France urges restraint in Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis
Cameroon has been urged to exercise restraint in handling Southern Cameroon agitation for independence and respect the rights of the people
France, the colonial masters of Cameroon officially commented on the ongoing political crisis in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions, as it called on all parties to exercise restraint and to reject violence.
Agency report quoted Paris as saying “France is following the situation in Cameroon carefully and is preoccupied by the incidents that took place over the weekend,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes Romatet-Espagne told reporters in a daily online briefing on Monday.
“We call on all the actors to show restraint and reject violence,” she added. The latest round of violence on Sunday resulted in the loss of eight lives as security forces clashed with protesters.
Protesters in the Anglophone region – the North West and South West regions – have long complained about marginalization and are seeking to secede from Cameroon. The government, however, insists that the unity of the Central African country remains non-negotiable.
Contrary to an earlier government position, access to some social media platforms were cut on Saturday ahead of the ‘Independence Day’ declaration on October 1. There was heavy security deployment in the said regions.
The United States and United Kingdom have all issued travel alerts advising their nationals against all but essential travel to the Anglophone regions, citing political disturbances and violence.
Meanwhile, Amnesty International has revealed that Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis resulted in 17 deaths – Amnesty
The international rights group, Amnesty International, says it has independently confirmed that 17 people were killed during clashes between Cameroonian security forces and pro-independence protesters.
The clashes which took place in the country’s restive Anglophone regions on October 1 were said to have claimed eight lives on Monday morning. Another 50 protesters were wounded with over 200 arrested.
