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6, December 2020

French Cameroun: Social media a major factor in domestic tensions ⁰

Social media in Cameroon are heightening political and ethnic tensions unleashed by the disputed 2018 presidential election – that’s according to a report by the International Crisis Group. The ICG says social media platforms, especially Facebook, should improve filtering toxic content and promote verified pages to reduce the tensions.

The ICG report says Cameroon is already facing serious security challenges and should find a way to ease political tensions and stop offensive language, such as ethnic slurs, that are causing the central African country to sink into violence.

Arrey Elvis Ntui, the ICG’s senior analyst for Cameroon, says hate speech and inter-ethnic tensions have increased since the October 2018 poll. He says the hate speech problem could endanger Cameroon’s stability.

“This period has also been marked by a lot of street protests. The country is currently dealing with a separatist insurgency in its Anglophone regions. Also, the army is dealing with the Boko Haram insurgency in the far north of the country with nearly daily attacks. Cameroon cannot simply afford to allow the ethnic and political tensions it is facing to rise to levels where they could constitute inter community violence,” Ntui said.

President Paul Biya, who has been in power for 38 years, was declared the winner of the elections. His victory is still contested by opposition leader Maurice Kamto, who insists he, not Biya, prevailed in the poll.

Ntui says Cameroon can avoid a slide into instability by reforming its electoral system.

“[The International] Crisis Group is proposing that Cameroon should strengthen its institutions which are responsible for addressing discrimination and improving its policy of living together. Some of these include discussions with the extra-parliamentary opposition in order to review the electoral system to make it more acceptable,” he said.

Ntui said the ruling CPDM party and the opposition should take measures to address the excesses of their supporters on social media, especially Facebook. He added that Facebook itself should also help check inflammatory language, provocative content and fake news which, he said, contribute to inflaming ethnic and political tension in the country.

Government spokesperson Rene Emmanuel Sadi said there is growing hate speech due to social media. He blamed opposition parties that he says want to weaken Biya’s rule.

“The government of the republic appeals to the majority of the Cameroonian people who have never allowed themselves to be misguided by unscrupulous politicians. The government through my voice exhorts Cameroonian men and women at home and abroad to thwart destabilizing maneuvers wherever they come from,” Sadi said.

Thursday’s report comes at a time when NGOs and journalism groups in Cameroon are warning against the use of media organs to propagate hate speech.

Rose Obah, the national coordinator of the Cameroon Community Media Network, said journalists should not be used as propaganda tools.

“We just come in to advise our members of our Cameroon Community Media Network as well as other journalists to be the first persons to [exercise] some kind of censorship around hate speech and fake news. Such words are unhealthy. Such words just come in to incite more violence and definitely with our main tool, peace journalism, we use it to encourage reporters and editors to encourage a peaceful society,” Obah said.

The ICG says President Biya should be wary of leaving behind a country riven with fighting and separatist sentiment in Anglophone areas but also by wider tensions, endangering Cameroon’s relatively amicable inter-ethnic relations.

Source: VOA

5, December 2020

France-Afrique: Military officer elected head of Mali’s interim legislature ⁰

Mali’s interim legislature on Saturday elected Colonel Malick Diaw, a member of the military junta that toppled president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita in August, as its president.

The 121-seat body known as the National Transition Council was meeting for its inaugural session in the capital Bamako, and is a key part of the post-coup interim government apparatus in Mali.

Young army officers in the conflict-ridden Sahel state toppled president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita on August 18 after weeks of anti-government protests.

Under the threat of international sanctions, the officers between September and October handed power to an interim government, which is meant to rule for 18 months before staging elections.

Figures with army links dominate this interim government, however, and anger over their prominent role is growing.

Coup leader Colonel Assimi Goita was elected interim vice president, for example, and retired army colonel Bah Ndaw was also elected interim president.

Members of the defence and security forces have 22 seats in the transition council, according to a government decree, while political parties, civil society groups and trade unions also have seats.

On Saturday, the council elected Colonel Malick Diaw as its president unopposed, according to AFP journalists, with 111 votes in his favour and seven abstentions. Three council members did not vote.

Diaw was second in command of the military junta that took power after Keita’s ouster. The junta has never formally been dissolved.

Last month, Goita was also given veto power over the appointments to the new legislature, in a move seen by critics of the interim regime as strengthening army control.

