Headline News

2, October 2017

French Cameroun Forces Kill Southern Cameroons Civilians, UN Secretary General Praises Biya ⁰

When Cameroon’s President for the past 30-plus years Paul Biya came to meet Antonio Guterres on September 22, before he went back to the Hotel Inter-Continental in Geneva, he was accompanied by his state media and… Inner City Press. Now Biya, still in Geneva, has directed his forced to use water cannons in Buea, as they shoot to kill in Belo in North-West Cameroon. Inner City Press asked the UN Resident Coordinator in Cameroon Allegra Baiocchi for her response – none yet – noted the similarity to the UN’s silence in Myanmar and emailed the UN’s top three spokespeople: ”

In light of the government crackdown on communications and unarmed civilians in North-West and South-West Cameroon, after the UN’s readout of September 22 and subsequent statement of concern, this is a request for the UN’s already belated response to the government’s killing. How many people does the UN acknowledge have been killed? What is the UN, both the country team and the wider UN, doing?” The lead spokesman has provided this interim response: “We will try but may not have answers until tomorrow.”

Inner City Press has asked that any and all information be emailed to it as soon as available. According to the UN read-out, the September 22 conversation was entirely positive and did not mention Biya’s abuse of Anglophones, or human rights in any way. Now on October 1 Biya’s forces have opened fire from Buea to Ikiliwindi, Mamfe to Nkwen, Ndu to Nguti. Still, grainy footage has been sent to Inner City Press of Ambazonia independence celebrations in Bamenda despite the orders against freedom of association and movement, and ultimately freedom of speech and of belief.

Biya has again undermined the Internet and rights to communicate in Southern Cameroons, to which Inner City Press after asking the UN four days in a row until exclusion now turns. Here is a letter sent not only to Inner City Press, but to the UN Office of the Spokesperson: “I am writing from Southern Cameroons. I am pleading you should use your high office to stop the genocide that President Biya wants to exercise on the English speaking Cameroonians. a lot of people have lost their lives already and yet the President of Cameroons is seriously planning to shed more blood. The truth is clear, the people of southern Cameroons (English speaking ) was a country of its own that legally voted to joint La Republic of Cameroon. But now La Republic of Cameroon are treating these people as if they colonize them or conquered them in a war. sir use your conscience, it could have been your family going through what we are going through. Where is human rights in the 21st Century where people of a particular nation turns to treat their fellow brothers and sisters as slaves and the whole world is reacting as if there is nothing happening Does it mean that if tomorrow if I’m in one top position in the world that has to deal with the society i will give deaf ears to a situation that has to do with millions of lives ? what is wrong with the world today? where is human right? there is no justice at all? is it that human lives no longer matters? Please kindly react to stop the genocide that is about to happen in 48 hours.” No response from the UN.

Here is another letter: “Dear Matthew Russell Lee, Inner City Press: Accept my greetings and that of those who can’t write to you. I am writing to you from Buea, Southern Cameroons. Am reacting to your articles on September 28 concerning the crisis in Southern Cameroons. The approach of the UN concerning the Southern Cameroons and it people, proves time and again that the UN must be very corrupt, and have turned it back against in commitment to protect human rights freedoms, and states sovereignty. How can the Secretary General be talking of his to consolidate peace and the Territorial integrity of Cameroon, when knows very well that, the UN holds no legal treaty that binds the British Southern Cameroons with LA Republique DU Cameroun? I hereby want to inform you that, I, as well as an overwhelming majority have chosen to separate from la Republique DU Cameroun because of what we have gone through in 56 of forced union. If the government of la République du Cameroun, considered us Southern Cameroonians as a people with the same rights as Francophones, if the government wanted to make peace and resolve this problem from it core, I think the repression taking place now won’t have been. While you published on the Cameroon crises yesterday, the government of la Republique DU Cameroun became violently repressive and attacked and beating people their homes, taking seizing money and smart phones, and taking them to jail. As am writing to you now, six people were shot yesterday in the town of Ekona, and a grandmother was killed by the military in her home. 14 years old kids are being arrested and detained in jails under very cruel conditions. Since the beginning of this crises since November last year, 112 people have been killed by the military of la Republique DU Cameroun. The la République du Cameroun’s government have been using terrorism blackmail the peaceful protests. I hereby call on the Secretary General to read the the UN charter on human right and freedoms, and the right for self governance.”

