Ever since Cameroon’s long-serving president, Paul Biya, announced his national dialogue in lieu of the inclusive dialogue called for by the international community, many hypocrites have sprung into action.

Some are still speaking the old and provocative language that brought about the crisis in the two English-speaking regions of the country.

Many claim federalism is not good for the country, adding that it is too expensive. Many of them fail to understand that excessive centralization is hyper-expensive, as it creates the conditions for corruption and the abuse of power.

Corruption is expensive. The number of government officials in jail today and the amounts of money they are being accused of embezzling speak to the fact that corruption is more expensive than federalism.

The current form of the state is to blame for most of the country’s woes and suggesting that it cannot be changed simply implies the chaos of the past three years should continue.

If the form of the state cannot be discussed and changed, then the so-called national dialogue does not need to take place. Mr. Biya’s government has had multiple opportunities to make Cameroon great, but he has misused every single opportunity available to him.

The Tripartite Talks and the 1996 Constitutional talks were huge opportunities for him to endear himself to Cameroonians. He unfortunately missed all the targets.

If Mr. Biya and his CPDM government do not walk away from their old ways, then they want more bloodshed in Cameroon. The country has already lost a lot of blood and it is time to turn off the unpleasant streams of blood that have turned our country into an abattoir.

The government must always bear in mind that the dynamics have changed. The Internet has come and it has come to stay and Cameroonians will use it to expose the corruption and the dishonesty of Cameroon government officials.

Besides, if Southern Cameroonians are not satisfied with the outcome of the so-called dialogue, they will ensure that more guns head to Cameroon for action and this will be bad news for the suffering masses. We must avoid this.

Today, it is not only the government that can purchase weapons. The equation has changed. Government officials must always know that they cannot always lead Cameroonians by their noses.

As Cameroonians, we must work hard to ensure that old demons do not rear their ugly heads again in our country. We must prevent bloodshed in our country by having a frank and fruitful discussion on the Southern Cameroons issue and other problems that have pitted ordinary citizens against their own government.

Francophones should understand that they must never speak for Southern Cameroonians. They do not understand the issues and they are easily corruptible and contented with whatever crumbs Mr. Biya has for them.

Southern Cameroonians know they deserve more. They also know how to be patient. But after five decades of patience, they feel it is time to do things differently and that was why they stood up as one man to challenge the Yaounde authoritarian regime.

And they will never be apologetic about it. Cameroon belongs to all of those who have been born in the country and it will be preposterous to let a few people exploit others. It is always great to live for a day as a lion than to live for a century as a sheep. Southern Cameroonians have proven that.

They have also proven that they still have a stomach for a fight if the government still wants to continue with its manipulation and tricks.

The financial resources are there and there is a huge pool of willing fighters prepared and ready to muddy the waters.

The irony is that it is the government itself that has created the huge pool of fighters. Its inability to create jobs for young graduates has only made it possible for the government’s enemies to create work for the idle hands and minds that are available across the country.

Second, the government’s arrogance has also made things easy for Cameroonians to hate it. An efficient and arrogant government can only incur the people’s wrath. The government’s refusal to heed the people’s call for changes in the manner in which the country is being run has only made the country ungovernable.

The form of the state must change for peace to prevail. If Francophones are happy with Mr. Biya’s disastrous decentralization, let them know that Southern Cameroonians will never accept that.

Like most Cameroonians, I don’t want any more bloodshed. I want to see honesty and determination during the so-called talks which are gradually turning into a carnival of press releases and motions of support for Paul Biya.

This is bad news for some of us who hold that the dialogue could bring about peace. The guns, that have spoken for three years should be silenced for us to make giant strides.

However, the government must understand that Southern Cameroonians will always keep their gun option on the table if the government does not change its ways. The chaos of the past will always be a reminder to the government whenever it wants to play its pranks.

The fund-raising events will surely continue until the right solutions are found if the government does not display a lot of good faith.

Cameroon is bigger than Paul Biya. It is bigger than the ruling CPDM. The chaos of the last three years should always serve as a reminder each time a major decision has to be taken.

The government should also seek to repair its relation with the country’s Diaspora. The Diaspora has the resources to destabilize the country for a long time.

Having a good relationship with it, implies that those resources could be converted into investment funds.

Dr Joachim Arrey

President Buhari shares paternity with Paul Biya of Cameroon in leadership style. Both men are joined by the umbilicus of repression and abrasion.

