Politics

6, February 2017

There are reasons for the creation of a Southern Cameroons parliament in exile ⁰

1) On account of the incontrovertible documentary evidence establishing the responsibility of the Government of Cameroun, in perpetrating egregious acts of violence, kidnapping, militarization and the targeted disruptions of internet services on the peoples of the Southern Cameroons;

2) Cognizant of the fact that the state which is entrusted with the responsibility of protecting the populations against genocide, is deliberately precipitating the same, with the abrogation of common law system of justice and the trial of English-speaking members of the civil society in Military tribunals in French Cameroon where their rights to equal justice are systematically violated;

3) Aware that the 34-year old totalitarian government of Paul Biya who is 84, with a rapidly diminishing mental capacity, has manifestly failed to protect the populations of the Southern Cameroons;

4) Southern Cameroonians in the Diaspora, must take remedial action to urge the Secretary General of the United Nations to table the implementation of the responsibility to protect (A/63/677), before the General Assembly of the United Nations, as a matter of extreme urgency;

5) To this end, Southern Cameroons in the Diaspora cognizant of the incitement of ethnic hatred by government agents provocateurs against targeted sections of the Southern Cameroons population, for the purpose of sparking up ethnic cleansing, with the ongoing plans to arm gullible South West populations to attack and expel North westerners from towns and villages of the Southwest;

6) On account of the need for the Southern Cameroonian populations in the Diaspora to take timely and decisive action to forestall the Biya government’s genocidal plans, the convening of a Southern Cameroons parliament in exile has become imperative;

7) The denial of the right of genuine representation from the populations of the Southern Cameroons, due to the militarization and Gestapo tactics of mass intimidation, elimination and the incitement of terror, empower Southern Cameroons in the free world to provisionally takeover the responsibility to represent the interests of these occupied people until the attainment of self-rule;

8) The availability of modern means of instant communication by audio and video, facilitate the holding of parliamentary deliberations that will be representative and all inclusive.

(This is a draft motion tabled to the people of the Southern Cameroons, worldwide. Your reaction, comment, modification, clarification, opposition, will be highly appreciated).

By Larry Eyong

6, February 2017

African Union: Morocco says will never recognize SADR ⁰

Moroccan officials have rejected claims that their country will have to recognize the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) now that the kingdom is permitted to rejoin the African Union (AU). Moroccan Deputy Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita said in an interview published on Sunday that Morocco’s membership in the AU would not mean a recognition of the SADR borders declared by the the Polisario Front in the Western Sahara region at the height of a war for the territory.

“Not only does Morocco not recognize – and will never recognize – this so-called entity … It will (also) redouble its efforts so the small minority of countries, particularly African, which recognize it, change their positions,” said Bourita.

The Moroccan diplomat said Rabat will not change its stance on the territory, refuting statements by Polisario and its allies that Morocco’s return to the African bloc implies a recognition of the SADR’s borders.

“This is nonsense from the point of view of international law and state practice,” Bourita said, adding that joining “an international forum in the presence of an unrecognized entity cannot imply the state’s recognition of that entity.” The AU decided in a meeting in Ethiopia last Monday to approve Morocco’s re-entry into the bloc. The kingdom left the AU in 1984 after the continental body admitted SADR.

Polisario backers, namely Algeria and South Africa, had resisted Morocco’s return. A diplomatic source in Rabat said Morocco’s re-entry into AU was a major setback for those countries, saying they “spent months doing everything they can to prevent our return, until the last minute.”

The source said Polisario backers are now trying to present their “failure as a success” by pretending that Morocco has accepted to recognize SADR. “Morocco will continue to mobilize to delegitimize the SADR,” said the senior diplomat, adding, “The return of Morocco is a direct challenge to the presence of the Polisario within the AU.”

The Polisario head and SADR president, Brahim Ghali, said Sunday that the movement was ready to hold talks with Morocco, but warned that “all options are open” in the independence struggle from the kingdom, meaning that the movement could return to armed struggle against Rabat.

“We always look for the peaceful way” to resolve the conflict, Ghali said, adding, “But all options remain open.” Ghali called on Morocco to meet its commitments, saying the kingdom should respect the international borders of the Sahrawi Republic now that it is a member of the AU

The disputed Sahara territory was for long a Spanish colony until it went under Moroccan control in 1975. Years of war ended with a ceasefire in 1991 but the two sides of the conflict have rejected efforts to reach a permanent solution. Some 165,000 people, known as Sahrawis, currently live in a refugee camp in Tindouf, southwestern Algeria. The population mostly lives on aid from UN agencies and international NGOs.

Presstv

3, February 2017

Trump says ‘Nothing is off the table’ in response to Iran’s missile test ⁰

US President Donald Trump says “nothing is off the table” in terms of a response to Iran’s ballistic missile test. Trump made the comment on Thursday in response to a question by a reporter about whether he would consider military options to respond to Iran, a day after his national security adviser Michael Flynn put Tehran on “notice.”