The opposition June 5 Movement, which led protests against Keita this year, said in a statement on Friday that it was boycotting the new legislature and that it would not serve as a “stooge for a disguised military regime”.

Source: AFP

5, December 2020

Ambazonia Interim Gov’t confirms four-day lockdown ⁰

Southern Cameroons Vice President Dabney Yerima has confirmed a four-day lockdown of Ambazonia territory that started on Friday against the staging of French Cameroun so-called pioneer regional elections scheduled for today Sunday December 5.

The lockdown will run from Friday to Monday, according to a statement issued by the Southern Cameroons Interim Government on social media.

We understand the streets have been deserted and all sorts of activities are not operational. Ambazonia Restoration Forces have also issued death threats to residents if they participate in the Biya Francophone election.

On Wednesday, the Francophone dominated army told observer missions and media organizations that it has taken necessary security measures to ensure the elections unfold without hitches in Southern Cameroons.

The ruling CPDM party hopes today’s regional elections will help appease Southern Cameroonians by accelerating decentralization.

Southern Cameroons Self Defense Groups have been clashing with Cameroon government forces since 2017 in a bid to defend their homeland now known as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

By Fon Lawrence in Bamenda

5, December 2020

Cameroon becomes the 33rd party to ratify the AfCFTA ⁰

Cameroon has joined the list of countries to formally ratify the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement, one month to the commencement of trading, the African Union Commission’s (AUC) Trade Commissioner Albert Muchanga announced today.

“The Republic of Cameroon became the 33rd AfCFTA State Party following the deposit of its instrument of ratification this 1st December, 2020,” Ambassador Muchanga said on his Twitter handle.

Cameroon’s decision comes after Lesotho and Tunisia submitted their own instruments on 27 November, leaving only 21 countries yet to ratify the treaty. They are Benin, Botswana, Burundi, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia and Libya. The others are Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco, Mozambique, Nigeria, Seychelles, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania and Zambia.

The AfCFTA agreement entered into force on 30 May 2019 after the treaty was ratified by 22 countries — the minimum number required under the treaty — out of the 54 that agreed to be members of the bloc. Eritrea is the only country which has yet to make any commitment to the continental body.

Trading was earlier scheduled to start on 1 July this year but it was postponed for six months owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The AfCFTA provides the opportunity for Africa to create the world’s largest free trade area with the potential to unite more than 1.2 billion people in a $2.5 trillion economic bloc and usher in a new era of development. It has the potential to generate a range of benefits through supporting trade creation, structural transformation, productive employment and poverty reduction.

The ECA through its African Trade Policy Centre has been working with the AU to deepen Africa’s trade integration through the effective implementation of the agreement by supporting the AfCFTA ratification process through policy advocacy.

The ECA is also assisting the member-states to develop national strategies for the implementation of the AfCFTA in partnership with the AUC, International Trade Centre (ITC), the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and a selection of independent trade experts with the financial support of the European Union (EU).

Source: Modern Ghana

5, December 2020

The cost to repair the fire-damaged Sonara refinery in Southern Cameroons is 250 billion FCFA ⁰

The cost to repair the fire-damaged Sonara refinery in Cameroon is 250 billion Central African francs ($461.8 million).

Even before Sonara has a chance to consider this investment, it must restructure its debt, Cameroon Minister of Water and Energy Gaston Eloundou told parliament on December 1.

The official said that talks were under way with “technical and financial partners who have expressed interest in the reconstruction of this refinery. However, the finalisation of these negotiations depends on the restructuring of Sonara’s large debt,” according to local newspaper Legideon.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has reported that Sonara’s debt was 731bn CFA ($1.35bn) as of the end of July. The IMF did say that progress has been made on restructuring.

Sonara became unable to pay its debts following the fire at the Limbe plant in May 2019. This damaged four of the 13 units at the facility. It is not yet clear which companies might be interested in rebuilding the facility, although Russia’s Lukoil has been mentioned.

Debt plans

As of September, local banks holding around one third of the debt had agreed to a process. This is based on a five-year plan of Sonara operating solely as an oil importer, the state providing a letter of comfort for the banks and a new levy to support the refiner.

Cameroon set new product prices in March. These include a 47.88 CFA ($0.09) per litre levy intended to repay Sonara’s debt. The international agency said the new price structure should generate enough revenues to pay the debt.

Should the refiner not be able to complete the restructuring, it would endanger Cameroon’s outlook. The IMF has said the country is at high risk of debt distress. Should Sonara not be able to pay the local banks, this would have a knock on impact on the country’s domestic financing ability.