In 2010, Bertrand Teyou, an author, was sentenced to two years imprisonment for insulting the wife of Biya, Chantal. The Cameroonian Government filed charges against him for this spectacular reason.

Under Biya, Southern Cameroon has become the scene of a volcanic crisis – killings, illegal detentions and arrests. Specifically, the government is zeroing in on dissenting voices in effecting these violations.

I think, the situation is much more execrable in Nigeria than in Cameroon.

Amnesty International encapsulates it in these words: ‘’The human rights situation in Nigeria is marked by serious human rights violations such as extrajudicial executions, arbitrary arrests and detentions, torture and other ill-treatment, enforced disappearances, violence against women and girls, restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, mass forced evictions, environmental pollution and lack of accountability for human rights violations and abuses.’’

As a matter of fact, the Buhari government has racked up egregious human rights records more than any other administration before it. In 2017, the United States Department of State released a convicting exposition on this villainy.

“Impunity remained widespread at all levels of government.

“The government did not adequately investigate or prosecute most of the major outstanding allegations of human rights violations by the security forces or the majority of cases of police or military extortion or other abuse of power.

“Authorities generally did not hold police, military, or other security force personnel accountable for the use of excessive or deadly force or for the deaths of persons in custody.

“State and federal panels of inquiry investigating suspicious deaths generally did not make their findings public,” it said.

I have studied the charges levelled against Omoyele Sowore, publisher of SaharaReporters, and they ossify my position that the gentleman is being put through a mill of thistles and thorns for being a relentless critic of the administration.

He is charged with ‘’insulting’’ the President, and for transferring money from New York to Nigeria? What a phenomenal charge? Obviously, Sowore’s only crime is that he has a roaring voice which puts the foundations of Aso Rock to fright.

And does it mean words cannot change the General, but they get to him?

Really, the cyberstalking law, by which Sowore is charged, was fashioned under President Jonathan. This was, perhaps, the former President’s response to social media criticism at the time. But the law, being defective, was never applied under him.

Jonathan was vilified, abused and defamed but not one Nigerian was incarcerated or charged with ‘’treason’’. In fact, in the North, coffins with photos and semblances of Jonathan were coursed through the streets by dissenters but not a single protester was detained. And he was even stoned in Yola on his way to Taraba.

These were clearly grievous offences that are punishable by the law. But a democrat will see beyond an act and ask, ‘’why is this happening? Why are citizens angry?’’

Although Jonathan was not without freckles, he exercised his own brutish aspect with the clampdown on media organisations.

Really, only a non-performing government will be afraid of citizens’ protests or interpret civil actions as subversion. Only a failing administration will be extremely irritated by criticisms and divergent opinions.

In the case of Sowore, he has exercised himself in the discipline of civil opposition. He has only used his voice as a protected child of the Nigerian constitution.

Section 39(1) of the 1999 constitution establishes that “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information without interference.”

This is the grundnorm to which all laws submit. This is the pillar on which our democracy is built.

The charges cannot stand. But why do dictators rise in AFRICA? It is because of the people, who do nothing; who enable them and who only pray for an end to their suffering.

Culled from Sahara Reporters

Cameroon is going through the toughest moment of its life and the future looks bleak as the Central African country deals with multiple crises. The country’s economy is facing tough times and the level of employment is very high. But it is the Anglophone crisis that is the government’s toughest challenge. The country’s president, Paul Biya, recently addressed the nation and called for a national dialogue that should help the country heal. After the address, staff lady Chi Prudence Asong spoke with Dr. Joachim Arrey, a writer, who has continued writing on how the government could proceed to end the crisis that has resulted in the deaths of many people and he had this to say.

Cameroon Concord News: What is your impression about the president’s address to the nation?

Dr Arrey Jaochim: I think it was an opportunity to reassure Cameroonians. The address comes a bit too late, but better late than never. The president should have done this a lot earlier to spare the country and the international community the horror movie that has been playing out in the country’s two English-speaking regions for almost three years. The country’s economy has been hurt, many people have been displaced and thousands have lost their lives in a conflict that could have been prevented. However, I think we should be forward-looking. Many mistakes have been made, but I think the call for dialogue is an opportunity for Cameroonians to take a long and hard look at their country’s past to figure out how to address those issues that have brought untold hardship on the people. It is also an opportunity to address the Southern Cameroonian issue once and for all.

