, on behalf of the Army Chief of Defense Staff, Lieutenant General Rene Claude Meka. 

This was during a ceremony attended by officials of the ministry, top brass of the army, representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Central Africa, the Ministry of Justice, the Cameroon Human Rights Commission among others. 

The manual was drawn up by the Defense Headquarters through an Ad Hoc Commission comprising practicing jurists within the ministry, under the coordination of the commander of military centres and schools, and the inspector of forces.

It was developed with directives from Army Chief of Defense Staff and under the supervision of the Minister Delegate at the Presidency in charge of Defence. 

Speaking during the presentation ceremony, Minister Beti Assomo said the realization of the manual bears testimony to the shared belief that “respect for the law is vital and crucial for an effective republican army”. 

“Having equipped the soldier, we now seek to provide the instructor with the necessary tools so that legal education forms an integral part of our training programs,” he stated. 

The minister saluted the work of the Ad Hoc Commission headed by Colonel Magistrate Asse Louis Marie, Legal Adviser to the Lieutenant General, Chief of Defence Staff, for methodically guiding with tact, and pedagogy the work of the commission to produce the manual. 

He said through the depth of its reflections and the remarkable quality of its work, the commission has succeeded in developing a “clear, structured teaching tool adapted to each training level”.

“It has thus fully met the expectations set for it and achieved the objectives it assigned to itself,” the minister stated, noting that the manual will better be appreciated if its recipients make good use of it.

To this light, he instructed Defence Staff as well as the Central Chiefs of Staff to ensure a wider dissemination and use of the manual in the various training centres spread across the national territory. 

Beti Assomo reminded all and sundry that the law “is not an obstacle to the soldier's action” but “both a compass and a shield against violations of the laws and regulations of the Republic”. 

Brief about the manual

In his presentation, Colonel Magistrate Asse Louis Marie, the Legal Adviser to the Army Chief of Defense Staff, said the manual touches on aspects of the Constitution, military justice code, regulations governing weapons and ammunition, Penal Code, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and more broadly, other elements of public and administrative law among others. 

Through the manual, he said the commission has developed courses for nine training levels. He said it includes a course for third year trainees of the Combined Services Military Academy, EMIA, as well as courses for basic common training, technical proficiency certificates for officers and non-commissioned officers and that for the unit commander internship.

He sounded upbeat that the manual will help contribute to the intellectual and professional education of soldiers.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3947 of Thursday October 22, 2026