Biya’s renewed attacks on the Internet have ranged from Bamenda to Kumbo and Kumba, but are being circumvented by VPNs. Meanwhile Inner City Press is receiving video of protests in front of the Inter-Continental Hotel in Geneva where Biya is staying. Guterres praised Biya, then belatedly called on him to dialogue: while Biya is not even in the country. His landing in Geneva: “VP-CAL used by #PaulBiya, President of Cameroon (Boeing 777) on 2017/09/26 at 08:56:46.” We ran this sample letter to Inner City Press: ” woke up this morning and discovered Internet Services in Cameroon have somehow been limited. I am suspected the regime of Paul Biya have tampered with the internet service and Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp, VPNs, Vcontact aren’t working. I am sure many other social media have been cut off as well.

There have been plans to celebrate the symbolic independence of this region ‘the Former British Southern Cameroons’ on the 1st of October 2017. That is on Sunday and the region have been heavily militarized by the Biya regime, Homes of people invaded, beaten , some killed, many kidnapped and with this shutdown to major social media to which it is where most of these crimes are exposed, many have been fearing a total Genocide that can be perpetrated on the people of that region. There were rumors that, the internet will be shutdown come 30th September. The Minister of Communications made a public communique two days ago to say, the internet won’t be shutdown but I guess it was just a ploy as through some websites are working, major social medias ( Facebook, Whatsapp, Twitter) have been cut off. Please, make the world know what is happening in this region. This is a sly move to blackout to the world what atrocities the Biya’s regime is/will be perpetrating in these regions.”

In Fiango, Biya’s security forces have killed, reportedly Enogene Basile, following their September 28 killings in Ekona. Inner City Press on September 26, 27 and 28 asked Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric about these glaring omissions. The first time, Dujarric alluded to “private” diplomacy. Then on September 27 when Inner City Press asked ask, Dujarric said that UN envoy Francois Fall will be going to Cameroon “next week.” On September 28, Inner City Press asked Dujarric deputy Farhan Haq if this would be before or after October 1, and Haq said he didn’t know. Hours later, Dujarric’s office put out a statement of concern below, which many see as too little, too late, with its emphasis on territorial integrity. On September 29, Inner City Press asked Dujarric not only about the UN’s surveillance of the Press, on which he refused to answer referring to the question to the UN Department of Public Information whose chief Alison Smale has refused to answer basic questions for a month (now keeping a close eye on Catalonia, if not blatant crackdowns in Cameroon), but also if Guterres’ concern is at threats to those in Anglophone Cameroon to stay indoors or be treated as “terrorists,” for citing UN General Assembly Resolution 1608. Dujarric replied that he doesn’t have “granularity” about what’s being done and said.

But he put this out: “The Secretary-General is deeply concerned about the situation in Cameroon, including with regard to the recent security incidents in Bamenda and in Douala, and mounting tensions in the South-West and North-West regions related to planned events on 1 October. The Secretary-General has encouraged the Cameroonian authorities to continue their efforts to address the grievances of the Anglophone community. He urges the authorities to promote measures of national reconciliation aimed at finding a durable solution to the crisis, including by addressing its root causes. The Secretary-General supports upholding the unity and territorial integrity of Cameroon and urges all parties to refrain from acts that could lead to an escalation of tension and violence. The Secretary-General believes that genuine and inclusive dialogue between the Government and the communities in the South-West and North-West regions is the best way to preserve the unity and stability of the country. The Secretary-General stands ready to support these efforts, including through the United Nations Regional Office for Central Africa (UNOCA). ” We’ll see.

On September 26, Dujarric replied that Guterres would say there is a time for public diplomacy, and a time for private diplomacy. Some wonder, how many people have to die, or what kind of people, for it to be time for UN “public” diplomacy? Earlier on September 22 Inner City Press interviewed Southern Cameroonians out on 47th Street, then asked Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric about people killed that very day. The crackdown is also financial: Biya’s Minister of Finance has threatened the National Financial Credit Bank in Bamenda with loss of its license for taking part in the “Ghost Town” expression of desire for independence, or in the first instance a referendum. This politicization should trigger action by the “decision making phere” [sic] written about by Biya’s state media, the kind of media that the UN and now its new head of Public Information favor over independent press.