Cameroon Concord News: The dialogue has already begun as the Prime Minister has been receiving many delegations to obtain their views. It has been announced that the main event will start on 30 September. What do you think about the government’s approach?

Dr Arrey Joachim: I think the government is doing something, but the population is simply not happy with what it is doing. It is a good idea to receive opinions from political parties and traditional leaders, but it should be pointed out that Southern Cameroonians who have triggered this dialogue do no longer trust their politicians and traditional leaders, most of whom have escaped to East Cameroon as a result of the conflict. This conflict is born out of frustration and marginalization and the government should understand that certain measures need to be taken now to instil confidence in the English-speaking minority if it wants its dialogue not to end up as a deadlock.  The truth is that those who have financed this revolution are living abroad and the best the government can do is to head to those countries and try to negotiate. The government itself has lost credibility and those living abroad will never take it seriously. The government needs to seek a mediator who must be impartial and objective to ensure that the country does not end up with a deadlock on its hand. That is why many people around the round still express fear and doubts as to the government’s sincerity in organizing a dialogue. The government seems to be playing the role of a judge and jury at the same time.  I would advise that the United Nations be given a chance to play an important role so that Southern Cameroonians can feel that there is a neutral third party involved. If Mr. Biya really wants peace to return to Cameroon, then he must yield a lot of ground and must yield to calls for an international mediator.

Cameroon Concord News: But the president did also say that there was nobody to discuss with and that has been the issue facing the government for all these years.

Dr Arrey Joachim: I think Mr. Biya is frozen in time. He is of the opinion that he knows it all and the other Cameroonians are not smart enough to generate any good idea. If he had listened to many people just when the crisis started, we would not be where we are today. If he had addressed the nation using the right words at the beginning of the crisis, more than 2,000 lives would have been spared. Saying that he cannot find someone to dialogue with only makes him sound ridiculous. He seems to be looking for a solution that is already in his bedroom. As far as Southern Cameroonians are concerned, Julius Ayuk Tabe is their president and a poster boy of the rebellion. Besides Julius Ayuk Tabe, there are many other leaders in jail. If ?r: Biya were serious about this dialogue which I am considering as a deadlock, he would grant general amnesty to all those arrested during the crisis as well as people living abroad who have been directly or indirectly linked to the crisis. This will not only be a goodwill gesture, but a clear signal that he wants things to return to normal. History is littered with stories of people who have negotiated for their groups while in jail. Nelson Mandela did it for South Africans and Julius Ayuk Tabe can also do it for Southern Cameroonians.

Cameroon Concord News: But it is held that Mr. Julius Ayuk Tabe and Co. are terrorists because of their role in the rebellion.

Dr Arrey Joachim: I think it is time to change the rhetoric. If the government continues to use the anti-terrorism law to eliminate its opponents, nobody will ever have confidence in it. Julius Ayuk Tabe and others arrested in the context of this conflict are not terrorists. They are freedom fighters who truly hold that the Yaounde system needs to change. They hold that Southern Cameroonians have been marginalized for too long and despite all the peaceful means used over the last four decades to draw the attention of the government to the sorry plight of the people of Southern Cameroons, the Yaounde government has continued to argue that there is no marginalization in Cameroon. The best any reasonable person can do is to listen to those who are complaining. Killing and jailing them will not cause the problem to go away.  The anti-terrorism law should not be used by the government to push the country into conflicts that are sapping its economy of its vitality. For real development to take place in Cameroon, there must be peace. The government of Cameroon must live up to the expectations of its people. It must sow the seeds of peace and must understand that a government is not chosen for it to oppress its people, but to create the right conditions for its citizens to prosper and live life in a peaceful environment.

Cameroon Concord News: Will you attend the national dialogue in Yaounde?

Dr Arrey Joachim: Personally, I do not need to be physically present in Yaounde for me to contribute my ideas. I have been writing for decades to let the government know that something is broken and needs to be fixed. My role as a writer is to inform and admonish, where necessary. It is also up to the government to accept what I say or write. But it now knows that failure to listen could lead to the type of disaster the country has witnessed over the last three years. As far as I am concerned, the government should ensure that the Diaspora is properly represented. However, I don’t know how that will happen as Mr. Biya and his government are still threatening the Diaspora with arrests. The Yaounde government needs to fix its relationship with the Diaspora. The Diaspora has the resources to destabilize Cameroon for a long time. If the government really wants to succeed, then it must send delegations to London, Washington and Toronto to meet with those who can help Cameroon return to the path of peace. I know you will be surprised that I have mentioned Toronto and not Ottawa, but I would be quick to add that Toronto is where the money has been coming from. If you need to address the right crowd, then the Greater Toronto Area is where you should be, as many successful Cameroonians have settled in places like Brampton, Mississauga and Ajax which constitute the Greater Toronto Area and most of them are in the private sector and have the resources to keep Yaounde politicians awake all night.

