The British and French government are mounting increasing pressure on La Republique du Cameroun (LRC) to initiate a frank, sincere, comprehensive and inclusive dialogue amid the escalation of the Southern Cameroons crisis. Leaked cabled reports say the British and French government are worried over the sporadic attacks meted on unarmed civilians and the military, and fear the crisis could turn into a full blown civil war.
According to a leaked classified cable reports published by a whistle-blowing site, Wikileaks, the British Prime
Minister (PM), Theresa May, is mounting massive pressure on President Paul Biya of LRC to initiate the dialogue process that all world leaders have been talking about. Theresa May affirmed the fact that Southern Cameroons have a genuine preoccupation and it would be only through an inclusive and pacific dialogue that such concerns can be addressed. The British PM indicated that such dialogue will take place in the presence of UK as well as Common Wealth authorities.
For his part, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, on several telephone conversations and in different physical meetings in Abidjan (Cote d’Ivoire) and Paris (France), told Paul Biya that France is deeply concern with the spiral attacks and killings going on in Southern Cameroons. He urged Paul Biya to desist from applying too much military force on civilians as it only radicalises the others. President Macron reiterated the need for the dialogue process between the government of LRC and that of Southern Cameroons to be initiated. Like May, he indicated that authorities from the French government as well as those of la Francophonie will be present on the dialogue table.
Besides the French and British governments, who were hitherto, colonial masters of the two Cameroons, many other world leaders have raised serious concerns over the spill over effects of the Southern Cameroons crisis. Recently, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Gutteres, raised concerns over the increasing number of Southern Cameroonians fleeing to Nigeria as refugees. He once again, called for dialogue to be open so concerns raised can be addressed.
The US president, Donald Trump, through his newly assigned ambassador to LRC, told Paul Biya that the United States is worried over the excessive use of force and killings in Southern Cameroons. His intervention was further compounded by the arrest of LRC born US Citizen, Patrice Nganang. Mounted pressure on the LRC government saw a case adjourned for January 19, 2018, be brought forward to December 26, 2017. The court hearing eventually saw Mr Nganyang released.
The Commonwealth dispatched its Secretary General, Baroness Patrician Scotland since both Nigeria and Cameroon are Commonwealth members. She spent four days in Yaounde and a day in Buea, attempting to bring about a “frank, sincere, comprehensive and inclusive dialogue”, but with little evidence of real progress.
In a statement, Baroness Scotland said that all the parties she met during her visit “appreciated the need for dialogue and expressed willingness to engage in it.”
She added: “Escalation over recent weeks brings deepened urgency, and it will demand of the government a positive step to facilitate an inclusive and structured dialogue leading to real decentralisation.”
The situation has left a particular mess in the laps of British and French diplomats, who no doubt would rather be spending the festive season with their families. Neither the Foreign Office nor the Quai d’Orsay can really afford for this to spill over into a wider regional crisis. Both would far rather encourage Nigeria and Cameroon to continue fighting Boko Haram. Apart from appealing for “restraint” the Foreign Office has had nothing to say about the issue. But this linguistic divide is a colonial legacy that has rumbled on for a century: neither can London nor Paris can wash their hands of this crisis.
By Lucas Muma,
Managing Editor – BaretaNews
9 comments
What was SCACUF demanding? What is the IG of Ambazonia demanding? For months we demand genuine dialogue under the moderation of a third-party. Since Mr. Biya is too stupid to understand our military forces shall increase the pressure on the oppressor.
We will take back what was blatantly stolen from us no matter what. The Ostrich may continue to bury its head in the sand hoping against hope that we will become exhausted. This time around, the documented wanton killings of unarmed civilians, the rapes, maiming and gestruction of properties in Amberland by by this caricature call Biya and his terrorist organizations masquerading as armies cannot just be swept under the carpet by dialoguing.
No more dialogue at all. We done with that. We have to kill them as we are doing everywhere in Ambazonian with no mercy. This is the only thing that works. Our creator given land is ours and we are not begging or negotiating.
They stole our land, they are enslaving us, carrying out mass killings, murdering us and so on.
This time we will fight to the end, no compromise. Many of us will be killed, but it’s the necessary sacrifice for our children and descendants.
We will flush the devil down the toilet and out they go for our motherland.
Any dialogue with these devils of la republic must ONLY BE BASED ON THE TERMS OF AMBALAND SEPERATION FROM THE CRIMINAL REGIME of la republic AND NOTHING SHORT of that. In no way such dialogue must be based on how to co-exist with these people. These group of people called la francophonie and their system of governance is totally at par with the philosophical existence of the Ambazonia people.
I beg wuna leave people with rumors. NONSENSE. Everyday this is mounting pressure for dailogue. Even if dialog was to do something, what when will that dialogue be? I just hope the IG is not also wasting their time that they are mounting pressure on Y’de to initiate dialogue becuase if that is what they are dox, then they are no diffrent than the fool in Yde who is waiting that the anglophones will get tired and give-up the struggle. Because by my evaluation, the only thing the IG has done that needs praises was the launching of the SCBC Tv but after that, all they have done is talk and talk. Bullshit. Its either they put more effort even militarily so that people can get to buea fast than play a ping-pong game like wat SDF and CPDM have been doing for years. If by any means the IG feel, at this time, that they cant lead the people to Buea, FUCKEN ANNOUNCE IT ON THE TV that they cant and stop fustrating people bc whether May or Macron mount 100000000lb of pressure on yde, NOTHING WILL CHANGE. the only reason why the strugle got to this level is because the people together with the IG stood up at first as one person. NOt becus of any pressure or petition. IG it looks like you urself are more confused than yde. If you cant lead, just tell the people “to rest and gather strenght for another day”. We at home want action, Not fucking petition or pressure talks. Its either we get to buea, or get on the way to Buea now, bc at this moment, there’s nothing to prove the fact that we are on our way to buea. IF you cant lead us to buea, say it and go F””K Yourselves IG.
YOu can fool only idiots twice. this crazy news forum have anounced more than a hundred times about who is mounting pressure on yde. Un, nigeria, france, us, etc. what the hell has happen after this pressure mounting??? I even saw a photograph of the goat in Y’de with the secretary general of the un, jus to prove you guys that there is nothing like pressure mounting. what keeps poundering me is, why this forum keeps making pressure mounted on yde his major topic. You can’t deceive people twice. for those who see all this pressure talks as hope, i have great pity for you.
I advise scacuf to use our independence documents and go get a resource to military training and weapons deal from
russi . .since june. but. it flew past
their ears. i had. repeated it many times
fo . them to foreget the west. anf go rast to get us. tanjs air defence. miisdilr boats. fighter jets etc. but. these ayuk and scacuf grou . dont. see the needs. to when face with a robber. in your home murdering your family. you dont negotiate. .but get a big gun. and blo2 him out
Ambazonians, using abusive language to score a political point is totally wrong. The Interim Government is operating under tremendous pressure to make life better for our people and the last thing an Ambazonians should to is to be insulting people who are sacrificing so much for no pay.
Frustrated or not, we are in this together. Save your anger and direct it towards the etoudi criminals who have created and continue to creat the hellish conditions we find in Ambaland today.
THESE BLUE EYED DEVILS ARE JUST DECEIVING PEOPLE THINKING WE THE AMBA PEOPLE ARE AS STUPID AS THEIR DOGGY FRENCHEE NIGGAS.