Anglophone separatists in Cameroon have killed at least seven people and carried out scores of kidnappings since January, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Monday, in a further condemnation of alleged abuses by the rebels.

“Armed separatist groups are kidnapping, terrorizing, and killing civilians across the English-speaking regions with no apparent fear of being held to account by either their own leaders or Cameroonian law enforcement,” Ilaria Allegrozzi, HRW’s senior central Africa researcher, said in a report.

A conflict in Cameroon’s Northwest Region and Southwest Region has raged for nearly five years, pitching government forces against anglophones campaigning to secede from the majority French-speaking state.

The rights watchdog said rebels had killed at least seven people, injured six more, raped a girl and kidnapped as many as 82 people since January “in an uptick of violence.”

The separatists have targeted schools, torching at least two facilities, and attacked a university, it said.

The allegations are based on interviews with several dozen victims and witnesses as well as medical records and visual evidence, HRW said.

In 2017, mounting anglophone resentment at perceived discrimination snowballed into the declaration of an independent state — the “Federal Republic of Ambazonia,” an entity that is not recognised internationally.

The country’s veteran president Paul Biya, 89, who has ruled with an iron fist for nearly 40 years, responded with a crackdown.

The violence has claimed more than 6,000 lives and displaced around a million people, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank.

Schools have been attacked or boycotted as perceived symbols of the state — a campaign that in 2019 left some 850,000 children without denied access to education, according to UNICEF figures.

“These abusive calls (for school boycotts) trample the basic rights of an already terrorized civilian population,” HRW said.

The UN and international NGOs have accused both sides of human rights abuses.

HRW renewed this allegation, saying government troops had committed rights violations including “extensive burning of villages, homes, and shops, killings, torture, mistreatment, incommunicado detention and rape of civilians.”

On June 1, soldiers in the Northwest Region killed nine civilians, including a baby, the defence ministry said, describing the deaths as a “grave and unfortunate incident.”

Source: AFP

Benue State Government has advised Southern Cameroonian Refugees in Ikyogen, Kwande Local Government Area of the state to adhere to the laws of the land by ensuring peaceful coexistence within the community.

The Executive Secretary of Benue State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Dr Emmanuel Shior, gave the charge while commemorating this year’s World Refugees Day.

Represented at the occasion by the Senior Special Adviser to the Governor, Mr David Azenda, the Executive Secretary also identified with the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who are facing similar humanitarian crisis and appreciated the host community of Ikyogen, UNHCR and other Development Partners for their collective support.

In his remarks, the Team Leader of the National Commission for Refugee, Migration and IDPs Adikpo Field Officer, Mr Adeyemi Oluwaseyi, said there were more than 26.6 million refugees, out of which 76 Cameroonians were being hosted in Nigeria.

An officer of the UNHCR, who also spoke at the occasion, explained that the event focused on raising awareness of the plight and demonstrating to victims that their rights must be protected and treated with dignity.

The Paramount ruler of Kwande, the Ter Kwande, HRH, Chief Timothy Ahile, assured the refugees of the host community’s support and protection throughout their stay in the area, calling on them to be law abiding.

Two Refugees, Mr. Zefania Ekan and Mr. Chafa, also commended the state government, the host community and development partners for providing food and shelter for them in their trying moment.

Source: The Will Nigeria

A pro Yaoundé armed group that was created by the Minister of Territorial Administration Paul Atanga Nji to infiltrate Southern Cameroons Self Defense Groups has reportedly killed a thermal centre worker in Bamenda.

Cameroon Concord News understands the group which no longer receives Cameroon government funding, has now resorted to kidnappings for ransom all in a bid to survive.

The Paul Atanga Nji Boys abducted their victim on Thursday night, June 23 and murdered him as he attempted to escape from captivity.

Yaoundé has blamed the killing on Ambazonia Restoration Forces but at the time of filing this report, the Ambazonia Interim Government was yet to issue a statement on the incident.

After years of chafing at perceived marginalization and discrimination, the people of Southern Cameroons declared an the independent state in 2017 known as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia, triggering a crackdown by the Francophone authorities.