Cameroon Concord News: Which other group of people would you recommend for the national dialogue?

Dr Arrey Joachim: I would recommend religious leaders and activists. These groups of people can make or mar the national dialogue. Religious leaders are much respected in Southern Cameroons. Their views should be taken seriously. Activists also have a huge following.  If the government wants them to change their perspective and their rhetoric, then it must stretch a hand of friendship to journalists and activists. When you need peace, you must bend over backwards to have it.

Cameroon Concord News: Will you be willing to work for the government so that you can share your views with the authorities?

Dr Arrey Joachim: I will continue to use all the platforms available to me to share my perspective. I do not need to work for the government for my views to be known. I have been writing and will continue to do so for a long time. As a writer, my role is to inform and not to be a bureaucrat. There are other Cameroonians who can deliver more than me. I prefer to be on the sidelines to draw the government’s attention to mistakes that may cause our country to implode, but I will always do so in all objectivity and honesty.  That is my role and I love to play it.

Cameroon Concord News: Thank you Dr. Joachim Arrey for sharing your thoughts with us.

In December 2019, Cameroon Concord News Group shall be announcing the Man of the Year!!  We are asking our readers and subscribers to nominate their own personal Man of the Year.

Over the years, we of the Concord Group have seen a few same float to the top!! However, it is vital to observe that ever since we started the Man of the Year Award in 1999 in Essen Germany, the variety of responses from our readers have been surprising and truthfully, a little touching.

Here are some of our favourites for 2019:Prime Minister Dion Ngute, the Ambazonia leader Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, the commander of the Ambazonia Restoration Forces in the Lebialem County, Field Marshal, Journalist Mimi Mefo and Prof Maurice Kamto!!

Let your voice be heard!! Nominate a man or woman with solid personal achievements for the Cameroon Concord Man of the Year Award 2019

By Chi Prudence Asong

Despite mounting French Cameroun army atrocities in Southern Cameroons and towards the Ambazonia leadership, Biya and his gang of French Cameroun political elites should begin dealing directly with the Ambazonian leader, President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe in an effort to bring the violence in Southern Cameroons under control and get both sides of the political divide to the negotiating table in a foreign land and with a neutral third party to chair the talks.

Biya’s recent call for national dialogue which has become increasingly common in French Cameroun editorial columns, on the floor of the Francophone dominated national assembly and in open-door cabinet meetings in the Star Building presided over by Prime Minister Dion Ngute will fail woefully.

The Francophone political elites who have erected a stonewall all in a bid to prevent Biya from holding talks with the Ambazonian leadership are making the same serious error the late Prof Martin Belinga and Rene Sadi made by deceiving the Buhari administration in Nigeria that arresting President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and his top aides will bring an end to hostilities.

French Cameroun political elites who say the so-called national dialogue should be held without the jailed Ambazonia leadership do not understand the nature of the Southern Cameroons crisis and the Southern Cameroons Interim Government.

We of the Cameroon Concord News Group do not believe that this is a duel between two personalities, Biya and Ayuk Tabe. It is a confrontation between two different peoples, French Cameroun and British Southern Cameroons. Correspondingly, it is a costly mistake on the French Cameroun side to ignore the fact that President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe represents the Southern Cameroons people — their hopes, their desperation, their mistakes, and their language and not Peter Mafany Musonge, Atanga Nji or Dion Ngute.  It is also an illusion to think that if Sisiku Ayuk Tabe is kept in jail for life, the problems of the one and indivisible Cameroon would be solved.

Pro Biya comedians such as Ngolle Ngolle Elvis, Victor Mengot, Paul Tasong and Elung Paul also forget, or unrealistically discount, the wide-ranging international Southern Cameroons diaspora support that President Sisiku Ayuk has cultivated from South Africa and Europe to much of the USA and Canada.

The arrest of President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and his top aides in Abuja, Nigeria and the systematic infiltration of the Ambazonia Interim Government under Dr Sako Ikome by French Cameroun agents caused the Southern Cameroons Interim Government to lose control over armed Ambazonia factions operating in both the Northern and Southern Zones of Ambazonia.

