01-14-2018, 11:51 PM
*** 15-Jan-18 World View -- Cameroon Catholic Church splits over government 'barbarism' and 'growing genocide'
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
****
**** Cameroon crisis escalates as English-speakers flee to Nigeria to escape French-speakers' violence
****
![[Image: g180114b.jpg]](http://Media.GenerationalDynamics.com/ww2010/g180114b.jpg)
Anglophone Cameroon cocoa farmers have been forced to abandon their crops and flee the violence from the Francophone security forces (Reuters)
There are fears that the crisis in Cameroon's Anglophone
(English-speaking) regions is spiraling out of control, leading to a
refugee emergency, and possibly shutting down cocoa production, an
important part of Cameroon's economy.
Tens of thousands of people from the Southern Cameroons, as the
Anglophone provinces of Cameroon are known, have been forced to flee
across the border into Nigeria in the last three months, to escape
increasingly brutal violence by Francophone security forces of the
country's despotic Francophone leader, 84 year old Paul Biya, who has
been in power 37 years.
Even thousands of cocoa farmers have been forced to abandon their
crops and flee to larger towns or to Nigeria. Normally, they produce
more than 100,000 tonnes of beans, nearly half of the country's
output.
The violence started in 2016, but at the start is one almost entirely
one-sided violence, with the Francophone security forces violently
attacking peaceful Anglophone protesters.
In 2016, the peaceful protests began with claims by Anglophone lawyers
that the legal and court systems are biased toward Francophones, with
many laws passed without even being translated into English.
Anglophone teachers joined in, protesting that all courses in the
schools had to be taught in French, and that any use of English was
forbidden. The Francophone police responded by severely beating
several protesters, and shooting two of them dead.
Violence by Francophone security forces grew during 2017, and took a
particularly dangerous turn on September 22, when pro-Anglophone
activist forces began using small bombs to target local security
forces. On October 1, separatists staged a massive march, and
declared the independence of Ambazonia. In the increasingly violent
Francophone government crackdown that followed, hundreds of people
were arrested, and helicopter gunships were used to fire on innocent
civilians and kill them, resulting in the mass flight of refugees into
Nigeria.
Nigeria is being increasingly drawn into the Cameroon crisis, as
Cameroon Francophone security forces have been illegally crossing the
border into Nigeria to pursue and arrest refugees fleeing the
violence.
On January 5, armed Nigerian security forces stormed a hotel in
Nigeria's capital city, Abuja, where Cameroonian activists were
meeting, and arrested 15 men and held them in secret custody for over
a week. It's feared that Nigerian authorities will extradite the
activists to Cameroon, where they'll be held without trial and
tortured. This has caused a debate by legislators and human rights
activists within Nigeria itself, who say that the arrests were in
violation of Nigerian law, and that deporting them would be a
violation of international law.
According to Jeffrey Smith of nonprofit Vanguard Africa:
<QUOTE>"With elections due later this year, and with
President Biya’s increasing unpopularity, this is a potentially
explosive situation that merits much more attention than it has
been receiving, namely from regional leaders who should, in
theory, have an interest in containing the regional
unrest."<END QUOTE>
Presidential elections are scheduled for October. 84-year-old Biya is
expected to run again, and to use corruption and force to rig the
elections to make sure he wins. Quartz and Reuters and Premium Times (Nigeria) and Amnesty International
****
**** Cameroon Catholic Church splits over government 'barbarism' and 'growing genocide'
****
The violence in the Anglophone regions of Cameroons has resulted in a
significant split in Cameroon's Catholic Church, with accusations
being launched between Anglophone bishops and Francophone bishops.
On October 4 of last year, the Anglophone Bishops issued a
declaration, excerpted as follows:
<QUOTE>"We also condemned in very unequivocal terms the
violence perpetuated by some groups of young people on the one
hand and the acts of brutality, torture, inhuman and unjustified
treatment meted out to some of our youths by the Forces of Law and
Order on the other hand. We called on the Government to restrain
such barbaric action of the Forces of Law and Order and to bring
to justice those of them who had been irresponsible, so that peace
may reign. ...
Friday, 22nd September 2017, was a very significant turning point.
... [A] huge population of men, women, youths, old and young, and
even children turned out on the streets of many towns and villages
of the North West and South West Regions to demonstrate peacefully
and express their right to self-determination. This peaceful march
of mostly innocent citizens, carrying peace plants and shouting
“No violence! No violence!” and defying the Forces of Law and
Order, should have sent home to the authorities a message of the
fact that it was not just a handful of people outside the country
calling for this restoration. While some of the Forces of Law and
Order, reading the signs of the times, did not react violently,
others instead of using their guns to protect citizens, shot live
bullets at unarmed civilians, killing some and maiming others. ...