2, October 2017

Anglophone crisis enters crucial stage, sabotage is likely ⁰

The Anglophone crisis that started in October 2016 reached its apex on Sunday, October 1, 2017 following the declaration of independence in various cities across Southern Cameroons despite the heavy deployment of government troops to intimidate Southern Cameroonians who have clearly displayed their determination to quit a badly and hastily stitched union with East Cameroon. City after city in Southern Cameroons hoisted the new nation’s flag with pride and dignity which Southern Cameroonians think they have been robbed of for more than five decades.
Across the region, Southern Cameroonians could be heard chanting their nation’s national anthem joyfully in the presence of Cameroon government troops who had been given orders and ammunition to shoot at protesters. Mamfe, the birth place of Anglophone activism, registered one of the worst incidents on Sunday, with more than two people shot to death and many others seriously wounded. Due to this unfortunate situation, residents of Manyu Division have vowed to topple local authorities and roll back Cameroon government influence in Manyu which is noted for its radicalism.

In Kumba, the stories were not different. Several protesters were killed and many wounded. Buea, Muyuka and Tombel stood up to be counted among the brave Southern Cameroonians who have succeeded to demonstrate their will and determination to stand up against a moribund regime that is noted for its brutality and manipulation.
In the North West, brave Southern Cameroonians in Bamenda successfully hoisted the Southern Cameroons flag at Liberty Square and sang their anthem in the presence of army soldiers who were helplessly watching. But it was Kumbo, Bui Division’s capital, that stole the show. The city’s central prison was torched while protesters proceeded to demonstrate across the city, bearing the Southern Cameroons flag and singing their newly minted national anthem.

As usual, the regime in Yaounde noted for mowing down its own citizens, organized fake marches of peace to mask the killing of Southern Cameroonians in their own territory. In Yaounde, the ruling party’s members of parliament converged on the reunification monument where they pledged their support to the country’s absentee president, Paul Biya, who is currently in Switzerland where he is battling prostate cancer. On his Facebook page, the octogenarian condemned violence, adding that it was normal for citizens to express their views in a republic, but in a respectful and non-violent manner.

He however did not indicate that for almost one year, his government has been mowing down its own people and arresting armless and innocent citizens for expressing their views. It should be recalled that Cameroon’s president spends most of his time out of the country, leaving the country’s struggling economy at the mercy of members of his party who are doing their best to loot the state’s treasury. More than fifty of the president’s former ministers and closest collaborators are currently languishing in jail for looting state coffers, although some schools of thought hold that charges against those in jail are politically motivated.

It should also be pointed out that prior to the declaration of independence by Southern Cameroonians, Cameroon’s minister of communication, Issa Tchiroma,on Saturday, September 30, 2017, had visited media houses to court their support where he advised them not to give an opportunity to Southern Cameroonians to present their own perspective of events to the public. He called on private media houses to side with the government in its effort to silence Southern Cameroonians. He argued that there was no Anglophone problem in Cameroon, adding that all those who were protesting in the Anglophone regions were terrorists who were being manipulated by some power-hungry and disgruntled Cameroonians living abroad. The minister of Communication, it should be recalled, has once been jailed by the Biya government for his role in the 1984 coup d’état that almost saw Mr. Biya out of power.

Sunday’s protest might not have led to a total takeover of government institutions by protesters and the arrest of government officials who have been enforcing the government’s Machiavellian policies as declared by the Southern Cameroons governing council, it has however proven that Southern Cameroonians can defy government orders and challenge institutions that do not serve the people’s interest. The clashes between protesting Southern Cameroonians and security forces have also simply pushed the Anglophone struggle underground, as government determination to win by military means leaves the protesters with no other options.

The government might have disrupted things on Sunday, but the revolting Southern Cameroons are prepared to engage the government in running battles that will make the region completely ungovernable. They are counting on hit-and-run tactics which will lead to the sabotaging of facilities such as oil tankers, oil installations and other facilities that will help them bring the country’s economy to its knees. It should be recalled that prior to Sunday’s events, a few bombs had gone off in Bamenda and Douala, and October 1 clashes will only lead to more of those bombs wreaking havoc in the country.

Meanwhile it has been alleged that the American billionaire, George Soros, is using his vast resources to help Southern Cameroonians walk away from their oppressors of fifty-six years. Similarly, it is also alleged that a Canadian firm has signed an oil contract with the Southern Cameroons Governing Council regarding the Anglophone region’s vast oil fields. If this is true, then the struggle has moved into a very critical stage and this will imply the entire school year will once more be disrupted.

