Cameroonian authorities have released a young activist detained last week after posting a video on TikTok advocating democratic change in the country ahead of next year’s presidential election, his lawyers said.

Barrister Akere Muna, lead lawyer for Junior Ngombe, 23, told the media in Yaoundé on Wednesday that the activist had been granted bail and that no charges had yet been filed against him.

“After the investigation, authorities may decide to either drop the case or press charges,” said the lawyer, who is also an opposition politician.

Ngombe, a hairdresser and social media influencer with more than 12,000 followers on TikTok, was arrested in the country’s second city Douala on July 24 and taken to the gendarmerie headquarters, also known as the State Defense Secretariat (SED), in the capital Yaoundé, where he was detained.

The move drew widespread criticism, with rights advocates describing it as a crackdown on freedom of expression by the government of President Paul Biya.

Source: The East African