For the sake of Biya’s own legacy, and peace in the Gulf of Guinea, Biya and French Cameroun must make sure that the Ambazonia Interim Government has one authority over the rifles in Southern Cameroons. Bankrolling the creation of several militias in Southern Cameroons is not the solution but is instead making matters more intractable.

Though Ambazonia Restoration Forces have made no fatal attacks on French Cameroun army soldiers in the last several days, it is evident that those attacks will resume as the diaspora have began regrouping under the banner of Patriotic Amba Citizens and raising tens of thousand dollars in 72 hours to finance the resistance and its jailed leadership.

Biya and French Cameroun for the last time should avoid counterproductive acts that could further inflame the situation and drag the fighting into French Cameroun. Added to this hydra-headed situation is the fact that it is indeed hard to tell who has legitimate authority in French Cameroun.

French Cameroun Minister of Interior, Paul Atanga Nji has constantly contradicted Prime Minister Dion Ngute on the way forward in resolving the crisis in Ambazonia. Biya himself has also been flip-flopping on his position! Today he is not talking to terrorists; tomorrow he is willing to dialogue with separatists. Yet his acolytes insist that when he articulates policy he speaks for the entire government of French Cameroun.

In his rare televised address to French speaking Cameroonians recently, Biya proposed nothing as a long-term plan for Southern Cameroonians. We of the Concord Group are aware that Biya will come under fierce criticism if he meets with President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe but that will be the right thing to do.

Biya and French Cameroun are claiming that they cannot negotiate under fire from the Ambazonia Interim Government but Vice President Dabney Yerima of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has also opined that Biya must talk to the jailed Ambazonia leaders about how to bring an end to the fire.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

At least 2,000 people have died in the insurgency that began in 2017 in the country’s North-West and South-West regions, where Cameroon’s English-speaking minority is concentrated. English-speakers have accused the French-speaking majority of marginalizing them politically and economically. A government crackdown on a 2016 strike organized by Anglophone teachers and lawyers precipitated the creation of a violent, separatist movement to form a new independent nation called Ambazonia.

Undeterred by international criticism, Biya actually appeared to be stepping up his attacks on the separatists in the months after his October 2018 reelection, as Robbie Corey-Boulet reported in April for WPR. The situation further deteriorated last month when a military tribunal sentenced an Anglophone separatist leader and nine of his followers to life in prison. Separatists have responded with attacks on government security forces and kidnappings of officials perceived to be allied with the regime. They have also instituted a broad shutdown of shops and social services in the Anglophone region. Hundreds of thousands of people have fled their homes.

“We should all know that we are Cameroonians, appointed to serve Cameroon, not our tribes or linguistic groups,” Biya proclaimed in his speech. But even as he announced the dialogue, Biya refused to confirm whether separatist representatives would even be invited.

The process is also set to address other national emergencies, including the Boko Haram insurgency along Cameroon’s border with Nigeria and post-election violence that occurred following Biya’s latest victory.

Culled from World Politics Review

The President did not go far enough, yet he went a distance he has not gone before.

Firstly this speech addressed specifically the Anglophone Crisis, something we have called for since March 2017.

Secondly, he admitted there was a crisis and for the first time apologized and extended condolences to the people affected.

Thirdly, he even attempted to explain his choices and decisions made, something he never has done in the past.

Fourthly he called for dialogue. While the details will have to follow and necessary good faith he heed to the call.

Fifthly while not admitting he will be obliged to consider pardons as part of this broad based dialogue. He insinuated that those who drop arms will not be persecuted. This still leaves the large number in detention to be addressed.

The President failed in my opinion to admit his own government’s shortcomings. If everything was alright then why the dialogue. He also could at least have extended pardon to the leaders who were extradited from Nigeria so to create a platform for meaningful dialogue.

He also could have made a historical reference to the two Cameroons coming together and that the dialogue will enable Cameroonians to evaluate our progress over the last 50 years and take action to resolve the differences.

While he mentioned rehabilitation, it is imperative that he creates the condition necessary for such rehabilitation. This was not evident in his speech.

Many had hoped for more than this. Some for a resignation but practically we are in the middle. There is an opportunity here, let us make the most of it.