The White House also said Thursday it would respond to Iran’s ballistic missile test. “We will have further updates for you on those additional actions, but clearly (Flynn) warned to make sure that Iran understood that they are on notice that this is not going unresponded to,” White House spokesman Sean Spicer told reporters.

The remarks about Iran by the new Republican president echoes the warnings made repeatedly by former President George W. Bush who on several occasions said he would not take the military option off the table. Former President Barack Obama also threatened military action against Iran before the nuclear agreement between Tehran and world powers in 2015.

Presstv

2, February 2017

Consortium announces plans to stifle 11th of February Youth Day celebrations ⁰

The interim leaders of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium have in a statement announced that steps aimed at intensifying the strike actions and the civil disobedience campaign throughout Southern Cameroons. Mark Bareta and Tapang Ivo observed in the press release that the coming week is going to be the most important in the Southern Cameroons struggle.

The leaders also reminded Southern Cameroonians to start sending text messages and making phone calls to love ones back home informing them of the new changes on the resistance plan of action. The modifications made public by the interim leaders include the following:

1- Monday the 6^th of February 2017: Ghost Town Operations observed in West Cameroon

2-Friday the 10^th of February 2017: Ghost Town Operations continue throughout West Cameroon

3-Saturday the 11^th of February 2017: Massive Ghost Town Operation including a total and complete boycott of the so-called 11 of February Youth Day Celebrations.

The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium is asking Southern Cameroonians to keep their faith in the struggle and not be distracted by the failed politics and policies of some pro Paul Biya political elites. Schools will remained closed and dialogue will only begin with La Republique du Cameroun if all Anglophone detainees are released and justice for those killed by troops in Buea, Bamenda, Kumba and Kumbo.

By Sonne Peter

2, February 2017

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Trial of Consortium Leaders postponed ⁰

The trial of the leaders of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium which was slated for the 1^st of February 2017 has been moved to February the 13^th by the Yaoundé military court. Barrister Nkongho Agbor Balla and Dr Fontem Neba including Mancho BBC were all handed eight counts charges by the Kangaroo court in Yaoundé.

The charges included hostility against the homeland, secession, civil war, revolution, armed band, propagation of false news, attacks on public agents of the state and collective resistance. The Biya regime has secretly agreed to dish out the death penalty under the Terrorism Act of 23 December 2014.

Article 2 of that law reads as follows: “The death penalty shall be punishable by any person who, in complicity or co-action, commits any act or threat that may cause death, endanger the physical integrity, Causing bodily injury or damage to property, damage to the environment “.

On the ground the strike continues despite the fact that the Internet remains cut. The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has embarked on a diplomatic push in the West and the body has also noted that schools will remain closed until all Anglophone demands are met.

By Sama Ernest

1, February 2017

African Union: Leaders adopt strategy on ICC pullout ²

African leaders have renewed their determination to pull out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) collectively, accusing the international body of discriminating against Africans. The African leaders adopted a strategy for their collective withdrawal at the 28th African Union (AU) summit, which wrapped up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on Tuesday.

A draft of the strategy, which was recited at a closed-door AU session and was later published by AP, recommends that African states build up and strengthen their own independent judicial systems. The non-binding recommendation also calls on African nations to expand the jurisdiction of the African court of justice and human rights to resolve disputes on the continent “in order to reduce the deference to the ICC.”

This is the latest expression of impatience by African leaders with the court, which some say has focused too narrowly on African leaders. Desire Assogbavi, the head of Oxfam International’s AU liaison office, confirmed the adoption of the strategy. However, analysts say African countries are divided on whether to leave the court or try to change some of its policies.

Burundi, Gambia, and South Africa have already said they no longer recognize the court’s jurisdiction and announced their intention to quit. But several other African countries, including Nigeria, Senegal and the Republic of the Congo have spoken up in support of the ICC in recent months. One of the main African supporters of the ICC is former United Nations secretary general, Kofi Annan. Since the ICC was launched on July 1, 2002, it has indicted 39 people, all of whom have been African.

Presstv

1, February 2017

UK: Parliament begins debate on Brexit bill ⁰

UK lawmakers have gathered in Parliament to debate whether the British government can trigger Britain’s formal exit from the European Union. A bill authorizing UK Prime Minister Theresa May to invoke Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty starts its route through Parliament on Tuesday and is expected to pass overwhelmingly.

Although most lawmakers campaigned before the referendum to stay in the EU, most, including the leader of the opposition Labour Party, say they will vote to uphold the referendum’s result. Opening the debate, David Davis, secretary of state for exiting the EU, told parliamentarians they could not block the Brexit process.

The decision to leave the block is “a point of return already passed,” he said. “At the core of this bill lies a very simple question — do we trust the people or not?” Members of Parliament have been given until Wednesday to discuss the proposed legislation that would allow May to trigger the Brexit process.

The British government was forced to bring legislation to Parliament after the UK Supreme Court ruled it could not trigger Article 50 without approval from the Parliament. In a landmark referendum held on June 23, nearly 52 percent of British voters, amounting to more than 17 million citizens, opted to leave the EU, a decision that sent shock waves throughout the world.

