BY LUCY LIMA
Since the Anglophone Crisis erupted in the North West and South West five years back, investigative reporting by most human rights body, non-governmental organizations have on one platform criticized the extrajudicial killings of mainly the security personnel, on innocent citizens like children and pregnant women, burning of homes. Incidentally, the numbers indicate that as many as 5000 lives of civilians have been lost under the conflict-of-arms and as many as 730000 have been uprooted, with most enduring miserable lives in neighboring Nigeria. The murders of innocent civilians by the military in Cameroon’s North West Region Ngarbuh village were universally condemned across the board by the UN Secretary General, the UN High Commissioners for Human Rights, the European Union, the USA, UK, France, and the Nobel Women’s Initiative.
One should note that on the 14th of February, 2020 the Cameroonian army with the help of 30 armed fulani militiamen, stormed the village of Ngarbuh and killed 21 civilians including 13 children and a pregnant woman. The government never blamed SCNC members along with other Anglophone activists in diaspora for engendering the Anglophone crisis.
The ex and current Ministers of Communication, Issa Tchiroma Bakari and Rene Emmanuel Sadi respectively have on many excursions emphasized that; the government will not bargain or negotiate with terrorists. Sources have revealed that, the government is using its diplomatic networks to ensure that Southern Cameroon National Council, SCNC, a secessionist group advocating for the independence of Southern Cameroon, activists and other Anglophone activists abroad are tracked down and extradited.
Despite the reported strong facts by New York Times Journal and corroborated by Human Rights Watch, the New Humanitarian Cameroonian Civil Society Organisation and Catholic Church attributing blame to the Cameroon army for the massacre the government has officially rejected her involvement in the Ngarbuh killings.
Despite all these, the government after issuing a list of Anglophone activists in the Diaspora targeted for arrest sometime ago, sources show a fresh list of SCNC members and other activists outside the country has been set up for arrest; more than a hundred names are said to have been passed over to intelligence. Among the activists who appear in government blacklist, and in queue for arrest every time they enter Cameroon are Samuel Nkwi Munah and other members including: Ivo Kuka, Catherine Yambo, Omawah Elenor Charlotte Oyebog, and Alain Bougan.
The case of Samuel Nkwi Munah of Boyo Division of the North West Region of Cameroon is a pitiful one.
Reports show on the basis of the injustices endured by the people of the North West and South West Regions and also on the fact that his brother was killed by the army and his house burnt to ashes leaving his wife and four children without a home in 2017 he embarked on joining the dream of the total independence of Southern Cameroons. This decision to partake in the struggle for independence of former British Southern Cameroons landed Samuel in trouble as he was hunted by the authorities and in June 2022, based on family sources, Samuel Nkwi was arrested by security operatives in Kumba, molested tortured and subjected to harsh and inhuman detention conditions for five days.
Though released, Samuel never relaxed his efforts to make sure that the quest for total independence of the former British Southern Cameroon is achieved.
THE SUN learnt that, Samuel Nkwi was later arrested along with others on April 2023, following a meeting in their locality to undertake sensitization on precautionary measures regarding the crisis. He was tortured seriously and detained in degrading inhumane conditions. Following his release after intense financial negotiations, sources revealed that he went underground immediately in fear of the unknown especially with the barbaric treatment of Anglophone activists by the military. As went to press, sources have reported that there is military searchlight on Samuel Nkwi Munah as he has been declared Wanted across the National territory
The country is currently not considered safe by the majority of Anglophones abroad who are liable to be arrested or killed should they return to the country.
While the Anglophone crisis escalates, International Organisations and other Western countries have called on the Government to address the origin of the crisis through dialogue as well, too, the Government has been called upon by top Anglophone lawyer and human rights activist, Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor Balla, to negotiate, and to release all Anglophones who are illegally detained and imprisoned. French President Emmanuel Macron recently promised to exert “maximum pressure” on Cameroon President Paul Biya, to stop Cameroon’s deplorable Human Rights violations.