News

9, February 2017

UK: House of Commons gives green light to Brexit ⁰

British MPs pass a bill that allows Prime Minister Theresa May to start negotiations on Brexit. Lawmakers in the House of Commons voted 494 by 122 Wednesday for a law that enables May to trigger Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty to start formal negotiations on leaving the European Union.The article would initiate two years of talks between London and the 28-nation bloc.

May attempted to get the article 50 bill through the House of Commons without any change, hoping for initiation of negotiations before the end of March, while MPs made efforts to have more say in the process but to no avail. “This, elementally, is a straightforward bill which serves only to give the prime minister the power to trigger Article 50 and thereby respect the result of the referendum,” said Brexit Secretary David Jones.

Meanwhile on Wednesday, the shadow business secretary, Clive Lewis, resigned from his post, arguing that he will not “vote for something I believe will ultimately harm the city I have the honor to represent, love and call home.”

“I will continue to support our party and our leader from the back benches to the very best of my ability,” he said. Last year, nearly 52 percent of Britons voted to end their country’s decades-long membership in the 28-nation bloc. Ahead of the June referendum, two third of the MPs had campaigned for staying in the EU. The bill should now move to the House of Lords, where the prime minister’s Conservative party does not enjoy a majority.

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9, February 2017

Fru Ndi’s praise of goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa is really a slam at Biya ⁰

The Chairman of the Social Democratic Front has said that the victory of the indomitable Lions should not be politicized. Fru Ndi made the declaration inside the Unity Palace during the presentation ceremony of the 2017 African Cup of Nations trophy to the Head of State, President Paul Biya.

The SDF Chairman dwelled on the Anglophone problem rather than the ceremony and showered praises on goalkeeper Fabrice Ondoa for standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Anglophone community. “I came to tell Mr Biya that he should step and say something about the North West and South West. I had to come here to congratulate Ondoa who understood the problem. He said he is Bamenda. Football should not be politicized. In the North West and South West, anybody talking about federalism is locked up, arrested … they continue to arrest, kill “.

It should be recalled that a few hours after the Cameroon – Egypt encounter, Fabrice Ondoa made a video in which he dedicated the trophy to Anglophone Cameroonians. He said he was wholeheartedly with them and pronounced the famous phrase “I am Bamenda”.

By Rita Akana

8, February 2017

Somali hotel attack kills six ⁰

A terrorist attack by the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab militants on a hotel in Somalia’s port city of Bosasso has left four guards and two assailants dead.

“Three al-Shabab fighters stormed the International Village Hotel this morning. Four guards and two of the attackers died in the fighting,” said Bari region Governor Yusuf Mohamed on Wednesday.

According to the governor, none of the guests at the hotel, which is popular with foreigners, were hurt in the armed assault. He said one of the assailants fled the scene and remained at large.

“Fortunately, the attackers did not enter the rooms. The fighting took place inside the compound. A third fighter escaped and we are pursuing him. All the people in the hotel are safe,” Mohamed said.

The development came as Somalia’s legislators are set to elect the country’s next president in the capital of Mogadishu later in the day.

Somalia’s current President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (seen) faces chances of potential re-election by the country’s legislators on February 8, 2017. (Photo by AFP)

Somali authorities have enforced a security lockdown of Mogadishu in order to step up safety across the capital ahead of the planned legislative process.

Somalia’s Police Commander Mohamed Sheikh Hassan Haamud announced on Tuesday that security forces had blocked main roads and barred vehicles from driving near the secure airport compound.

“Police forces will secure the election scene and streets, and the vote will take place peacefully as planned,” the police chief added.

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8, February 2017

Anglophone Crisis: Cameroon Intelligence Report says death toll rises to at least 102 ⁰

Cameroon Intelligence Report has collected figures from 6 detention centers in Douala, Bafoussam and Yaoundé giving a total of at least 102 killed in the unrest in Southern Cameroons since 2016. The breakdown of these figures is: 52 in Yaoundé- Sao, 40 in Douala, and 10 in Bafoussam. These figures are based on unofficial cables obtained from Francophone government sources at the Kondengui prison in Yaoundé and security sources including medical doctors in Douala and Bafoussam.