We condemn in the strongest terms possible the barbarism and the
irresponsible use of firearms against unarmed civilians by the
Forces of Law and Order, even if they are provoked. The divine
injunction: “Thou shalt not kill!” remains valid even in such
circumstances. We call on the Head of State of the Republic of
Cameroon, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, to stop the
bloodbath and genocide that has skillfully been initiated in the
North West and South West Regions. Mr. Kofi Annan, Former
Secretary General of the United Nations Organization, said that “a
genocide begins with the killing of one man – not for what he had
done – but for who he is”. The statement by the Minister of
Communications, the Spokesperson for the Government, that some
Anglophone Cameroonians are “terrorists” is a subtle call for what
can be described as “ethnic cleansing” or a genocide as all
Anglophone Cameroonians are now considered as ‘terrorists’ and as
such they qualify for elimination, just because they are
Anglophones! We need to stop the imminent genocide! ...
At the moment, the Anglophone Problem can no longer be taken
lightly or ignored. It needs urgent attention, to avoid the
growing genocide. People have lost loved ones to brutal killings
and do not even know where some of their corpses are now. Every
individual who is killed increases the number of aggrieved persons
and families, resentment and anger, which are very difficult to
address."<END QUOTE>
Francophone bishops played down this statement by ignoring the issues,
but making a general condemnation of all violence, such as this by
Francophone Archbishop Samuel Kleda:
<QUOTE>"In the name of our common citizenship, brotherhood
and humanity, the defense of legitimate interests must go hand in
hand with social harmony, which is what is being sought
... Violence, regardless of its source, does not build, it
destroys."<END QUOTE>
However, this infuriated Anglophones, who saw this as trying to evade
the issues by lumping them together with all the other problems in
Cameroon.
Anglophone Father Gerald Jumbam wrote a letter to Kleda, saying:
<QUOTE>"[Cameroonians by virtue of their history] cannot be
loyal subjects to the despicable and tyrannous Yaoundé
government. Archbishop, you speak of Decentralization and you
offer us it as the best gift you think fitting for the resolution
of this crisis? We are determined to decline a gift so laden with
spurious promises and deceitful propensities."<END QUOTE>
IDN and Bareta News (6-Oct-2016) and Crux Now
Related Articles
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Cameroon, Southern Cameroons, Paul Biya,
Anglophones, Francophones, Nigeria, Jeffrey Smith, Vanguard Africa,
Archbishop Samuel Kleda, Father Gerald Jumbam
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
- Cameroon crisis escalates as English-speakers flee to Nigeria to escape French-speakers' violence
- Cameroon Catholic Church splits over government 'barbarism' and 'growing genocide'
****
**** Cameroon crisis escalates as English-speakers flee to Nigeria to escape French-speakers' violence
****
Anglophone Cameroon cocoa farmers have been forced to abandon their crops and flee the violence from the Francophone security forces (Reuters)
There are fears that the crisis in Cameroon's Anglophone
(English-speaking) regions is spiraling out of control, leading to a
refugee emergency, and possibly shutting down cocoa production, an
important part of Cameroon's economy.
Tens of thousands of people from the Southern Cameroons, as the
Anglophone provinces of Cameroon are known, have been forced to flee
across the border into Nigeria in the last three months, to escape
increasingly brutal violence by Francophone security forces of the
country's despotic Francophone leader, 84 year old Paul Biya, who has
been in power 37 years.
Even thousands of cocoa farmers have been forced to abandon their
crops and flee to larger towns or to Nigeria. Normally, they produce
more than 100,000 tonnes of beans, nearly half of the country's
output.
The violence started in 2016, but at the start is one almost entirely
one-sided violence, with the Francophone security forces violently
attacking peaceful Anglophone protesters.
In 2016, the peaceful protests began with claims by Anglophone lawyers
that the legal and court systems are biased toward Francophones, with
many laws passed without even being translated into English.
Anglophone teachers joined in, protesting that all courses in the
schools had to be taught in French, and that any use of English was
forbidden. The Francophone police responded by severely beating
several protesters, and shooting two of them dead.
Violence by Francophone security forces grew during 2017, and took a
particularly dangerous turn on September 22, when pro-Anglophone
activist forces began using small bombs to target local security
forces. On October 1, separatists staged a massive march, and
declared the independence of Ambazonia. In the increasingly violent
Francophone government crackdown that followed, hundreds of people
were arrested, and helicopter gunships were used to fire on innocent
civilians and kill them, resulting in the mass flight of refugees into
Nigeria.
Nigeria is being increasingly drawn into the Cameroon crisis, as
Cameroon Francophone security forces have been illegally crossing the
border into Nigeria to pursue and arrest refugees fleeing the
violence.
On January 5, armed Nigerian security forces stormed a hotel in
Nigeria's capital city, Abuja, where Cameroonian activists were
meeting, and arrested 15 men and held them in secret custody for over
a week. It's feared that Nigerian authorities will extradite the
activists to Cameroon, where they'll be held without trial and
tortured. This has caused a debate by legislators and human rights
activists within Nigeria itself, who say that the arrests were in
violation of Nigerian law, and that deporting them would be a
violation of international law.