Those in favor of a British withdrawal from the EU argued that outside the bloc, London would be better positioned to conduct its own trade negotiations, better able to control immigration and free from what they believe to be excessive EU regulations and bureaucracy.

Those in favor of remaining in the bloc believed that leaving it would risk the UK’s prosperity, diminish its influence over world affairs, and result in trade barriers between the UK and the EU. Retaining access to the single market has been one of the major worries for UK businesses ever since the referendum.

Presstv

31, January 2017

Morocco rejoins African Union after 33 years of absence ⁰

The African Union has readmitted Morocco into the bloc 33 years after its withdrawal over the still existing Western Sahara dispute. The majority of the AU member states voted for the re-admission of during the 28th summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Monday, leaving the issue of the disputed territory of Western Sahara for another day.

“Morocco is now a full member of the African Union. There was a very long debate but 39 of our 54 states approved the return of Morocco, even if the Western Sahara question remains,” Senegalese President Macky Sall told reporters. “As we have said, if the family grows bigger, we can find solutions as a family,” Macky Sall added.

Algeria and South Africa were among the heavyweights that opposed the re-admission of Morocco. The country withdrew from the AU in 1984, when the mineral-rich and sparsely populated Saharan Arab Democratic Republic (SADR), commonly known as Western Sahara, was accepted as a member. Morocco annexed Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, in 1975. It maintains that Western Sahara is an integral part of the kingdom, but the international community has not recognized the annexation.

Western Sahara is home to the Algerian-backed Polisario Front, a Sahrawi rebel national liberation movement aiming to end Moroccan presence in the territory. In 1991, Moroccan forces and Sahrawi rebels agreed on a UN-brokered truce and a referendum to settle the status of Western Sahara. However, the vote has never taken place. Some had feared Morocco would set the expulsion of the SADR as a precondition for its own return to the AU.

“From the moment that Morocco did not impose conditions … we take their word for it and accept that Morocco be admitted to the African Union,” said SADR Foreign Minister Mohamed Salem Ould Salek. Salek said the re-admission of Morocco will help pressure the authorities into holding a referendum to “allow the Sahrawi to choose their future”.

“Now (if) Morocco is blocking (it) will be questioned by the head of states: why are you afraid of a referendum? Why don’t you allow the Sahrawi to choose their future freely?” he said. Morocco has for several years been trying to return to the body as it reportedly seeks to expand its economy. In July 2016, Moroccan King Mohammed VI officially announced plans to rejoin the African Union.

Presstv

30, January 2017

Southern Cameroons Crisis: Pro Yaounde diplomat elected President of the African Union ⁰

Chadian Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2008, Moussa Faki Mahamat, 56, has been elected to the presidency of the African Union (AU) Commission today Monday January 30th in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during the 28th Summit of the pan-African organization.

Faki Mahamat has been painted as “a faithful among the faithful” of Chadian President Idriss Déby Itno with very closed ties with the Biya regime. The General Assembly also elected a new Chairman in the person of Guinean Alpha Condé. Faki Mahamat announced that he intends to make the fight against terrorism a priority.

His candidacy was however weakened by the lack of consensus on a single candidate in Central Africa, Sub region. In addition, part of the Chadian civil society militated against its candidacy by highlighting the lack of democracy and the lack of respect for human rights in his country. Moussa Fakhi Mahamat was however elected with 39 votes out of 54 against the Kenyan Amina Mohamed.

The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium has not reacted to this latest development in the African Union.

By Chi Prudence Asong

30, January 2017

Southern Cameroons Ghost Town defining the end of the CPDM era ⁵

Southern Cameroonians are demonstrating that civil disobedience works. Today, the interim leaders of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium have announced as much, by citing more recent and local successes, including those of Buea that left only the 20 CPDM taxis belonging to Mayor Ekema on the empty streets.

The hugely successful campaign against rapes, arrests and extra judicial killings currently going on in Anglophone Cameroon were put to the eyes of the international community and the ghost town operation shall be stage again tomorrow Tuesday the 31^st of January. What all of this proves is that civil disobedience works.

There seems to be this Francophone CPDM narrative that the closure of schools is harming Southern Cameroons children. However, Southern Cameroonians have come to the conclusion that this last and hopefully a protracted battle will be beneficial to all when it comes to an end. People power has been effective on this struggle.

Earlier, the National Executive Committee of the SDF endorsed the demands of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium and outlined some proposals which may come forward if the African Union and the United Nations agree to get the Yaoundé regime and the Consortium to dialogue. How that will work remains to be seen. But, to borrow a phrase from a well-known Francophone politician, and apply it to the Anglophone Crisis, “Cameroon will never be the same again.”

The ghost town in the provinces of West Cameroon was very effective. Schools remain closed and Southern Cameroonians are now focused to fire the first salvo towards an independent state by a massive boycott of 11th February celebrations. The Consortium has revealed that a special form of ghost town and boycott will be carried out on the 11^th of February to destroy once and for all, the fake union between Southern Cameroons and La Republique and restore our lost statehood.

Culled from Cameroon Intelligence Report