The spiral of fighting has claimed more than 10,000 lives and prompted more than a million people to flee their homes, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG) think tank.

By Rita Akana in Bamenda

Two soldiers have been injured and one Boko Haram fighter killed in clashes in Cameroon’s Far North region, army and local sources said on Friday.

The clashes took place overnight into Friday in the Kiliari locality of the region.

Heavily armed militants of the terror group attempted to attack the locality but were repulsed by troops who were patrolling the area, an army official who opted for anonymity said.

One of the militants was found dead early Friday after the clashes which lasted for hours, the official said.

Militants of the group have increased attacks mostly on civilians over the last two months, killing several, torching houses and looting property, according to security reports.

Source: Xinhuanet

Cameron has deployed hundreds of troops along its border with Nigeria after attacks by Boko Haram militants forced more than 40,000 villagers over the past two months to flee the area. Cameroon’s defense minister is visiting the border to assess the security situation and assure villagers that it is safe to return home.

Cameroon’s military reports that Boko Haram incursions in Mayo Tsanaga, an administrative unit on its northern border with Nigeria, have increased drastically since April.

Each day, armed members of the Nigerian terror group cross over to Cameroon, attack villages and steal cattle and food, the military reports.

Cameroon’s defense minister, Joseph Beti Assomo, said Thursday President Paul Biya asked him to lead a delegation of top military officials to the border. Assomo, whose delegation was in Mokollo district where Mayo Tsanaga is located, says several hundred troops have been deployed to protect civilians and their goods.

He said that self-protection groups must cooperate with the army.

Assomo says all militias must henceforth be registered and controlled by local government officials and Cameroon military. He says militia group members should be people of unquestionable integrity. Assomo says government troops and local officials note that militias have been infiltrated by Boko Haram terrorists and adds that the military will energetically fight terrorists and bring back civilians trapped along the border with Nigeria.

Ousman Aliou is from Duvan, a village on the border with Nigeria. He says except for a few elderly persons, almost everybody has escaped from Duvan. He spoke via a messaging app from Mokollo.

“Duvan has got 10,000 population and when I went there last week, I saw only 15 people in Duvan,” Aliou said. “So, I am asking Mr. Minister to do something for us please. Come and help us. Our people are sleeping on the mountain.”

In May, villagers along Cameroon’s northern border with Chad and Nigeria organized daily protests in front of government offices demanding the military protect them.

Vohod Deguime is mayor of the Mokollo district. He says if the military had responded more quickly to the villagers’ plea, civilians would have been spared from fleeing their homes.

He says the situation is getting worse as the days go by. He says several dozen villages have been destroyed over three weeks by Boko Haram, and food and cattle stolen. Deguime says more than 30,000 of the 40,000 Cameroonians who have escaped from their villages are hiding in bushes on the border with Nigeria.

Deguime said some of the fleeing villagers are finding refuge in host communities in safer border localities.

Local media reports that Cameroon recently withdrew some of its troops from the northern border with Nigeria and Chad and redeployed them to fight separatist rebels in the west of the country. Cameroon’s military dismiss the claims and say troops are always on standby to defend civilians when the need arises.

Source: VOA

The Office of the Vice President of the Ambazonia Interim Government says its findings have revealed that Francophone security agents killed Southern Cameroons journalist Samuel Wazizi.

“We find that the wounds as reported by pro Yaoundé uniform officers came from torture by Biya regime security forces,” Professor Carlson Anyangwe told Cameroon Concord News on Thursday.

“It is very disturbing that French Cameroun prison authorities have not conducted a criminal investigation. The Ambazonia Interim Government has concluded its independent investigation into the incident. Journalist Samuel Wazizi was murdered by La Republique du Cameroun agents and not from any undisclosed illness, as initially claimed by the French Cameroun authorities,” Anyangwe added.

The much respected Southern Cameroons front line figure pointed out that the Ambazonia Interim Government found no information suggesting that there was any link between Samuel Wazizi and any armed Southern Cameroons group.