The IMF also reported that Cameroon was in talks with oil traders, who also hold Sonara debt.

Source: Energy Voice

5, December 2020

Boko Haram: Nigerian governor receives Cameroonian military delegation ⁰

Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, on Thursday, received a delegation of the Cameroonian military at the Government House in Maiduguri, the state capital.

At the meeting, the governor tasked the Cameroonian delegation on the need for Nigeria and Cameroon to team up to defeat the Boko Haram terrorists.

The Cameroonian military delegation was led by the 4th region joint military commander, General Saly Mohammadou. He was accompanied by Commander Sector 1 Multinational Joint Task Force, General Bouba Dobekreo; Commander Fourth Gendarmerie, Brigadier General Essoh Jules-Cesar; GOC 7 Div Bridgdier, Gen. AK Ibrahim, among others.

Zulum in a statement said the Cameroonian military was in Nigeria to share experience and improve collaboration between forces of the two countries in the fight against insurgency in the Lake Chad region.

He said, “Cameroon and Nigeria, most of our people shares the same tradition and culture. Though the insecurity has affected all the countries in the Lake Chad region, all our economies have been affected. Therefore, there is need for us to come together and fight this insurgency.

“The issue of trans-border trade is very important, all of us know Banki. We are doing everything possible to reopen Banki market, we are planning to reopen Bama-Banki road. Let us support the security architectures, so that we can ensure free movement of our people.”

Source: The Punch

5, December 2020

As Yaounde Prepares First Regional Election on Sunday, Opponents Say It’s Too Late ⁰

Cameroon will hold its first ever regional election on Sunday, as President Paul Biya seeks to quell a four-year-old separatist insurgency and appease opponents who say he has neglected the provinces for decades.

Over 10,000 local representatives will vote to appoint councils in all ten regions made up of regional delegates and traditional rulers, putting into action a 1996 law that promised decentralised government but was never enacted.

Government officials say it will give the regions greater say over spending and local governance. They hope it could also end a conflict in the English-speaking west that was sparked by the perceived marginalisation of the Anglophone minority.

The ongoing conflict has killed more than 3,000 people and become the greatest threat to Biya’s 40-year presidency of the country, where the official language is French.

Critics say the election comes too late, offers only the semblance of regional autonomy, and does little to dent Biya’s power.

It could be disrupted by separatist fighters who call it a “fraud” and the main opposition parties are boycotting, meaning the councils will likely be stacked with Biya supporters.

“If it had come in 1996, maybe it could have solved the crisis. But we are no longer at that level,” said opposition politician and former presidential candidate Joshua Osih. “The demands are beyond decentralisation. People want to take care of their own territory.”

The separatist conflict began in 2016 when teachers and lawyers protested against having to work in French.

The government cracked down on peaceful marches and armed groups responded with attacks on soldiers and policemen, calling for the creation of an independent state called Ambazonia. Civilians have also been targeted in attacks each side blames on the other.

Leading separatist Cho Ayaba said they intend seize officials organising Sunday’s vote.

“We have issued an order banning the elections … and for anyone … collaborating with Cameroon in organising this fraud to be arrested.”

Source: Thomson Reuters

4, December 2020

French Cameroun: Goods train derail in Eseka ⁰

In yet another incident on the derailment history in French Cameroun, a goods train en route to Yaoundé went off the track in the Souhè tunnel yesterday December 3, 2020. The incident took place deep within Eseka.

Cameroon Concord News gathered that due to damaged rail track on the route, all services between Douala and Yaoundé got disrupted. Images posted on social media revealed that several poles were also broken in the incident. French Cameroun railway officials are now trying to clear the route.

Train derailments have become regular at Eseka and for the past four years, the town of Eseka has become famous because of the railway disaster that occurred on October 21, 2016 “officially” killing 79 people and injuring 551.

By Rita Akana in Yaounde

4, December 2020

Turkish President Erdogan says France should ‘get rid of’ Macron soonest ⁰

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he hopes France will “get rid of” President Emmanuel Macron in the shortest possible time, in his harshest remark against the French leader yet.

“Macron is a burden on France. Macron and France are going through a very dangerous period actually. My hope is that France gets rid of the Macron trouble as soon as possible,” Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul on Friday.

Turkey and France have been at odds over a range of issues, including Ankara’s dispute with Greece over sea boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean.

