18, October 2019

Southern Cameroons War: Ambazonia commander killed after dropping weapons in Wum ⁰

A key separatist commander named Polycarp Ekeom who laid down his weapons “to give peace a chance” in Cameroon’s English-speaking region has been killed “most probably by separatists”, the military source said on Thursday.

“He was killed Wednesday night at his residence in Wum. His body was mutilated. We were still preparing to take him to a secure location when the tragedy happened,” a military officer who asked not to be named told Xinhua.

Local authorities confirmed his death and said he was murdered.

On Wednesday, Ekeom who was controlling operations in Wum, a locality in the Anglophone region of Northwest, received a standing ovation after announcing at a public event his decision to drop his weapons and embrace normal life.

It is the first time since the creation of Cameroon’s National Committee on Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (NCDDR) in 2018, that an ex-fighter was killed after dropping his weapons in the country.

More than 100 separatist fighters have already dropped their weapons in the two Anglophone regions of Northwest and Southwest, according officials of NCDDR.

President Paul Biya has promised not to harm the separatists who will lay down their weapons, but warned that those who continue the armed struggle will “face the full force” of the Cameroon army.

Since 2017, armed separatists have been clashing with government forces in the regions in a bid to create an independent nation they call “Ambazonia”.

A national dialogue to end the separatist conflict held in the country early October recommended that greater autonomy should be given to the English-speaking regions.

Source: Xinhuanet

18, October 2019

Fifa U-17 World Cup: Presidential decree keeps Eto’o out as Cameroon name final squad ⁰

Etienne Eto’o, the son of African football legend Samuel Eto’o, will not play at this year’s U-17 World Cup in Brazil after he was left out of Cameroon coach Thomas Libiih’s final 21-man squad.

Eto’o, along with Roma forward Barel Fotso, are in a group of Europe-based players who have not made the squad.

Eto’o, who is on the books of Spanish giants Mallorca, joined the reigning African champions for a training camp in Brasilia and scored in a friendly against local side Brasilians FC.

A decree signed by Cameroon’s President Paul Biya in September 2014 said that the country’s U-15 and U-17 teams should be reserved solely for players in domestic championships.

Cameroon coach Thomas Libiih had previously expressed concerns over the eligibility of foreign-based players for the U-17 World Cup in a letter to Fecafoot’s President Seidou Mbombo Njoya.

Libiih, a former Cameroon international who featured in the 1990 World Cup, has also left out five players from his 2019 Nations Cup winning squad.

The list is headlined by midfielder Steve Mvoue who captained Cameroon to their second continental title in April, eventually being crowned the tournament’s most valuable player.

In their second World Cup, the Cameroonians are pitted against Argentina, Spain and Tajikistan in Group E in Brazil.

During their first appearance at the U-17 World Cup in 2003 in Finland, Cameroon bowed out of the tournament at the first hurdle undefeated, playing an exciting 5-5 tie with Portugal in their last group game.

Senegal, Nigeria and Angola will also represent Africa at the 2019 global event in Brazil which runs from 26 October to 17 November.

Cameroon Squad:

Goalkeepers: Ekoi Manfred Mekumba(Best Stars Academy),Tiwa Yvan Lafont (Fondation Tafi),Beubap Mbiadjeu Jacques Bruno (EFBC)

Defenders: Nang Toni (AS Ngueng), Bere Laoumbo François (Oyili FC), Ndzie Mezama Fabrice (Fondation Tafi), Ze Essono Severn (Academy Ahala),Ngatchou Kamtchouang Ricky (AS Fortuna), Aoudou Moussa (Real Academy New Bell), Ngolna PATRICE (AS Milet)

Midfielders: Mvoue Steve Regis (Azur Star), Ben Hamed Ndongo (Dauphine Fc), Dibongue Kingue Gael (AS Milet), Medou Bella Marc Franck (APEJES Mfou), Daouda Amadou (Oyili FC),Onana Etoga Cyril Loic (Academy Hala)

Forwards: Yannick Noah (Sahel FC), Ismaila Seidou (International), Wamba Djuffo Leonel (AS Menoua), Nongoh Samuel Bakia (Dauphine of Douala), Eba Tchecegna Arnold Adrien

Source: BBC

17, October 2019

US: Democrat Elijah Cummings, at center of Trump inquiry, dies at 68 ⁰

Senior US Democratic congressman Elijah Cummings, who was at the center of the Trump impeachment inquiry, died Thursday at the age of 68, his office said.