Providing further details, Professor Carlson Anyangwe said on the day of his arrest the late Samuel Wazizi had made a concerted effort to be visible as a prominent member of the Anglophone press to Francophone soldiers deployed to crush the Ambazonian uprising.

News anchor and camera operator Samuel Wazizi, whose legal name was Samuel Ajiekha Abuwe, died in government custody in Yaoundé, on August 17, 2019, according to a statement released on June 5, 2020, by the Francophone dominated Cameroonian military. He had been arrested two weeks earlier in relation to his reporting. The precise circumstances and location of his death, which was not announced until 10 months later, are unknown.

Wazizi, who hosted the “Halla ya Matta” (Shout out your Problem) weekday pidgin show on local broadcaster Chillen Muzik TV, was arrested by police in Buea on August 2, 2019, according to a statement by his employer. The officers “claimed that he was being invited by their boss to get information about a certain ‘pidgin news,’” according to that statement.

Wazizi also worked as a freelancer and collaborated with other journalists on reporting projects, according to local journalists Yannick Fonki and Paul Mua, and Derick Jato, president of the Southwest chapter of the Cameroon Journalists’ Trade Union.

By Isong Asu in London

Dominic Ongwen has parted ways with his lead counsel lawyer Krispus Auena Odongo.

Ongwen who is serving a 25-year jail term in Den Hague for committing atrocities in Uganda has hired Cameroonian-born Chief Charles Achalette Taku.

Chief Taku a prominent traditional ruler deep within the Lebialem constituency in Southern Cameroons has reportedly notified the International Criminal Court that he will be lead defence counsel for the remaining appeal proceedings.

By Enowtaku Ebanghatabi Christelle with files from Soft Power Uganda

The situation in the North-West and South-West (NWSW) regions remained concerning, with continued hostilities, targeted attacks, destruction of property, and continued use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The population continues to bear the brunt of violent incidents, either targeted directly or being affected by the consequences of IEDs or crossfire. Partners reported multiple displacements across the NWSW caused by violence. Over 37,800 persons were reportedly displaced to nearby bushes and villages, with Meme in the SW and Bui in the NW being the most affected divisions. Most of the displacements are pendular and temporary as displaced persons return to their homes once the security situation allows.

There have been positive developments in the fight against the cholera epidemic in the SW, but the epidemic is not yet tackled. The SW regional delegation of public health reported a drop in the number of positive cases in April compared to previous months thanks to joint efforts of the regional health authorities, and Health/WASH Clusters’ partners. Some areas in Ndian division, affected by the cholera epidemic, can only be accessed by boat, further complicating the cholera response.

Humanitarian access remains possible but challenging, requiring significant efforts for organizations to be able to conduct all necessary access negotiations and ensure safe humanitarian operations.

Activities of a humanitarian NGO, which was not authorized by local authorities to operate in Ekondo-Titi subdivision (Ndian division of the SW), remained suspended in the division by the NGO, impacting the health assistance. This comes in addition to the continued suspension of operations by another NGO in the SW since March 2022, in response to the continued detention of two of its staff.

Four staff from a local NGO were abducted by unidentified armed elements when returning from a distribution activity in Widikum, Momo division of the NW, together with their vehicle. The team was later released but the car was not returned.

In two separate incidents, food aid trucks were diverted in two localities of the NW region but returned after negotiations with the assailants.

Attacks against school staff and educational premises continued. In four different incidents, thirteen students and three teachers were abducted, only to be released after payment of ransom. Two schools in Buea suffered arson attacks, on 4 and 6 April, by unknown armed men.

Fourteen incidents with IEDs were reported in April, deployed by non-State armed groups (NSAGs) against State security forces. Eight IEDs were detonated in the NW, five in the SW, and one IED in the SW was deactivated by security forces.

The United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) services remain suspended across the NWSW.

About 2 million people affected by the NWSW crisis need humanitarian assistance and 1.4 million of the most vulnerable are targeted by humanitarian partners for assistance in 2022. Over $135.9 million are requested to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable. Limited funding has been a major constraint in the response to humanitarian needs with only 54 per cent of the required funding for the HRP 2021 received.

Culled from UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs