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Who foots the bill?
Cameroon’s Biya: Why the Swiss won’t stop his Geneva stays
By Julia Crawford with input from Markus Spoerndli
This content was published on January 4, 2019 5:00 PM Jan 4, 2019 - 17:00
Cameroon president and wife
Cameroon's president Paul Biya and his wife Chantal
(Keystone)
Reports in 2018 that alleged Cameroon’s president Paul Biya runs his country from a Geneva hotel raise questions whether official Switzerland can intervene in such cases.
Neutral Switzerland, and international Geneva in particular, have long been known as a playground for the rich. But should the Swiss clamp down when some of these people, like Biya, are linked to regimes with dubious democratic records in corrupt countries?
According to a reportexternal link in early 2018 by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Projectexternal link (OCCRP), the Cameroonian president has spent at least 1,645 days on private visits abroad since he came to power in 1982, and Geneva is by far his favourite destinationexternal link. The Hotel Intercontinental in Genevaexternal link with its swimming pool and view of Mont Blanc is the residence of choice for the Cameroonian presidential couple.
“According to reporters’ conservative calculations – based on publicly available hotel room prices and a compilation of entourage lists – the total hotel bill of Biya and his colleagues for one stay at Intercontinental adds up to around $40,000 per day,” says OCCRP. “At that rate, the cost of all of the president’s private trips (1,645 days in total) would add up to about $65 million since he came to power – and that’s not counting food, entertainment and the rental of a private plane.”
A traffic light in the foreground of an image of the Intercontinental hotel
(Keystone)
A report by the Wall Street Journalexternal link in November 2018 said that since Biya became head of state the hotel is transformed several times a year into a kind of offshore presidential palace for several weeks. According to the WSJ, Biya pays for everything in cash. A normal stay costs several million Swiss francs (about the same in US dollars), according to Christian Penda Ekoka, who was Biya’s chief advisor before moving to the opposition. Ekoka told the WSJ that the money came directly from the treasury, and that everything was paid in cash to prevent the trips appearing in the state account.
Cameroonian protestors
Another report by Swiss public broadcaster RTSexternal link (in French) in June this year also highlighted Geneva as a “paradise for dictators”. It includes some scenes of the frequent demonstrations by Cameroonian exiles outside the Hotel Intercontinental when Biya is there. “Shame on Switzerland!” they cry. “It’s taxpayers’ money!” “He is stealing the money from the oil of our anglophone region, which is in ruins.”
Cameroon has a reputation for corruption. In 1998 and 1999 it was ranked bottom of the Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Indexexternal link, and in 2017 it was rated 153rd out of 180 countries. Although Biya is recognized as the legitimate president of Cameroon, his democratic credentials are questionable. The francophone president, 85, won re-election for a seventh term this October in what foreignpolicy.comexternal link called a “master class in fake democracy”. That election took place amid an upsurge of rebellion in the country’s anglophone regions, which has been violently repressed by his security forcesexternal link.
According to the International Crisis Groupexternal link, “Cameroon’s structural weaknesses (hyper-centralisation, no separation of powers, restriction of civil liberties, corruption of state officials, weak institutions and failure to renew its leadership) are becoming more problematic each passing year. President Paul Biya, in power for 36 years, governs through a combination of clientelism, manipulation of ethnic rivalries and routine human rights violations.”
So what should Switzerland do?
So is Biya’s frequent presence in Geneva an embarrassment for Switzerland, and should it act? “Foreign heads of state can - in a private capacity - stay in Switzerland without the federal authorities being formally informed or involved in the visit," the foreign ministry told swissinfo.ch.
“As a legitimate head of state, he has a right to travel, especially to Geneva which is the seat of many international organizations,” says Marc Guéniat, Senior Researcher at Swiss NGO Public Eyeexternal link. “What is problematic is that he spends so much time at taxpayers’ expense, taking over an entire floor of a 5-star hotel.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, which spoke to several former hotel managers, the Intercontinental vacates the entire sixteenth floor for Biya and his entourage, sometimes adding around 30 rooms on other floors.