Authorities in the Ministry of Communication have rejected our findings and those of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium as false, and said that the ministry would issue an official death toll when told to do so by the presidency of the republic. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Africa Union have both turned a blind eye on the genocide going on in Anglophone Cameroon.

In detention facilities in French Cameroun, our intelligence officers obtained unofficial lists with names of those who had died and buried in mass graves. We have received figures of the number of persons killed during the protests from doctors in Kumba, Buea, Kumbo and Bamenda who were on duty on the emergency wards. Our intelligence officers also regularly visited the many torture facilities in Douala, Edea and Mbouda and obtained the number of confirmed deaths from doctors there.

According to anonymous Francophone government sources, many of these deaths occurred in 2016 as a result of live gunfire and rubber bullets. A significant proportion of deaths were caused by teargas canisters fired at close range in Bamenda and Kumbo. Access to the Kondengui high security prison and the detention center at the Secretariat for Defense was very difficult and only possible after personal assurances that Cameroon Intelligence Report would protect the names of the security agents who agreed to speak to us. Cameroon Intelligence Report has been unable to see death certificates citing causes of death or to gather the names of all those killed. In all the cases, families have also been unable to obtain certificates stating the cause of death.

Some of the Francophone security personnel who spoke to our undercover reporters hinted that the prison wardens have been under pressure to downplay the overall number of deaths. A senior aide to the regime in Yaounde who hails from the Foumban constituency in the West region observed that it is possible the actual number of deaths is significantly higher than the 102 reported to our investigative team because that figure is based on only three localities.

Culled from CIR

8, February 2017

Ivory Coast: Alassane Ouattara caught in the pangs of a monster he created ⁰

Soldiers in Ivory Coast have mutinied in a town in the southeast of the country, renewing an attempt to secure promised bonuses and make other grievances heard. Witnesses in the town of Adiake said on Tuesday that soldiers opened fire and blocked roads earlier in the day, similar to what happened in Bouake and other cities a month ago. “The soldiers erected barricades blocking traffic near their camp. The population has left the streets and we let the students out because we were afraid,” said a teacher in Adiake, adding that schools and other government institutions were shuttered as a result of the mutiny.

Another teacher said gunfire had begun earlier in the Special Forces’ camp in Adiake, adding that the entire town began panicking after armed soldiers left the barracks. A spokesman for the army confirmed that there was gunfire in Adiake, a town located nearly 100 kilometers east of Ivory Coast’s commercial hub Abidjan. The official did not immediately confirm the mutiny.

There was also no report on what the shooters were demanding, but the similar revolt in Bouake last month saw soldiers mutinying over unpaid bonuses and other grievances. The Bouake unrest quickly spread to other cities, including Abidjan. The government then agreed to pay more than 8,000 soldiers, most of them former militants who controlled northern Ivory Coast from 2002 to 2011, bonuses of nearly $20,000.

Other soldiers and elements of security forces have sought similar bonuses since the deal in January. Military sources said on Tuesday that mutineers in Adiake were seeking a similar payoff, which also included bonuses promised to them when they fought for former President Laurent Gbagbo. Hospital sources said the gunfire stopped around 1:00 p.m. local time on Tuesday, but people in Adiake were still panicked.

Presstv

7, February 2017

Nigeria: Hundreds take to streets to protest economic crisis ⁰

Hundreds of Nigerians have taken to the streets in the country’s most populous city of Lagos to protest against the government’s handling of the West African country’s economic crisis. Some 500 angry protesters gathered from early morning at the National Stadium in the commercial capital to protest against the prevailing economic hardships, high cost of living and poor government handling of the economic crisis in the country.

The demonstrators, who marched through the streets to the rhythm of drums and trumpets, demanded solutions to the ongoing crippling recession. Protesters held placards and banners that read, “The unemployed are hungry and angry” and “I will not be silent.” They also chanted slogans such as “enough is enough.”

Elias Ozikpu, a student who attended the rally in Lagos, complained about skyrocketing prices. “Everything is very expensive today: the price of food, the price of gasoline has increased. We suffer but politicians do not care,” Ozikpu said, adding, “Two years ago we elected a new government because the previous one was corrupt but we don’t see any change, it’s even worse now.”

