Monthly News Updates: Southern Cameroons – February 2021
By: Kristoffer Burck, Junior Research Associate, PILPG-NL
THIS POST COLLECTS UPDATES FROM THE PAST MONTH CONCERNING RELEVANT DEVELOPMENTS IN SOUTHERN CAMEROONS. THE INFORMATION IS DRAWN FROM LOCAL AND INTERNATIONAL ONLINE SOURCES.
VIOLENCE IN ANGLOPHONE REGIONS
Peace Process | Government Offers Compensation to Victims of Ngarbuh Massacre
A year after the Ngarbuh massacre, in which security forces killed 21 civilians, including 13 children, the government offered compensation to the families of victims. The offer to families contains roughly 9.000 USD for each person killed. A news source quoted the spokesperson for a victims´ organization as finding it “unacceptable that the government has unilaterally fixed the price for human life …”. In the process of finding compensation, the government denied any wrongdoing at first, but later agreed to set up a commission of inquiry. After international pressure, this government commission concluded that five of the killed individuals were armed fighters and 13 civilians were accidentally killed in the crossfire. Based on these findings, a trial against three members of the armed forces began on December 17, 2020. Nevertheless, the commission and the trial are criticized by organizations such as Human Rights Watch, as they are only “going after low-ranking soldiers” and excluding those higher up in the chain of command. The trial is still ongoing. [February 14th 2021]
Peace Process | Former Separatist Fighters Protest Conditions in DDR Centres
A number of former separatist fighters in Disarmament, Demobilisation, and Reintegration (DDR) Centres in Bamenda in the anglophone North West region protested on February 15th 2021, to make their demands for better integration efforts heard. The former fighters, who laid down their arms voluntarily, condemn the government for not living up to their promises of reintegrating the former fighters into society. [February 15th 2021]
Clashes with Soldiers | Civilian Violently Tortured by Soldiers
Widespread outrage erupted in Cameroon after a video emerged online showing soldiers, gendarmes, and police officers torturing a civilian man on February 11, 2021. In the video, the government officials are seemingly threatening to behead the man and express that their acts are common practices among law enforcement officials. The victim explained a few days later that the officials accused him of being a member of armed separatist groups, relying on the fact that he was in possession of a second identity card as proof.. Following national outrage, the perpetrators have been arrested and are currently being investigated by the Military High Command. [February 18th 2021]
Peace Process | Japan Offers Financing for Reconstruction of Anglophone Regions
The government of Japan, via its Embassy in Yaoundé, offered to financially support reconstruction efforts in anglophone regions. Japan reportedly offered 2.75 Million USD in support of a government-led program to rebuild infrastructure in the anglophone North West and South West regions, both severely affected by the ongoing conflict. [February 19th 2021]
Separatist Violence | Separatist Allegedly Kill Three Local Rulers
Armed separatists allegedly abducted and killed four traditional chiefs from the Libalem community in the anglophone South West Region on February 13th 2021. Local sources claim that a possible reason for the abduction could be that the local rulers participated in regional elections in December 2020, disobeying a boycott mandated by separatist groups. A separatist leader in turn claimed that government forces were responsible for the killings and that politicians are now trying to frame the anglophone movement. [February 22nd 2021]
Separatist Violence | At Least Six Soldiers Killed in Three Different Attacks
Armed separatists killed at least six government soldiers in three separate attacks in February. Three navy soldiers were killed in an ambush on February 14th and an army captain in a separate attack on February 15th. In the third attack on February 24th, separatists killed at least two soldiers after their vehicle was damaged by an improvised explosive device. The army in turn reportedly also killed five suspected separatists and burned civilian houses in the anglophone North West region, killing two civilians. [February 25th 2021]
HUMAN RIGHTS
US Deportations | Members of US Congress Ask Biden to Stop Deportations to Cameroon
More than 40 Democratic members of the US Congress wrote a letter urging President Biden to halt deportations of asylum seekers to Cameroon. The letter cites the ongoing armed conflicts in the anglophone regions and on the Nigerian border, as well as human rights abuses by the Cameroonian government as reasons to stop deportations. The previous administration under President Trump continued to deport Cameroonian asylum seekers, ignoring warnings by human rights groups. [February 17th 2021]
LGBTQ+ Rights | Nine People Arrested for Practicing Homosexuality
The police arrested nine individuals on charges of “practicing homosexuality” on February 25th 2021. These arrests were made at the headquarters of a civil society organization that provides care for persons infected with HIV. Homosexuality is prohibited under Cameroonian law and can be sentenced to up to five years in prison. [January 19th 2021]