“He’s not wanted by Interpol, so it’s not a legal question,” says analyst Daniel Warner, a retired former deputy head of the Geneva Institute of International and Development Studiesexternal link. “Unless he’s on trial somewhere, it’s a political question and a judgment question, and as a neutral country what do you expect the Geneva or Swiss authorities to do? If he’s wanted for a crime, that would be something different, but there is no formal legal process against him.”
Some people nevertheless think Switzerland could do more, starting with tighter checks on visas and on cash coming into the country. One angry Cameroonian demonstrating outside the Geneva Intercontinental in the RTS report tells a Swiss police officer that if Biya “has come to live in Switzerland” he should ask for his residence permit like everyone else.
Asked what the visa regulations are for non-European heads of state visiting Switzerland, the foreign ministry told swissinfo.ch that “when a head of State comes on a private visit to Switzerland he is subject to the same rules as any other foreigner staying in Switzerland”. It did not, however, directly answer the question of who delivers the visas and how long such heads of state are allowed to stay.
Cash rules
Unlike the EU, Switzerland does not automatically require a declaration when importing large amounts of cash. However, under an Ordinance of 2009external link (link in French), Swiss customs officials can request information “on the import, export and transit of cash in an amount of at least CHF10,000 or an equivalent amount in foreign currency”, including the reasons and origin of the money. If there is suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing, the customs office can also request information when the amount of cash is less than CHF10,000 ($10,000).
As a head of state, Biya enjoys diplomatic immunity. This was confirmed by the foreign ministry. “A sitting head of state enjoys, according to international customary law, absolute legal immunity (for both public and private acts) and personal inviolability,” the ministry said in response to swissinfo.ch. “As for the members of his entourage, the statute they may be granted in Switzerland is examined on a case by case basis, according to the aim of the visit and the function they perform.”
Brazil recently seized millions of dollarsexternal link from the luggage of a delegation accompanying Teodorin Obiang Nguema, the playboy Vice-President of Equatorial Guinea who is also a frequent visitor to Switzerland. But “Teodorino”, unlike Biya, has a court ruling against him. He was sentenced in France in absentia in October 2017 to a suspended three-year prison sentence for money laundering. And in that case, the Swiss authorities seized luxury cars and a yacht belonging to him, at the request of the French authorities.
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There are 16 comments on this article.
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"Vera Gottlieb commented on the content at 04 January 2019 17:49".
Vera Gottlieb 04-Jan-2019 17:49
Is the hotel an Embassy?
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"Bill replied to the comment of Vera Gottlieb at 07 January 2019 19:32."
Bill 07-Jan-2019 19:32
Saudis own that hotel.
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"m.sone commented on the content at 04 January 2019 19:33".
m.sone 04-Jan-2019 19:33
If not for crimes he may or may not have have committed outside Cameroon, the ICC certainly has the grounds to indict him
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"Lyombe Eko commented on the content at 05 January 2019 04:53".
Lyombe Eko 05-Jan-2019 04:53
So according to the legalistic Swiss government, Paul Biya who declared a war against unarmed Anglophone civilians from the InterContinental Hotel in Geneva on October 1, 2017, and has sent his soldiers to destroy whole villages, killed hundreds of people, caused the internal displacement of more than 300,000 civilians, and sent 50, 000 refugees into Nigeria can come and go in Switzerland as he pleases because he brings a lot of money to Switzerland? ? Surely, Switzerland has heard of the notions of human rights and crimes against humanity!
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"A. Henry replied to the comment of Lyombe Eko at 06 January 2019 14:11."
A. Henry 06-Jan-2019 14:11
Nothing Last forever.He should enjoy while it last.
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"Dean Witter replied to the comment of Lyombe Eko at 29 June 2019 01:37."
Dean Witter 29-Jun-2019 01:37
You can not just have an emotional
reaction like that. We can say the same about Saudis in Yemen or US in Afghanistan. Unless you are formally served by some court you can not be locked up on a “notion”. This is called the LAW.