Source: AO

iamcameroon

The latest failure by the regime in Yaoundé to get schools in Southern Cameroons up and running again shows that the Ambazonia Interim Government still enjoys massive support among the people of Southern Cameroons and this should serve as a wakeup call to the international community to put their houses in order and accept the reality that Biya and his French Cameroun political elites are fast losing relevance.

Ever since the Yaoundé Military Tribunal sentenced the Ambazonia leader President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and nine of his top aides to life in prison, Southern Cameroonians have rallied behind their exiled government which now enjoys the trust of the people on Ground Zero.  The Ambazonia leader, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe enjoys greater support in both the rural and urban areas in the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

Cameroon Concord News Group understands that the people in Ground Zero trust the Ambazonia President more than the influential Roman Catholic religious leaders in the country. We also gathered that Southern Cameroonians advocating for decentralization and federalism are the least trusted.

Reacting to the failed attempt at getting Ambazonia children back to school in 2019, Vice President Dabney Yerima urged the European Union and the United Nations Security Council to take the outcome of this year’s so-called back to school seriously, introspect and accept the stark reality that they are fast losing touch and are simply encouraging the French Cameroun genocidal campaign in Southern Cameroons.

Vice President Dabney Yerima observed that the international community should listen more to the people of Southern Cameroons, rather than assume the defensive mode constantly being employed by the French Cameroun government in Yaounde. Dabney Yerima hinted that the back to school boycott in Ambazonia commands attention and respect and any attempt by the United Nations Central Africa Regional Representative to ignore the Ambazonia collective action will not be helpful.

The Cameroon Radio and Television (CRTV) aired conflicting reports on the back to school in Southern Cameroons which the Ambazonia Interim Government noted that they were part of a grand French Cameroun conspiracy.

The leadership of the Ambazonia Interim Government opined recently that the international community needs to understand the Southern Cameroons terrain in which they are operating and map out strategies to facilitate the independence of Southern Cameroons.

The boycott of schools and the success of the lockdown in Southern Cameroons also indicate that President Biya and French Cameroun are of no relevance in Ambazonia. The fractious nature of the Southern Cameroons revolutionary groups have led to the plummeting fortunes of the resistance. However, on the other hand, President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe has consistently provided responsible leadership and maintained unity in the Ambazonia Interim Government despite upheavals linked to the corrupt former acting leaders.

What is clear from this year’s school boycott is that Sisiku Ayuk Tabe is the central figure and embodiment of the Southern Cameroons resistance,  while Biya and his consortium of CPDM crime syndicates are losing relevance both in Southern and French Cameroun.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

Ten leaders of the separatist Ambazonia Interim Government in Cameroon lodged an appeal on August 26, 2019, against their August 20 convictions and life sentences by a military court following a trial that raises serious concerns of due process and violations of fair-trial rights.

Although the trial, on charges including terrorism, rebellion, and secession, commenced in December 2018, all the alleged evidence against the men was only presented to the defense in court during a single 17-hour overnight hearing that started on August 19. The court admitted thousands of pages of statements and documents as evidence against the accused and over 1,000 items of forensic evidence, such as guns, spears, and laptops, that defense lawyers told Human Rights Watch they did not know about and were unable to examine, discuss with their clients, or effectively challenge.

“It appears that the military court handed down a hasty verdict and sentence without giving the accused any meaningful opportunity to defend themselves,” said Lewis Mudge, Central Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “This process has been plagued by pretrial abuses and serious allegations of fair-trial breaches that warrant independent and impartial judicial review, which we hope will happen under appeal.”

The trial, which was conducted in French without adequate translation though the defendants were entitled to a trial in English, their mother tongue and an official language in Cameroon, took place after serious violations of the defendants’ rights in detention. Defense lawyers accused the judges of bias and withdrew from the proceedings after the main military judge threatened them with arrest for raising objections.

Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, head of what is known as the “Ambazonia government,” and nine other leaders had been arrested in January 2018 in Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, and forcibly returned to Cameroon, in an extrajudicial transfer that was denounced by the United Nations Refugee Agency as violating the fundamental principle of non-refoulement – the practice of not forcing refugees or asylum seekers back to a country where they risk persecution, torture, or other cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. The forced return of the 10 leaders was also declared illegal by a Nigerian court in March 2019. The men were then held in incommunicado detention at the State Defense Secretariat detention facility (Secrétariat d’État à la défense, SED) for six months, during which they had no access to their lawyers and families. Human Rights Watch has documented that torture and other abuses are endemic at the SED.