However, the Cameroon government still has a last chance to preempt the possibility of the struggle degenerating into an armed conflict. Many leaders across the world, including the United Nations Secretary-General, have already called for sincere and genuine dialogue as the surest means to find sustainable solutions to issues raised by Southern Cameroonians. If the government can listen and if its surrogates can change their rhetoric, attitude and approach to the problem, a conducive environment could be created for the holding of a meaningful dialogue that will spare the country the agony and hardship usually created by every armed conflict.

A Cameroon Concord News Production

1, October 2017

Southern Cameroonians call for independence ⁰

Cameroon’s government has banned public gatherings, suspended transportation and shut businesses in the country’s English-speaking regions as activists symbolically declared independence from the majority French-speaking areas.

Tensions continue to run high in towns and cities in Cameroon’s northwest and southwestern regions country with thousands of security forces said to be patrolling the streets in a bid to quell planned demonstrations against President Paul Biya’s administration.

“Today, we reaffirm our autonomy over our heritage and over our territory,” the Southern Cameroons Ambazonia Consortium United Front (SCACUF) said in a statement on Facebook.

The government has said the move carries no legal weight.

The declaration and protests come on the anniversary of South Cameroon’s independence from Britian in 1961.

Christopher Njong, information officer with the the governing council of Southern Cameroons, also known as Ambazonia, told Al Jazeera earlier on Sunday that people were gathering to march in the town of Bamenda, but were facing “major resistance from the army and police”.

“They [authorities] are doing everything to stop people from marching, because they don’t want the world to see our call for independence,” he said.

Njong added that people were attempting to march in the towns of Buea and Kumbo with white and blue flags (the flag of the country they would name Ambazonia) and placards, but were facing similar resistance from authorities.

They also argue that oil, found in the southwestern region, has been used to the benefit of the state and not the region in which the resources are found. English-speaking Cameroonians make up one-fifth of Cameroon’s population of 22 million. They have long accused the central government of discriminating against their community, arguing that they are excluded from employment and forced to speak French in business and official affairs, despite English being one of the country’s official languages.

But the discontent goes much deeper.

Southern Cameroons joined Cameroon in 1961 through a referendum, but pro-independence groups argue that UN resolution 1608 that set the terms of an unification plan was never properly followed. Additionally, in 1972, when the country moved from a federalist system to a centralised system, with power resting firmly in the capital, Yaounde, those from the Anglophone regions said they suffered further neglect.

As a result, many Anglophones contend that the French-speaking majority annexed Southern Cameroon.

“They have turned us into servants in our own house,” Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, president of the movement for the independence of Southern Cameroons, said earlier this month.

Issa Tchiroma Bakary, Cameroon’s communication minister, told Al Jazeera that there would be no amputation or division of Cameroon.

“This division will never happen,” Bakary, speaking from Yaounde, said.

In response to allegations that the central government have deployed a disproportionate number of military to the region, Bakary said that “necessary measures had been taken to look after people and property, and to ensure people are not bullied”.

“We deployed to prevent violence; their [the protesters] aim is to provoke violence, this is why we sent them [the army] there.”

The minister would not say how many troops were sent, but rejected allegations that internet services had been slowed despite numerous suggestions that people were struggling to access social media.

Six people have been killed and hundreds have been arrested and detained as the government looked to crack down on what they see as a secessionist movement.Dissent in the two regions have been growing over the past year, with protests taking place intermittently.

Earlier this year, the internet was shut down in the two English-speaking regions for more than three months.

Many students and teachers in the two regions have also boycotted schools and banks have been closed, leaving in its wake empty towns, which activists have dubbed “ghost town” protests.

Rising dissent comes as Cameroon’s government faces a wave of criticism by rights groups over what they call the government’s growing authoritarian tendencies. They point to the imprisonment of journalists and those who are critical of Biya or his administration.

The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) said in September that the government was using an anti-terror law to quell dissent.

Ayuk Patrick, the secretary-general of SCACUF, a movement calling for independence for the two regions, said that people would be marching worldwide on Sunday for “the restoration of our nation state”.

He also denied government claims that secessionists were armed and disruptive.

“Our people are being called to march peacefully. We don’t have armed groups. Instead, we have a three- throng approach: First, we are litigating the regime, second, we are exercising our right to civil disobedience and the third thing is diplomacy,” Patrick told Al Jazeera ahead of the planned march in Johannesburg, South Africa.

“We have a right to self defence. But we are not attacking the government.”

Culled from Al Jazeera

1, October 2017

Violence erupts as pro-independence Catalans vote to secede from Spain ⁰

Hundreds of people in Catalonia have been injured in violent clashes with police in the wake of a controversial referendum held in Spain’s autonomous region on seceding from the European country.