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"Anonymous replied to the comment of Lyombe Eko at 01 July 2019 09:22."
Anonymous 01-Jul-2019 09:22
So true, so collaboration is surely a crime?
I wish we would stop saying Switzerland is neutral, it is far from this and if money is involved it is relentless at siding with anyone who brings the best deal.
Therefore, effectively fueling wars and atrocities. Besides the lavish amounts of money Paul Biya and his tribe spend in Switzerland, there is probably (ok I speculate), an arms deal going on under the table!
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"SDF replied to the comment of Lyombe Eko at 01 July 2019 22:53."
SDF 01-Jul-2019 22:53
How about the soldier that are beheaded by anglophone terrorists? How about those that do not want separation they getbm kidnap then ask to pay money for them to be free?all those anglophone terrorist should be arrested as well no one is clean here they all have blood in theirs hand when you have gun and killed you are guilty does not matter the reason you killed
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"Against devilish Regimes replied to the comment of SDF at 02 July 2019 15:27."
Against devilish Regimes 02-Jul-2019 15:27
I don't support barbarism, but when unprofessional soldiers go about burning whole villages, burning homes with unarmed old sick people and children unable to run, raping and looting, shooting on sight even unarmed civilians, people gets transformed into beasts when they catch one of these soldiers.
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"Johan es replied to the comment of SDF at 04 July 2019 00:29."
Johan es 04-Jul-2019 00:29
You can’t say for sure that the anglophones are killing, beheading or kidnapping people, during difficult times like now even the government and its agents can do all the horrendous things and blame them on the unfortunate anglophones putting their lives at risk for the anglophone course just to discredit them in the eyes of the international community.
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"brunzlie commented on the content at 07 January 2019 09:26".
brunzlie 07-Jan-2019 09:26
And the silly western world continues to feel sorry for Africa thinking the aid and money they donate goes to help the poor, in Africa their is a saying which is the mantra of politicians -''TATA ZONKI'' which translates to TAKE EVERYTHING.
The Chinese have got Africa taped , they know exactly how to benefit from this selfish greed without upsetting the locals.
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"Meme replied to the comment of brunzlie at 01 July 2019 19:33."
Meme 01-Jul-2019 19:33
I don't get it. The Africans asking for the Swiss to kick this criminal out don't see that he is a regular customer? Money. Money.
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"Stuart commented on the content at 09 January 2019 16:04".
Stuart 09-Jan-2019 16:04
I love most aspects of Switzerland but this is just a grubby, greedy,shameful situation
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"Dean Witter commented on the content at 29 June 2019 01:44".
Dean Witter 29-Jun-2019 01:44
He is a legitimate head of state
of a UN member country. The is much more waste and corruption elsewhere. Just because he is an African he cannot be locked up willy nilly. Western nations spend a fortune even though there is poverty in their midst
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"Gabe replied to the comment of Dean Witter at 29 June 2019 23:31."
Gabe 29-Jun-2019 23:31
If you knew what was going on for real in this country (rape, summary executions, looting, hunger, thirst, corruption, innocent deaths), you will not so much defend such unscrupulous and inhumane man who punishes only those he suspects have an eye for his "throne".
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"Nkem replied to the comment of Gabe at 01 July 2019 18:47."
Nkem 01-Jul-2019 18:47
Indeed.
In as much as we cannot assist Europeans to treat us as inferior by asking them to sanction "our leaders ",
Biya is not a legitimate leader of Cameroon.
He needs to depart before the country is irreparably damaged.
Every Cameroonian who was in Geneva to protest is a National Hero or Heroine.
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"Truth commented on the content at 30 June 2019 13:22".
Truth 30-Jun-2019 13:22
Paul biya is no longer a human being, every reasonable sense of a human form isn't found in him anymore..he's gone out of senses as a human being and should be sent out of office now unless otherwise those who are benefiting from his evil agenda against the good people of Cameroon are still in the support of his continuous loots and rendering the people of Cameroon useless and living in pains.
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