Fru John Nsoh, lead counsel for the separatist leaders, told Human Rights Watch that while the trial of his clients started in December 2018, all hearings prior to August 19 focused on peripheral procedural matters. He said that defense lawyers had no prior knowledge of the evidence presented to the court by the prosecution, and were not given any chance to view, comment, or object to the evidence, nor were they permitted to cross examine the four witnesses called by the prosecution.

The men were also tried before a military tribunal, despite international standards deeming the trial of civilians in military courts, in principle, to be incompatible with the right to a fair trial. Cameroon has been condemned by the UN Human Rights Committee for prosecuting civilians before military tribunals. The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has also repeatedly reinforced that under regional human rights standards, including the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the trial of civilians in military courts is prohibited without exception, and that the only purpose of military courts should “be to determine offences of a purely military nature committed by military personnel.”

The crisis unfolding in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions broke out around October 2016, when students, teachers, and lawyers from the region took to the streets to demand greater respect for their rights. In response, security forces unlawfully killed and arbitrarily arrested peaceful protesters, escalating the crisis. Since then, numerous separatist groups have emerged, taking up arms and calling for the independence of the North-West and South-West regions, which they call “Ambazonia.”

Armed separatists have committed numerous abuses against civilians, including kidnappings for ransom, torture, and unlawful killings. They have also attacked dozens of school buildings and occupied them. They have also enforced a boycott of schools, disrupting the education of thousands of children since 2017. Human Rights Watch cannot comment on the credibility of the charges brought against the men in connection with any crimes committed by armed separatists.

The Cameroon military court also ordered the 10 men to pay fines totalling 262 billion CFA francs (US$442,000) for civil damages and court costs.

“To conduct a trial with these kinds of due process violations is no way to uphold rule of law and human rights in the midst of an escalating crisis in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon,” Mudge said. “The Cameroonian authorities should focus on addressing the legitimate grievances of its Anglophone population and make sure that members of the security forces who are responsible for abuses are held accountable.”

Source: Human Rights Watch

It is evidently clear that regional and international leaders are not involved in the crisis in Southern Cameroons and the African Union, the European Union and the United Nations have proven to be either terribly insensitive or outright psychopaths. To be accurate, the international community clearly doesn’t care how their policies harm ordinary Southern Cameroonians.

The international community’s choice was clear from the outset: kick out Biya to save the so-called one and indivisible Cameroun, or sacrifice the Republic of Cameroon to save Biya. The ruling CPDM party embraced the latter to preserve itself and more than 4,000 Southern Cameroonians have died in the on-going process. No regrets from Yaoundé and pro Biya Southern Cameroons criminals such as Atanga Nji, Peter Mafany Musonge, Victor Mengot, Paul Tasong and Dion Ngute.

When the French Cameroun army failed to crush the Ambazonian Self-Defense Forces, the Southern Cameroons Interim Government and the Southern Cameroons diaspora stepped in to protect the territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, and in the process another 2,000 or more were killed. Again, no worry! no sorry! None!

As that effort also failed following the arrest and forced extradition of the Southern Cameroons leader and his top aides from Abuja to Yaoundé and the election of disgraced Dr Ikome Sako at the head of the Southern Cameroons Interim Government, the jailed leadership stepped in again stating that the complete independence for Southern Cameroons is the only way forward.

So, will 6,000 more Southern Cameroonians die to show that the 86 years old President Biya can no longer rule over Southern Cameroons?

Ever since the United Nations Security Council decided to back off from the threat to hit the Biya regime with sanctions following its refusal to engage in meaningful dialogue, the West has argued, rather poorly, that it was in the best interest for La Republique du Cameroun to manage the deteriorating situation in Southern Cameroons and that outside involvement was no remedy for the war.

Correspondingly, instead of putting the UN and the Commonwealth’s weight behind a political solution, UN and the Commonwealth including the African Union chief diplomats have all chosen to start a long-term campaign of receiving gifts of gold from President Biya. In the process, the Southern Cameroons crisis has become an alibi for international civil servants and diplomats to interfere in La Republique Du Cameroun as long as they steered away from the Biya regime.

Thanks to the US ambassador to Cameroon, the regime in Yaoundé failed to paint the Southern Cameroons crisis as a new landscape for a renewed so-called war on terror. As we write, no one is coordinating any action to pave the way for a political solution in Southern Cameroons.

By Asu Isong in London