Barcelona mayor, Ada Colau, said in a statement on Sunday afternoon that disturbances across Catalonia earlier in the day had left over 460 people injured. Injuries came after riot police, with full gear, clashed with pro-independence people who had convened in front of the polling stations.

“As mayor of Barcelona I demand an immediate end to police charges against the defenseless population,” Colau said in the statement.

In a separate statement, the Catalan health service raised the number of wounded to 465, with two people in critical condition at hospital.

Reports said police responded to assembled voters in Catalonia’s capital, Barcelona, with rubber pellets and batons. The violence occurred shortly after police seized ballots and ballot boxes from the Ramon Lull School polling station. The move prompted the voters to chant pro-independence and anti-Madrid slogans, which led to a violent confrontation. Police reportedly broke down doors to force entry into polling stations as people chanted, “Out with the occupying forces!” Over five million people are expected to have cast their votes in 2,315 polling stations across the northeastern region, with more than 200 stations in Barcelona alone.

Despite a police crackdown, long crowded queues of people formed in cities and villages throughout Catalonia to cast their votes. However, it remained unclear what action Catalonia’s separatist government might take.

The Spanish government says the referendum is illegal and the country’s Constitutional Court has ordered the vote suspended. Separatist regional leaders pledged to hold it anyway and called on the 5.3 million “eligible” voters to show up for the poll.

In order to halt the vote, Madrid had increased pressure on Catalan officials over the past week. It also deployed thousands of extra police from across the country to Catalonia to stop the vote.

Spanish police clash with pro-referendum supporters in Barcelona, Catalonia, October 1 2017. (Photo by AP)

On September 20, Spain’s military police raided the Catalan government offices, during which at least 14 junior officials and associates were arrested and almost 10 million ballot papers were seized.

Catalonia, one of Spain’s 17 autonomous regions, held a symbolic referendum back in November 2014, during which more than 80 percent of participants voted for independence, according to Catalan officials.

Source: Presstv

1, October 2017

7 shot dead as Cameroon Anglophone protest for independence ⁰

Police and the military in Cameroon have shot dead at least seven Anglophone people as member of the community continue protesting for independence from the majority Francophone nation.

The unrest took place Sunday on the anniversary of Anglophone Cameroon’s independence from Britain in the country’s English-speaking regions.

Five prisoners were killed in the jail where they were being held in the town of Kumbo. Donatus Njong Fonyuy, mayor of the town said a fire erupted in the jail and soldiers shot dead five prisoners at around 6 a.m. (0500 GMT).

“We don’t know what caused the fire in the prison … But five prisoners were killed by soldiers. Two were wounded by bullets and are at the hospital,” said the official, adding that two civilians were also injured in the incident.

Reports said soldiers shot dead a demonstrator in the same town after he attempted to raise the blue and white flag of the Ambazonia separatist movement in the local chief’s palace. Two demonstrators who had raised the flag were also shot and wounded around midday.

Security forces attempted to block pro-independence marchers from entering the city of Buea, a major hub of protests. Witnesses said one protester was killed in the clashes on the edge of the city.

A similar protest was held in Bamenda where young men brandishing improvised secessionist flags clashed with security forces. Police used tear gas to disperse protesters trying to march on the regional governor’s office. There was no account of casualties in Bamenda.

Security was high in Buea and Bamenda as military helicopters circled overhead and businesses remained shuttered for the entire day. Troops from the Cameroonian army’s Rapid Intervention Brigade, a unit known for its fight against the militants of Nigeria-based Boko Haram group, were also deployed in the two cities. There were also reports of gunfire although it was not clear whether they targeted the protesters or were only fired in the air.

In anticipation of the protests in English-speaking regions, authorities had ordered Cameroon’s border with Nigeria closed for the weekend. All gatherings of more than four people had been banned and movement between different parts of the region had been forbidden.

Cameroon civilians travel in a police vehicle along a street in the administrative quarter of Buea some 60kms west of Douala on October 1, 2017. (AFP photo)

Police and the military have yet to comment on the shootings that led to deaths Sunday. A security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said security forces were taking restraint in dealing with the fresh bout of violence.

“We won’t use violence unless there is major cause. There are numerous risks, even terrorist risks. We’re keeping calm,” said the source.

The months-long protests are viewed as a sign of increasing dissatisfaction with President Paul Biya’s 35-year rule.