The veteran Baltimore representative passed away at a hospital in his home city “due to complications concerning longstanding health challenges,” a statement from his office said without giving the cause of death.

As the highly respected chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, Cummings — a big man with a booming voice and gift for oratory — was at the center of the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump and had clashed with him repeatedly in recent months.

The House panel is one of three probing whether Trump pressured Ukraine to dig up dirt on Democratic White House hopeful Joe Biden and help the president win re-election next year.

Cummings had also supervised probes into issues including the Trump administration’s treatment of migrants at the border with Mexico and its effort to include a question about citizenship in next year’s census.

Trump set aside his feud with the Democrats to extend condolences to Cummings’ family and friends.

“I got to see first hand the strength, passion and wisdom of this highly respected political leader. His work and voice on so many fronts will be very hard, if not impossible, to replace!” he wrote on Twitter.

In July, the president described Baltimore as a “rat and rodent infested mess” unfit for humans and blamed it on the Cummings, who has represented much of the majority-black city in Congress since 1996. Trump suggested the African-American Democrat spend more time there.

Cummings wrote in response, “Mr. President, I go home to my district daily. Each morning, I wake up, and I go and fight for my neighbors. It is my constitutional duty to conduct oversight of the Executive Branch. But, it is my moral duty to fight for my constituents.”

‘We lost a giant’

One of seven children, Cummings was the son of South Carolina sharecroppers who moved north to improve their lot in life.

He earned a degree in political science and later a law degree, and went on to become one of the most powerful Democrats in Congress and a key ally of House speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The Baltimore Sun said he was “known for his devotion to Baltimore and civil rights, and for blunt and passionate speechmaking.”

It said he had particularly resented Trump’s tweet that four congresswomen of color should “go back” to their countries.

Since winning his seat in 1996, Cummings never faced a serious challenge for it. He was also an early supporter of Barack Obama’s drive to become America’s first black president.

Tributes to Cummings quickly poured in from Congress.

“We lost a giant today. Congressman Elijah Cummings was a fearless leader, a protector of democracy, and a fighter for the people of Maryland. Our world is dimmer without him in it,” Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris wrote.

“He was an amazing man,” said Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer.

“He had a combination of being strong when he had to be, and had to be quite often, but also being kind and decent and caring and humble,” Schumer said.

(Source: AFP)

17, October 2019

Ambazonia: Interim Government vows to work for complete independence ⁰

Exiled Southern Cameroons leader, Dabney Yerima pledged on Wednesday to push for a new resistance strategy with the Ambazonia Self-Defense Force on secession after the fallout from the failed so-called Major National Dialogue which recently opted to grant a kind of “Special Status” to the people of Ambazonia.

The Ambazonia Vice President told our chief correspondent in London, Asu Isong that the sentencing of President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe and his top aides will not go unanswered. “The life sentence given to our leaders abducted in Nigeria for standing for self-determination is a wakeup call to every Southern Cameroonian that we must change the tactics by investing in the struggle.”

Comrade Dabney Yerima was referring to the Amba Bonds Project launched this week by the treasury department of the Ambazonia Interim Government which involves Southern Cameroonians investing their money in the resistance.

Announced late on Sunday, the Amba Bonds is a more flexible and transparent scheme by the Interim Government which has pushed increasingly skeptic Southern Cameroonians to once again engage in the Ambazonian revolution.

Dabney Yerima said “the fact that the idea of a special status for Southern Cameroonians came from former finance minister Akame Mfoumou who is a cousin to French Cameroun head of state Paul Biya was indeed an insult to the Ambazonian nation. I will advocate for Southern Cameroonians to exercise the right to self-determination throughout my term as Vice President.”

“Southern Cameroonians in the diaspora are very much aware of the difficulties our people in Ground Zero are facing through repression and fear. But I want to assure Ambazonians that we of the Interim Government are pushing forward to get supplies to Ground Zero! I am therefore calling on all our self-defense forces not to allow themselves to be intimidated by threats and deceits,” noted the Ambazonia Vice President.

Dabney Yerima reiterated his condemnation of the violence that he blamed on Minister Paul Atanga Nji militias and misguided Amba Boys whom he said should be isolated and kept away from the ongoing well organized Southern Cameroons struggle.