Meanwhile, in the administrative capital of Abuja, dozens of people also marched to the presidential villa in protest at President Muhammadu Buhari’s economic policies. The protest rallies took place despite warnings by the police not to assemble because of fears of a “breakdown of law and order with attendant loss of lives and property.” Responding to Monday’s rallies, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has said that the protest was noted.

“We hear you loud and clear, those who are on the streets protesting the economic situation and even those who are not, but feel the pain of economic hardship,” Osinbajo said.

“We hear you loud and clear. You deserve a decent life and we are working night and day to make life easier.” Nigerians have been suffering after a fall in oil prices since mid-2014 slashed government revenue. The developments have pushed up inflation to more than 20 percent and weakened the naira currency.

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7, February 2017

SWELA Europe says genuine South West elites are not Biya Francophone stooges ⁷

The South West Elites Association, European chapter has distanced itself from the recent Buea declaration orchestrated by former Prime Minister and Head of Government, Peter Mafany Musonge. A meeting of SWELA Europe that held recently in Dublin, Ireland refuted growing allegations that South Westerners are stooges of the Biya Francophone government who have been paid to guarantee Francophone political elites continued marginalization of Southern Cameroonians.

“Some people say the South West elites are the mouthpiece and stooges of the Biya government. But SWELA came into existence not because it likes any regime but it is because the forum likes the country.” The Secretary General of SWELA Europe, Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai who also moonlights as the Chairman of the Cameroon Concord News Group pointed out that the academics and political elites of the South West started as VIKUMA- meaning Victoria-Kumba-Mamfe and then to SWELA. “We came out on our own, not on the platform of Mr. Biya and we have not been paid for doing that.”

Speaking during the Dublin forum, the Secretary General did observe that the founding fathers of VIKUMA and later SWELA never antagonized the ruling government be it CNU or CPDM nor sought favours from it. SWELA’s main concern, he went on, was to protect the interest of the South West people and playing down anything that may divide or bring disaffection in the country.

The leadership of SWELA Europe revealed that there were communication gaps between the public and the Musonge minority CPDM following including the demands of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium. The Secretary General of SWELA Europe therefore advised that SWELA should serve as a unifying factor between the Biya government and the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium.

“I think there is a serious communication breakdown between CPDM elites and the South West Elites Association. Peter Mafany Musonge cannot claim to be the prophetic voice of the South West people than Bishop Emeritus Francis Lysinge of the Mamfe Diocese. Both the CPDM elites and the South West Elites Association should listen to the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium.” Concluded the SWELA Europe Secretary General.

By Diamond Ebs Esoh in Dublin

6, February 2017

Consortium says Southern Cameroonians have isolated Biya and his Musonge gang ²

The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has released a detail assessment of today’s ghost town operation in West Cameroon. In a press statement made public by the interim leaders, Mark Bareta and Tapang Ivo, the Consortium announced that Southern Cameroonians responded to the call and isolated the Biya Francophone regime.

The interim leaders said the provocation and political statement issued by the Francophone government via the Indomitable Lions of Cameroun were just a ploy for Biya and his Musonge gang to buy time. Bareta and Tapang observed that the footballers never stood when Anglophones were maimed and killed by French speaking soldiers.

The interim leaders added that the communiqué from some teachers calling off the strike action was an indication that the Francophone political elites were unwilling to concede to the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium proposals for institutional changes to usher in genuine federalism and democracy.

Bareta and Tapang pointed out that all what the Biya Francophone Beti Ewondo regime was bent on doing was to bring back the North West/South West divide tactics which has failed woefully. The interim leaders noted that the people of Southern Cameroons are indeed in charge and the struggle continues.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

6, February 2017

West Cameroon Crisis: Over 700 arrested in ongoing ghost town against La Republique du Cameroun ⁰

As many as 70 West Cameroonians were arrested yesterday Sunday the 5^th of February 2017 in Bamenda and Buea by plain cloth police officers deployed from French Cameroun as part of an ongoing protest calling on the Biya administration to accept a return to the 1961 federal structure which would deliver fairness and put an end to the marginalization of Anglophone Cameroonians.