Biya said the acts of violence, “regardless of their source and their perpetrators”, were deplorable.

“Let me make this very clear: it is not forbidden to voice any concerns in the Republic. However, nothing great can be achieved by using verbal excesses, street violence, and defying authority,” the president wrote on his official Facebook account.

Cameroon, a former German colony under the name of Kamerun, was divided between the allied French and British victors at the end of World

1, October 2017

“Trump playing golf while Americans dying” ⁰

Former Republican Congressman and MSNBC host Joe Scarborough has denounced US President Donald Trump’s verbal assault on the mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, after she begged for help in handling the crisis and devastation caused by Hurricane Maria.

Scarborough, a former Republican lawmaker from Florida, said on Saturday night the president was wrong to attack Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz for “poor leadership” amid hurricane recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, which is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the northeast Caribbean Sea.

“Poor leadership would be hiding at a country club golfing while fellow Americans are suffering and dying,” Scarborough said. “She’s not doing that. You are.” Scarborough also reposted tweets of his fellow “Morning Joe” co-host Mika Brzezinski, saying that Trump is “not fit” to be president.

In a series of early-morning tweets on Saturday, Trump attacked Cruz after she criticized the government in Washington, DC, for its delayed response to the hurricane-ravaged Caribbean island.

“Such poor leadership ability by the Mayor of San Juan, and others in Puerto Rico, who are not able to get their workers to help,” Trump tweeted.

“They want everything to be done for them when it should be a community effort. 10,000 Federal workers now on Island doing a fantastic job,” he added.

Trump’s tweets were apparently in response to criticism from the mayor the day before.

“We are dying, and you are killing us with the inefficiency and the bureaucracy,” Cruz said at a Friday news conference.

“So I am done being polite. I am done being politically correct. I am mad as hell,” she stated. Several Democratic lawmakers on Saturday condemned Trump for targeting the mayor while he was playing golf at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey.

At least 16 people lost their lives in Puerto Rico as of Friday and the death toll was expected to climb as recovery efforts continued.

Culled from Presstv

1, October 2017

The Republic of Ambazonia: Free At Last ⁰

The great day finally arrives. It has been a very long night. Many people have not known a good night’s sleep. All across, the worlds have been calling for peace. Leaders across the globe are advising Cameroonians not to walk that path, but Anglophones are hell-bent on walking away.

Akere Muna delivered a keynote address, calling for peace. He clearly has the interest of our nation at heart. But don’t expect much in terms of communication. Internet connection across Southern Cameroons went down yesterday.
The disconnection was gradual and it was final in the night. This is a government strategy to prevent mass communication. However, If you are around Missellele, in the south west region, then you are connected thanks to the littoral communication mast. It’s still too early in the two Anglophone regions.

As promised, 9am will surely usher in a new nation. The preparations have been very carefully coordinated. It’s hard to understand that a whole people are following instructions from people who are thousands of miles away.

However, some areas have already started seeing violence. The Kumbo central prison in Bui Division is up in flames as reported by some. Tombel is back in the news. Mutengene is seeing large crowds at the famous roundabout.

Disturbances are being reported there and in Mamfe, determined youths are defying orders and making sure their voices are heard.

Cameroon will never be the same again. For the moment, Tiko, Buea and Limbe are calm. Call family and friends to make sure everybody is ok. Cameroon is at the crossroads. It’s disturbing to see this happen in this once-upon-a-time oasis of peace. Free at last!! A new nation is born!! The Republic of Southern Cameroons

30, September 2017

Southern Cameroons Crisis: National Episcopal Conference calls on Biya regime to accept its wrongs ⁰

The National Episcopal Conference of Cameroon has joined its voice in the concert of calls for dialogue in the Anglophone crisis.

In a press release issued on Saturday, 30 September 2017, the Justice and Peace Commission of the National Episcopal Conference invited the Cameroonian government to acknowledge its wrongs in the building of its so-called national unity.

The Bishops statement pleaded with the people of Southern Cameroons to take into account that in the process of resolving the political crisis certain actions will be carried out, some in the very short term, others in the medium term and a third category of actions will objectively need more time to be set up.

A representative of the Southern Cameroons Ambazonia Governing Council has however rejected the position of the National Episcopal Conference saying “its too little too late.”

By Rita Akana, CCN

30, September 2017

Shootings leave nearly dozen dead in South Africa ⁰

Eleven people were killed in a series of overnight shootings in a Cape Town township, police said Saturday, including four victims shot dead when gunmen opened fire in a bar.