By Chi Prudence Asong and Asu Isong

17, October 2019

Brexit: UK, EU clinch deal ⁰

Britain and the European Union (EU) have agreed on a long-awaited Brexit deal just a few hours before a meeting of the bloc’s leaders in Brussels.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker made the announcement in a statement on Thursday, saying that the deal on Britain’s withdrawal from the EU was a “fair and balanced agreement.”

Juncker said he would recommend that the leaders of the other 27 member states approve the deal, adding it was “high time” to complete the divorce process and move on as swiftly as possible to negotiations of the EU’s future partnership with Britain.

17, October 2019

Biya is destroying basic human rights in Southern Cameroons ⁰

The 86 year old French Cameroun dictator is reportedly destroying basic human rights and putting the long standing democratic culture in Southern Cameroons at risk. Biya gave the green light to Cameroon government army soldiers to use excessive force without proper justification against innocent Ambazonia civilians in a conflict that has entered its fourth year.

Ever since the proclamation of the independence of Southern Cameroons by President Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, Southern Cameroonians have seen the French Cameroun leader frontally attacking with his military and his policies all of British Southern Cameroons political, economic and social institutions.

With unflinching support from the French government and the deliberate silence on the part of the United Nations, Mr. Biya has blatantly refused any face-to-face talks with the leadership of the Ambazonia Interim Government or with representatives from the International Crisis Group and Human Rights Watch.

French Cameroun political elites such as Justice Minister Laurent Esso, the Minister Secretary General at the presidency of the Republic, Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh and the Minister for Defense, Joseph Beti Assomo who basically run the ruling CPDM crime syndicate are not allowed to speak to the media.

The Yaoundé regime has adopted a hard-line security strategy that has fueled a surge in army killings in Southern Cameroons in the last three years. Biya himself has frequently lambasted the leadership of the Ambazonia Interim Government and the Southern Cameroons diaspora including French Cameroun political leaders, activists and media outlets – accusing everyone but his gang of attempting to destabilize the so-called one and indivisible Cameroon.

For 37 years, Mr. Biya has been the target of massive nationwide demonstrations over his policy that ranges from plain fiction to the most absurd. Biya’s supporters often take to the streets in a show of support, but generally in smaller numbers in Southern Cameroons.

For more than three decades as head of state, Biya has successfully narrowed down the democratic space in both La Republique du Cameroun and Southern Cameroons. The former Roman Catholic Archbishop of Yaoundé who enjoyed political flirtation with the Biya Francophone regime was heard murmuring privately that his kinsman Biya has slowly but surely transformed La Republique du Cameroun into an elected dictatorship were the head of state is above the law.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

17, October 2019

Psychological Care Lacking in Southern Cameroons Conflict ⁰

Cameroon’s three-year separatist conflict has left close to 3,000 people dead and growing numbers in need of psychological care. An influx of people impacted by the conflict are flooding into trauma centers across the English-speaking regions of the central African state. Medical officials say they are running short of supplies and trauma workers are struggling to provide care.

A middle-aged woman cries for help at the Integrated Mental Health Care Center in Babungo, a village in Cameroon’s English-speaking Northwest.

She tells a reporter her husband was shot dead in a crossfire between the military and separatist fighters in September. Then on Saturday, her only son’s body was found in an abandoned school building in the town of Mbengwi.

In the same trauma center, 19-year-old Yvonne Ikah says that last month three armed men in the English-speaking town of Bamenda stopped her on the way to school and raped her.

“They told me to climb on a bike [motorcycle] and I tried resisting. But, when I saw the gun, I had no option. They took me to a bush. I insisted that I was an orphan. They beat me and I had no option. What I went through, I am not sure I will ever want to go back there again,” she said.

As Cameroon’s separatist conflict heads into a fourth year, the number of trauma victims is only growing.

At the Babungo Mental Health Care Center alone, the number of patients has tripled in the past two months to nearly 600.

Trauma care specialist Evangeline Nchang says patient numbers jump when fighting stops, as it becomes safer to travel to the center.

“The trauma is just too much,” she said. “Youths are dying, elderly people are dying, even old mothers that cannot even run away when the guns are being shot. They are just shot like that. There are more mental patients every day because of the trauma of this crisis.”

There are not enough beds, so the patients sleep on the floor in crowded hallways.

Medical supplies are running short, despite donations from Germany and the United States.

And director of the trauma center John Tumenta says most staff have fled because of nearby fighting between Cameroon’s military and the separatists.

Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi (L) talks with Cameroonian veteran opposition leader John Fru Ndi as they attends at the… — FILE – People gather at the Congress Palace during the opening session of the National Dialogue called by President Paul Biya, in Yaounde, Cameroon, Sept. 30, 2019.

Earlier this month, Cameroon’s government hosted a week-long “national dialogue” with the aim of ending the conflict.

While some welcomed the effort by President Paul Biya for reconciliation, critics dismissed the dialogue as a sham debate.

Separatist leaders refused to take part, noting thousands of people are still locked up in connection with the conflict, and vowed to continue fighting.

Meanwhile, the United Nations says the humanitarian situation in the troubled western regions is getting worse with half a million internally displaced, and over a million in need of assistance.

Fighting broke out in 2016 after Cameroon’s military cracked down on anglophones calling for an independent state within the mainly French-speaking country. Cameroon’s English speakers say they are treated as second-class citizens and given fewer jobs and support from the state.

Source: VOA

17, October 2019

US: Dems, Trump cut short meeting about Turkey’s war on Syria ⁰

US President Donald Trump and Democratic leaders cut short a meeting over Turkey’s war after the commander in chief experiences a “meltdown.”

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told reporters Wednesday that Trump called House Speaker Nancy Pelosi a “third-rate politician” and as the result, the meeting in the White House deteriorated into a “diatribe.”

“What we witnessed on the part of the president was a meltdown. Sad to say,” said Pelosi, who has launched an impeachment inquiry over the Ukraine scandal.

Drew Hammill✔@Drew_Hammill

Thanks for the new cover photo @realDonaldTrump!

Hoyer blasted the president’s treatment of Pelosi, suggesting that his behavior was unprecedented.

“I’ve been in many, many, many meetings like this,” he said. “Never have I seen a president treat so disrespectfully a co-equal branch of the government of the United States.”

Trump’s spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham rejected the Democrats’ allegations.

17, October 2019

Ambazonia and La Republique Crises: Is Paul Biya back in charge after tactical manoeuvres? ⁰

Paul Biya is playing a tactical masterclass. From the release of opposition leader Maurice Kamto and Anglophone militants, to the conclusions of the Great National Dialogue, the Cameroon president is hoping to avoid letting the federalism genie out of the bottle. Tired but beaming, Prime Minister Joseph Dion Ngute hands out a few bottles of Guinness to his colleagues on the first floor of the Palais des Congrès. There is no palm wine to mix with it, but the head of government wants to celebrate the end of the “Great National Dialogue”, which took place from 30 September to 4 October in the palace grounds. It was Dion Ngute who had welcomed the participants, eased tensions and overcome disappointments during the course of the five-day debate.

“This is a real political victory for him,” says Christophe Mien Zok, spokesman for the ruling party, the Rassemblement Démocratique du Peuple Camerounais (RDPC). Since President Paul Biya’s speech announcing the dialogue on 10 September, Dion Ngute had worked closely with the party, whose recommendations were designed to ensure the dialogue would not deviate from what the head of state wanted: a return to peace, and decentralisation.

Dion Ngute’s job was far from easy. On the first night he had to make a concession and allow the commission on decentralisation to discuss federalism – which the organisers had hoped to avoid. Meanwhile, there was the disturbance caused by Sultan Ibrahim Mbombo Njoya, an old companion of Paul Biya, who called for a limit on the number of presidential terms and political alternation. Biya was not in the room but he had his eyes and ears in the form of presidency official Ferdinand Ngoh Ngoh and several members of the intelligence services.

Until the last moment, Ngoh Ngoh and the minister of territorial administration, Paul Atanga Nji, were reluctant to engage in the dialogue, preferring to take a tougher line towards the opposition – notably Maurice Kamto, who was released on 5 October – and the Ambazonians. The two men watched Dion Ngute’s ascent with a cautious eye. But it was difficult to ignore Paul Biya’s support for his prime minister. The latter held tight to the reins and, on the closing evening of the debate, the two key – but vague – recommendations were in place: increased decentralisation throughout the country and a special status for the North-West and South-West regions. “It was a success,” says Simon Munzu, a diplomat at the United Nations. “The government admitted that there was an Anglophone problem and let the participants discuss federalism. Even if the solution was rejected, it took the sting out of the concept.”