An estimated 4 million Southern Cameroonians have signed up to hold sit-ins and commit other acts of civil disobedience as demanded by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium until all demands made by the body are met by the Francophone political elites. A majority of Southern Cameroonians boycotted the final match of the Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON as a sign of protest and solidarity with all those raped and killed including the many hundreds now in detention centers in French speaking Cameroun. Our chief intelligence officer has revealed that over 700 Southern Cameroonians have so far been arrested.

The Biya Francophone regime issued a political statement at the end of the AFCON final which saw Cameroon beating Egypt by 2 goals to 1 in Libreville Gabon. The Cameroonian footballers were ordered to wear jerseys bearing the message “Forever Cameroon” reportedly seen in West Cameroon as a sign of bad faith and incessant provocation.

The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has announced a massive ghost town protest beginning today Monday, the 6^th of February and the supreme Anglophone body says, the civil disobedience campaign will be intensified to stifle 11 of February nationwide celebration. Academic establishments remain closed in West Cameroon despite numerous vicious attempts to get them running again by the Francophone government.

Yaoundé has blatantly refused to dialogue and is currently carrying out a form of ethnic cleansing in Southern Cameroons. Recently, senior political elites from the South West region encouraged the semi Bantus and Bantu tribes to launch attacks against the Tikars of the North West region. The group that was led by former Prime Minister Peter Mafany Musonge made a mockery of themselves by trying to trivialize the Southern Cameroons revolution.

Also joining the protest are both Francophone and Southern Cameroons indigenous business community leaders whose businesses have been paralyzed ever since the Biya regime shut down internet services in the Anglophone regions. Both the Roman Catholic and the Presbyterian Churches in Cameroon have joined in calling on the Francophone dominated government to stop the extra judicial killings and arbitrary arrest going on and proceed with genuine dialogue to resolve the matter.

Meanwhile, some renowned Francophone political commentators have opined that at 83, President Biya is no more physically and mentally fit to run the country. They emphasize what they say are the political and economic benefits to Cameroon as a nation, if there were to be real dialogue with the leadership of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium.

Tension is reportedly mounting and there are already calls for an armed struggle as the Biya Francophone administration remains undecided whether to approve dialogue with the leadership of Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium. The interim leaders of the Consortium were quoted as saying that “This is the first real Southern Cameroons ghost town of this scale against marginalization in ages.”

We are keeping a watchful eye on today’s ghost town operations and we will bring to you all the latest developments as we have it.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

5, February 2017

Romania: Government retracts controversial decree after days of protests ⁰

The Romanian government has announced the withdrawal of a controversial decree which decriminalized minor corruption offenses following five days of mass nation-wide protests.

“We’ll hold an extraordinary meeting on Sunday to repeal the decree, withdraw, cancel it … you understand, and find a legal way to make sure it does not take effect,” said Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu during a televised speech on Saturday.

The announcement came after five consecutive days of protests since Tuesday after the cabinet approved the decree that decriminalizes a range of graft and other offenses in which the amounts involved are lower than $48,000.

“I do not want to divide Romania,” said Grindeanu. “Romania in this moment seems broken in two,” he added.

Earlier on Saturday, the Romanian government hinted that legislation will be removed. “We can possibly talk about repealing the decree, if the prime minister agrees,” said the head of the ruling Social Democratic party, Liviu Dragnea.

People wave the Romanian flag as they protest in front of the government headquarters against the government’s contentious corruption decree in Bucharest, Romania on February 4, 2017.

“This [happens] because we have nothing to hide,” said the head of the country’s ALDE political party, Călin Tăriceanu.

The decree would have benefited dozens of political figures from all parties, and has been described as the biggest rollback on reforms since Romania became part of the EU in 2007.

On Thursday, a Romanian cabinet minister resigned amid mounting protests against a decision by the government to decriminalize certain graft offences.

The European Union on Wednesday also warned Romania over backtracking on reforms with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker issuing a an official statement.

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