Extra police officers were deployed to the Philipi district of Cape Town, a city that suffers from regular gang violence and armed clashes between rival criminal groups.

“We have deployed teams comprising specialist detectives, high-risk units and intelligence operatives,” police spokeswoman Novela Potelwa told the News 24 website. “We already executed search operations that are set to continue throughout the day. The police are doing their best to arrest those responsible.”

Tens of thousands of people live in informal shack settlements in Philipi, located in the notoriously crime-ridden Cape Flats area of the city.

Four people were shot dead at an informal “shebeen” bar on Friday evening, with three other bodies found by police nearby. Another four more people were killed elsewhere in the district.

The ruling ANC party condemned the deaths.

“Regardless of the circumstances, these mass murders — related or not — are criminal acts which must be punished using the full might of our law,” party spokesman Zizi Kodwa said in a statement.

“Criminals live amongst our communities, they are harbored by us and until society stands as one against this scourge, it will not be defeated,” it added.

On average, there are 51 murders per day in South Africa, according to official figures released last year.

Crime is seen as a major issue hampering the country’s social cohesion, economic development and international reputation — especially as a tourist destination.

Last week 36 Dutch tourists were robbed on a bus on route to their hotel after landing at Johannesburg airport for a three-week holiday.

(Source: AFP)

30, September 2017

Anglophone Crisis: The die is cast ⁰

The Anglophone problem that started like a joke has finally reached a critical point with Anglophones set to declare their independence on Sunday, October 1, 2017, despite threats from the Francophone-dominated government that has ruled the country for fifty-six years without regard to the Foumban Agreement that was signed between Southern Cameroons and East Cameroon in 1972. The determination of the English-speaking minority to walk away from the hastily stitched marriage has left the government scrambling for solutions to contain Anglophone protesters who are no longer scared of government intimidation. Even the heavy deployment of Special Forces and battalions of army soldiers is not striking any fear in the minds of disgruntled Anglophones.

To deter Anglophones, the Yaounde government has been flexing its atrophied muscles. A dusk-to-dawn curfew has been declared to curb the movement of persons and the country’s borders with Nigeria have been closed till September 2, 2017, but Anglophones are not listening to all of that. In their view, Cameroon’s borders are the most porous in the world. The inept government in Yaounde has never really developed any real border posts with Nigeria. In places like Akwaya, many Yaounde government officials are already moving out for fear that they will be arrested as instructed by the Anglophone Governing Council. The fear of the unknown is perceptible, as demonstrations across Southern Cameroons on October 22, 2017 informed the government that it really had a sticky situation on its hands. Last week’s demonstration will surely be reduced to a dress rehearsal, as the young and old will take to the streets to let the beleaguered government understand that they are not being manipulated.

Years of marginalization and mistreatment have hardened the Anglophone and he is determined to change things so that future generations do not have to walk this humiliating path. Over the last fifty-six years, Anglophones have never occupied the ministries of defense, interior, national security, territorial administration and communications. Currently, out of 39 ministers, there is only one Anglophone while the President’s Beti-Fang ethnic group that does not even account for 5% of the population has about 28 ministers and it is running 21 of the 34 state-owned corporations. Out of 34 state-owned corporations, Anglophones only head two. Out of more than 30 army generals, Anglophones have only two full generals, with the Beti-Fang ethnic group taking the lion’s share. But the really vexing issue is the country’s oil company that is located in the country’s southwest region. The oil deposits are located in the Rio Del Rey Estuary in the same region, but Francophones account for 95% of the refinery’s staff. South-westerners have clearly been cut out of any oil deals and this has been accomplished with the connivance of the region’s so-called elites and colonial governors and administrative officers who have been working hard to inflict pain on the population. In 2016, the government’s investment budget for Biya’s South region with a population of 700,000 was more than double that of the two Anglophone regions that account for 20% of the population. The details of the marginalization are simply revolting. This explains, in part, why Southern Cameroonians will be more than pleased to arrest these officials on Sunday for them to explain why they have been working against the people.

The international community understands the seriousness of the issue. It has been carefully watching and it thinks dialogue will be the right response.The United Nations has not been indifferent to the chaos playing out in Cameroon. It has, on many occasions,intervened, but this time around, it has been calling on both sides to exercise restraint and avoid actions that might result in an escalation of tension. The global body has reaffirmed its respect for the country’s integrity, adding that the government should engage with the natives of the North West and South West regions, while the Commonwealth has reiterated its determination and willingness to support efforts at peacefully resolving the issues that have pitted Anglophones against the government.