But what can we expect from the recommendations transmitted to Paul Biya, who will implement them “according to their timeliness and feasibility”? “Giving special status to English-speaking regions means recognising their heritage, particularly in terms of the school and legal systems,” explains a ruling party official, who also cites the possible restoration of an “Assembly of Anglophone leaders”.

Paul Biya still sees federalism as a Pandora’s box

“We are moving towards greater decentralisation – quite close to federalism for the Anglophone regions,” says a Cameroonian political scientist. “Management of their own separate justice and education systems, as they did until the reunification of 1972, election of a regional authority with real powers and the restoration of an Assembly specific to the two Anglophone regions.”

Paul Biya, master of timing Biya, however, has not gone as far as federalism, which he still sees as “a Pandora’s box”, in the words of one of his close advisers. But the president has, on the surface at least, made concessions. “He had two problems: one national, which he wants to solve through decentralisation; the other Anglophone, which he thinks he can solve with a special status,” the source continues. Will Biya follow the recommendations?

The measures must be implemented in the coming weeks

He is a master of timing. “The measures must be implemented in the coming weeks,” says one executive in the ruling party. “Since 1996, Biya has been talking about decentralisation, but nothing has ever been done,” recalls a sceptic. Why believe in it today more than yesterday? “With the Ambazonians, we’ve been backed into a corner,” a party member confides. In Yaoundé, everyone is breathing out after what they see as a close call. But there’s a huge job ahead. The next parliamentary session, usually devoted to the state budget, is scheduled to open in early November, and legislative and municipal elections are scheduled to take place in February 2020. “MPs must follow the president’s lead, and the administration must not, as in the past, delay in passing laws,” RDPC spokesman Mien Zok insists. From the ministries to the tables of the capital’s restaurants, everyone is waiting for the next speech from the Etoudi Palace’s long-term tenant. “He can save his presidency by being pragmatic and giving up some of his power to the regions,” says a source close to Biya. But will his (so far hypothetical) pragmatism be enough?

The Anglophone conflict is far from resolved

For the Ambazonians, who refused to participate in it, the national dialogue was a non-event. “This monologue was nothing but a PR operation,” says Herbert Boh, one of their leaders in exile. On 7 October, a new “dead city” operation was organised by the secessionists in the North-West and South-West regions. It was a success.

“It will take more to win back the trust of the people and isolate the fighters. How can we expect to resolve this crisis in five days of debates that were written in advance?” confides a diplomat based in Yaoundé, for whom the release of separatist leader Ayuk Tabe is essential. “Even if Biya decided to take military action, hoping that the population had shifted to his side, it could not win against this guerrilla group.”

A more ambitious dialogue with Anglophones and Ambazonians is needed

“Youth in the North-West and South-West are becoming more and more radical. We need a more ambitious dialogue with Anglophones and Ambazonians on the form the state will take,” says Léonel Loumou, adviser to Akere Muna. On 2 May, Tabe’s birthday, a prayer was uttered in his Yaoundé prison: “May the Lord free us, bless us and free our lands from foreign occupation.” There is not much to be optimistic about. Especially since old political habits in Yaoundé still linger and could once again stop any change. “If we could have had a tenth of what the Anglophones have, we would have signed,” says an angry political leader from the Far North, who went so far as to claim “another special status” for his region.

Frightening tactic

“This is a perverse effect of the debate, and a way for some French-speaking leaders to block the implementation of the recommendations,” says one of the presidency regular. On the shores of Lake Yaoundé, overlooked by the white residence of the Prime Minister, rumours of reshuffling are already causing friction. In some villas in the heights of the city, the ballet of the ambitious has begun, while the elders are trying to ensure that their privileges are maintained. For those who do not have Paul Biya’s ear directly, the long nights of uncertainty have begun.

The tactical president, never better than in these troubled waters, will have to box clever: give to the English-speaking peoples without offending the other regions and open the government to the opponents who participated in the dialogue (Joshua Osih, Cabral Libii or Serge Espoir Matomba) without angering the CPDM. However, in this political version of the songo, Biya is in the “expert” category. On 5 October, the day after the dialogue ended, the President, to almost everyone’s surprise, officially dropped the charges against Maurice Kamto and the leaders of the Mouvement pour la renaissance du Cameroun (MRC). “Biya buried the dialogue by focusing attention on Maurice Kamto. Liberation is a good thing, but it will be less so if it allows the head of state to shelve the resolutions of the debate,” says a member of the MRC.