France has backed Athens in the maritime dispute, taking part in joint war games with Greece and Cyprus amid conflicting Greco-Turkish claims to territory in the sea believed to be rich in oil and natural gas.

Ties between the two NATO allies have also deteriorated over conflicting policies in Syria and Libya, even though they have backed and supplied militants in the two war-ravaged Arab countries.

Ankara and Paris have also traded barbs over their roles in the recent Nagorno-Karabkah conflict.

But Erdogan has grown specially bitter toward Macron over the French president’s defense of the publication of offensive caricatures of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) by a French satirical magazine.

Anger grew across the Muslim world after Macron publicly attacked Islam in defense of the publication of the derogatory cartoons.

In early October, Macron said he would not “renounce the caricatures.” He instead described Islam as a religion “in crisis” and declared war on “Islamist separatism,” which he claimed was taking over France’s estimated six-million-strong Muslim population.

His remarks sparked sharp criticism from Muslim leaders and activists from around the world, including Erdogan, who described Macron’s posture as an “open provocation.”

Erdogan later said Macron “needs treatment on a mental level.”

Source: Presstv

4, December 2020

Brexit talks hang in the balance as EU warns it can make no more concessions ⁰

European diplomats warned Thursday they have made all the concessions they can in trade talks with Britain, as Downing Street vowed to press ahead with a UK law that could undermine Brussels’ remaining trust in London.

The EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier has been in London for six days, trying to carve out a difficult compromise with his UK counterpart David Frost and draw up a trade pact that can be ratified within weeks.

“We are at the end of a marathon, probably past the 40 kilometre (25-mile) mark. But there’s still a little way to go,” Barnier adviser Stefaan de Rynck said, during a debate at the European Policy Centre.

As the finish line nears, tempers were fraying in Brussels, with some of the EU’s 27 member states — led by France and the Netherlands — worried that Barnier would shake hands on something that in their view gives up too much ground to a country quitting the club.

An EU diplomat insisted the Europeans remain united, but warned that it was clear that Barnier “was millimetres away from the red lines” he had been given.

“I think it’s quite clear that at this moment in time that we’ve reached a point where we are so close to the limits of our mandate, that we need a movement on the side of the UK if we want to strike a deal,” he said.

“I do not have the impression that we are hours away from a deal… what has to be bridged is still quite substantial,” the diplomat added.

Negotiators are working day and night to agree on a deal in time to be ratified before December 31, when Britain will no longer be bound by EU single market rules under the terms of a post-Brexit transition.

A European source with close knowledge of the negotiations said the talks would continue on Thursday “and no doubt on Friday.”

“Everything could change at any moment,” the source said, adding that the sense of urgency was “now understood in London”.

A British government source said the EU had brought “new elements” into the negotiations. “A breakthrough is still possible in the next few days but that prospect is receding,” the source said late Thursday.

Barnier could brief EU members Friday afternoon but the meeting has yet to be confirmed, a European source said.

In London, Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman earlier said the negotiating teams were “continuing to work hard to resolve the differences that remain.”

“Our focus remains, and will continue to be, on trying to secure a free trade agreement.”

But Number 10 also confirmed that it would go ahead next week with a plan to push through the Internal Market Bill, a draft law to govern UK business after it leaves the EU single market.

Johnson admits that clauses in the bill would breach the withdrawal treaty he signed with Brussels, and EU officials have warned that it could be impossible to ratify a trade deal if he persists.

‘Hold our nerve’

The House of Lords, Britain’s upper parliamentary chamber, stripped the offending measures — which Brussels fears breach a promise to establish a customs border in the Irish Sea — from the bill.

But the spokesman said: “Our position remains unchanged. We will overturn the Lords defeat and reinsert those clauses.”

Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, on a visit to Paris, said a deal would be possible in the coming days as long as European nations “hold our nerve”.

Negotiations to determine the future trading relationship starting on January 1 are currently stalled on three key issues — fisheries, regulatory issues and governance of a future pact.

Coveney said he hoped a deal would be reached but that there would be “no further extensions” and “no extra time” beyond January 1.

But both EU member states and the European Parliament would have to ratify any accord struck between Frost and Barnier and their bosses Johnson and EU president Ursula von der Leyen.

French Prime Minister Jean Castex was in the Channel port of Boulogne on Thursday to promise French fishermen they would not be abandoned if they lose access to UK waters.

Source: AFP