But Southern Cameroonians are not buying into the UN’s rhetoric. They have been victims of government-orchestrated marginalization and injustice for more than fifty years and they want to live in a brand new republican democracy that respects human rights and freedoms. In many cities across Southern Cameroons, young Southern Cameroonians, who are anxiously looking forward to Independence Day, have been working hard to clean up the environment in preparation for the great day in line with instructions given by the Governing Council’s Interim Leader, Ayuk Julius Tabe. All these activities are taking place in the presence of the army of occupation that has been mowing down demonstrating Southern Cameroonians throughout this crisis.

The Anglophone Diaspora, for its part, is determined to make sure the government pays the price for its irresponsibility and poor policies. Ever since the conflict broke out, the government whose position has been vacillating, has accused the Anglophone Diaspora of all the crimes and sins in the world, lashing out that the Diaspora has been fanning the embers of chaos and enmity. It has also accused the Diaspora of bank-rolling the conflict with its vast financial resources, arguing that the Diaspora has no stake in the country. But the Yaounde-based government that seems to be living in a bubble fails to see that from their quiet abodes abroad, members of the Diaspora have been helping to sustain their families back home, even paying for healthcare and education. Some have built homes for their parents and even helped to purchase expensive hospital equipment for hospitals the government has built but has failed to equip. With such a contribution, members of the Diaspora cannot be accused of not having a stake in the country of their birth. What the Anglophone Diaspora has been doing is exactly what a credible government should do for its citizens.

Members of the Diaspora have been taking the hardship in strides for decades, yet for fleeing marginalization and economic deprivation, they have been stripped of their citizenship and have no way to exercise their citizenship in their country of birth. The Anglophone Diaspora has very high stakes in this struggle, a lot higher than many think. The Diaspora wants to help make the country a better place for all so that it too can know some respite. The constant demands for assistance have been blighting the lives of members of the Diaspora and this cannot come to an end if the despotic government in Cameroon is not held accountable for its actions. The Anglophone Diaspora is also educated and its huge war chest makes some of its members to feel that they deserve to play a key role in the political life of their country and if the government does not acknowledge that role, then they will continue to destabilize the government and the country. This is what is driving the Anglophone Diaspora that has many dollar millionaireswho think this is an achievable goal.

The decision to quit this hastily arranged marriage has already been made. Indeed, an entire region cannot be mad. There is nothing like collective madness. From every indication, the die has been cast. Anglophones are prepared to bite the bullet. They understand that anything short of total independence will never guarantee them a good life. While they agree that dialogue is the best path to tread, they also hold that that dialogue should focus more on how Anglophones can walk away without bloodshed. The Yaounde government is not repentant about the errors of the past. It speaks from both sides of its mouth and it is never as good as its word. In the minds of Anglophones, it will be hard to trust such a government; a government that has run the country aground; a government that is known to burn through money like wildfire, with its president spending most of his time abroad with a large entourage.

As the D-Day approaches, Yaounde government officials have been running all over the place like neckless chicken just to get a solution that can stop Anglophones from walking away, as such a situation will imply walking away with 60% of the country’s wealth. Meanwhile, government surrogates have been spreading across the Anglophone region like ragweed just to give the impression that Anglophones can be stopped from leaving the lopsided union. So-called elites have stepped up their fake meetings to give the impression that they are working. That will surely please their Yaounde masters, but will never cut ice with the Anglophone who is in independence mode. They also fail to understand that Anglophones are prepared to lay down their lives just to correct the errors of the past. Their philosophy – one for all, and all for one – is having a huge impact and it is giving the government real food for thought.

Yaounde government surrogates may be all over the region like a bad rash, but Anglophones are not paying any attention to them. Their focus is on the independence they want for themselves and future generations. From every indication, a violent confrontation is in the offing as Anglophones will have to take over government buildings and arrest those who have been aiding and abetting the Yaounde government in its effort to exploit and intimidate Anglophones. The message of their leaders has gotten across and they will stop at nothing to make that dream come true. They know the government is capable of anything, from shutting down the Internet to slaughtering large numbers of protesters, but that is not stopping them from reaching the Promised Land – Buea – on October 1, 2017.

By the Editorial Desk

Cameroon Concord News Group