Adja Awa: Reported death of Cameroonian whistleblower

The death of Adja Awa, a former RDPC activist turned whistleblower, has been reported following her disappearance in July 2025. While no official government communiqué has confirmed her death, various reports and public figures have raised alarms regarding her fate.

Awa disappeared after being accused of “calls to insurrection” following her public criticisms of a high-ranking official. Following her disappearance, reports from Cameroonian media in May 2026 suggested she had been detained in a military center, subjected to torture, and later released into a forced exile in N’Djamena, Chad, where she lived in seclusion due to illness and trauma.

Author Calixthe Beyala has publicly asserted that Awa is no longer alive, suggesting she may have died in military custody. Human rights organizations have previously petitioned the Head of State to address what they termed a “state kidnapping.” The case has drawn significant attention due to previous instances of journalists and detainees dying in state custody.