According to Jeffrey Smith of nonprofit Vanguard Africa:
<QUOTE>"With elections due later this year, and with
President Biya’s increasing unpopularity, this is a potentially
explosive situation that merits much more attention than it has
been receiving, namely from regional leaders who should, in
theory, have an interest in containing the regional
unrest."<END QUOTE>
Presidential elections are scheduled for October. 84-year-old Biya is
expected to run again, and to use corruption and force to rig the
elections to make sure he wins. Quartz and Reuters and Premium Times (Nigeria) and Amnesty International
****
**** Cameroon Catholic Church splits over government 'barbarism' and 'growing genocide'
****
The violence in the Anglophone regions of Cameroons has resulted in a
significant split in Cameroon's Catholic Church, with accusations
being launched between Anglophone bishops and Francophone bishops.
On October 4 of last year, the Anglophone Bishops issued a
declaration, excerpted as follows:
<QUOTE>"We also condemned in very unequivocal terms the
violence perpetuated by some groups of young people on the one
hand and the acts of brutality, torture, inhuman and unjustified
treatment meted out to some of our youths by the Forces of Law and
Order on the other hand. We called on the Government to restrain
such barbaric action of the Forces of Law and Order and to bring
to justice those of them who had been irresponsible, so that peace
may reign. ...
Friday, 22nd September 2017, was a very significant turning point.
... [A] huge population of men, women, youths, old and young, and
even children turned out on the streets of many towns and villages
of the North West and South West Regions to demonstrate peacefully
and express their right to self-determination. This peaceful march
of mostly innocent citizens, carrying peace plants and shouting
“No violence! No violence!” and defying the Forces of Law and
Order, should have sent home to the authorities a message of the
fact that it was not just a handful of people outside the country
calling for this restoration. While some of the Forces of Law and
Order, reading the signs of the times, did not react violently,
others instead of using their guns to protect citizens, shot live
bullets at unarmed civilians, killing some and maiming others. ...
We condemn in the strongest terms possible the barbarism and the
irresponsible use of firearms against unarmed civilians by the
Forces of Law and Order, even if they are provoked. The divine
injunction: “Thou shalt not kill!” remains valid even in such
circumstances. We call on the Head of State of the Republic of
Cameroon, the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, to stop the
bloodbath and genocide that has skillfully been initiated in the
North West and South West Regions. Mr. Kofi Annan, Former
Secretary General of the United Nations Organization, said that “a
genocide begins with the killing of one man – not for what he had
done – but for who he is”. The statement by the Minister of
Communications, the Spokesperson for the Government, that some
Anglophone Cameroonians are “terrorists” is a subtle call for what
can be described as “ethnic cleansing” or a genocide as all
Anglophone Cameroonians are now considered as ‘terrorists’ and as
such they qualify for elimination, just because they are
Anglophones! We need to stop the imminent genocide! ...
At the moment, the Anglophone Problem can no longer be taken
lightly or ignored. It needs urgent attention, to avoid the
growing genocide. People have lost loved ones to brutal killings
and do not even know where some of their corpses are now. Every
individual who is killed increases the number of aggrieved persons
and families, resentment and anger, which are very difficult to
address."<END QUOTE>
Francophone bishops played down this statement by ignoring the issues,
but making a general condemnation of all violence, such as this by
Francophone Archbishop Samuel Kleda:
<QUOTE>"In the name of our common citizenship, brotherhood
and humanity, the defense of legitimate interests must go hand in
hand with social harmony, which is what is being sought
... Violence, regardless of its source, does not build, it
destroys."<END QUOTE>
However, this infuriated Anglophones, who saw this as trying to evade
the issues by lumping them together with all the other problems in
Cameroon.
Anglophone Father Gerald Jumbam wrote a letter to Kleda, saying:
<QUOTE>"[Cameroonians by virtue of their history] cannot be
loyal subjects to the despicable and tyrannous Yaoundé
government. Archbishop, you speak of Decentralization and you
offer us it as the best gift you think fitting for the resolution
of this crisis? We are determined to decline a gift so laden with
spurious promises and deceitful propensities."<END QUOTE>
IDN and Bareta News (6-Oct-2016) and Crux Now
Related Articles
- Cameroon's English-speaking provinces on the verge of full-scale violence (04-Dec-2017)
- Deadly violence increases in English-speaking regions of Cameroon (12-Nov-2017)
- Cameroon police shoot and kill English-speaking protesters on Sunday (02-Oct-2017)
- Cameroon's army to force English-speaking children to attend school (31-Aug-2017)
- Cameroon: One person killed in English-speaking vs French-speaking civil unrest (23-Nov-2016)
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Cameroon, Southern Cameroons, Paul Biya,
Anglophones, Francophones, Nigeria, Jeffrey Smith, Vanguard Africa,
Archbishop Samuel Kleda, Father Gerald Jumbam
Permanent web link to this article
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Contribute to Generational Dynamics via PayPal
John J. Xenakis
100 Memorial Drive Apt 8-13A
Cambridge, MA 02142
Phone: 617-864-0010
E-mail: john@GenerationalDynamics.com
Web site: http://www.GenerationalDynamics.com
Forum: http://www.gdxforum.com/forum
Subscribe to World View: http://generationaldynamics.com/subscribe