“Biya has bought time and given pledges to the United Nations and foreign powers. It is in the coming weeks that we will know if it was only a diversion,” said one diplomat. On October 8, as Maurice Kamto reconnected with his family and followers, Paul Biya landed in Lyon, France. His first official trip abroad since his hasty departure from Switzerland in July under pressure from a rebellious diaspora. He met with his counterpart Emmanuel Macron, who called for the early implementation of the dialogue’s recommendations. After a year of turmoil, the sphinx of Etoudi is facing scrutiny from all sides. But he is in charge again. For better or for worse.

Culled from the Africa Report

16, October 2019

Message to Ambazonia: Catalonians begin 100km ‘freedom march’ to Barcelona ⁰

In a straw hat and hiking boots, Jordi Soler set out from Girona with thousands of others on a 100-kilometre (60-mile) “freedom march” after Spain jailed nine Catalan separatist leaders.

“This is to show that we can bring Catalonia to a halt… to show that Madrid must do something because if not, it will soon be out of its hands,” warned the 25-year-old doctoral student.

With a Catalan separatist flag tied to his rucksack, he set off down the road among an endless line of marchers, from youngsters to pensioners, all of them protesting Monday’s Supreme Court verdict which handed nine Catalan leaders heavy prison terms for their role in the failed 2017 independence bid.

Following two days of mass protests, which at times turned violent, separatist activists on Wednesday organised five regional marches to Barcelona which are expected to reach the city by Friday.

The mass deployment down miles and miles of roads and highways is aimed at causing transport chaos in one of Spain’s most important economic regions, which is also a bottleneck for traffic moving between Spain and France, and the rest of Europe.

Organisers say some 10,000 people turned out for the start of the marches, with the biggest in separatist stronghold Girona, the hometown of former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, who fled to Belgium to escape prosecution for his role in the crisis.

On a chilly morning barely warmed by the autumn sun, the crowds rallied in the town’s October 1 square renamed in honour of the date of the contentious referendum, which was banned by Madrid and marred by police violence.

And by 9:00 am (0700 GMT), they were on their way, setting out on a 100-kilometre journey to the Catalan capital that will take them through the verdant hilly countryside of Girona to the sandy plains of the Mediterranean coast.

– Independence struggle as ‘TV series’ –

Some will walk the entire way. Others will complete only part of it. With many passing cars honking their support, the march got under way in a festive atmosphere, moving aside only to allow the passage of ambulances or other emergency vehicles.

“It’s all very peaceful and that’s good… even if sometimes you have to more forceful,” Soler grins, in a nod to the overnight clashes in Barcelona.

When the independence movement began to gain momentum, he was just 18. Ensconced in leftwing Catalan circles, his involvement in the separatist movement came naturally, he says.

After seven years of demonstrations, protests and votes for independence, none of which had any effect, Soler admits feeling “a little worn out” by the struggle.

But he won’t give up.

“It’s like a TV series. You’ve watched seven seasons and the eight is rubbish, but you still watch it because you’ve come so far and hopefully it will have a good ending,” he explains.

The marches were organised by ANC and Omnium, the region’s two biggest grassroots pro-independence groups that have organised some of the largest separatist protests in recent years.

And both groups have been directly impacted by the verdict, with Omnium head Jordi Cuixart, and Jordi Sanchez, who headed the ANC during the 2017 independence bid, both sentenced to nine years behind bars.

– ‘I’m in a hurry’ –

The peaceful marches stood in stark contrast with the tense protests of recent days, led by activist groups like the radical CDR (Committees for the Defence of the Republic) or Democratic Tsunami, who brought 10,000 people to Barcelona airport, cutting off transport links and prompting the cancellation of more than 100 flights.

“These marches… show the best of the Catalan people,” said regional president Quim Torra, who joined the march as it set out from Girona.

After two hours, with the sun much higher in the sky, the tiredness began to show.

“I’m going to stop soon. I’m not a spring chicken any more,” admitted 74-year-old Maria Pilar Collell.

Disappointed with the regional leaders, who for the past two years have been divided over how to push ahead, this elderly protester who learned Catalan in secret during Franco’s dictatorship, when it was banned, is hoping she’ll live to see the day when Catalonia is an independent nation.

“The politicians keep telling us to be patient,” she told AFP.

“But I’m in a hurry, I’m not 20 any more!”

Source: AFP