The increasing molestation, kidnapping and or beheading of youths termed black legs by separatist fighters on the one hand, and their arrest, torture and trial at military tribunals for allegedly siding with separatist fighters by the military on the other hand, has induced untold fear among youths in the crisis-stricken North West and South West regions of Cameroon. This has forced many to flee for safety to more secured parts of the country, while others have simply gone underground.
The Anglophone crisis, which has been rocking the North West and South West regions of Cameroon for over three years and counting, started as strike action by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers against marginalisation and later metamorphosed into an arm conflict.
Reports from human rights groups say over 3000 members of the Southern Cameroon National Council, businessmen, nurses, youths and the clergy have been killed in the cross- fire between security forces and separatist fighters, hundreds kidnapped, thousands of houses and over 300 villages razed. Meanwhile, over 53000 persons have been identified as Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, and over 35000 as refugees in Nigeria.
The Cameroon Government has been battling to arrest the situation which continues to degenerate as each day passes. Attacks have been so alarming that human rights groups across the board have concluded that Cameroon is longer safe.
As tensions intensify, civilian population in these regions are in peril, panic and pandemonium with more and more youths escaping to unknown destinations for fear of both military and separatist fighters’ barbarism.
The whereabouts of a 20- year-old orphan from Essoh Attah village in the Lebialem Division of Cameroon, Nkemazem Robert, remains a conjecture since May, 2019. Reports hold that Separatist fighters engulfed their village in 2017 and forced him to join them, but his grandmother pleaded that Robert was an orphan and the only one taking care of her.

The SUN gathered from authoritative sources that separatist fighters commonly called “amba boys” only left Robert in the village after his grandmother begged with FCFA 30000.
Later in 2018, Essoh Attah was transformed into the headquarter of the Amba fighters.This caused the military to launch repeated attacks to capture the leader of the separatist fighters in the village, which culminated in the arrest of youths, who were taken to the Menji detention center,and the burning of houses.
It later filtered from family sources that Robert was arrested amongst other youths on April 22, 2019 and tortured mercilessly before being transferred to the Menji detention center under inhumane conditions.The SUN has it on good record that he later escaped from the detention thanks to a uniform officer who knew his late father, and till date, his location remains cloudy. Meanwhile, security operatives have declared him wanted.

As press time, it was reported that the Cameroon Government through judicial and police officers have revisited the case of the leader of a youth association in Mutengene, Fako Division Southwest  Region,Nkengang Eric Nkengazem E., who organised a peaceful demonstration on August 2018, to protest against the atrocities of the military in the area.
Nkengang Eric, a Veterinary Nurse from the Lebialem Division-South West Region ralliedand protested againstindiscriminate killing of youths by the military with placards and peace plants. While in the peaceful demonstration, the military confronted them and opened fire. Many protesters were arrested, others killed but fortunately Nkengang Eric and others ran into the bush, and since then his exact location is yet to be known. Report has it that after making impromptu visits to track him down to no avail, the military razed their house and accused him for being one of those who organised the peaceful demonstration that till date, has turned the whole locality into chaos. There are all indications that if arrested, he will face terrorism charges and be handed life jail sentence, like the case of some separatist leaders.

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A long and arduous search for persons alleged to be backing the Anglophone crisis is underway as the situation in the restive North West and South West regions of Cameroon worsens.

Faced with a deteriorating socio-political climate in the two English-speaking regions, and other security concerns in the Far North, Adamaoua and East regions, Government, in a desperate attempt to calm the troubled waters, has multiplied efforts towards apprehending those considered as the masterminds behind the crisis.

Common Law Lawyers in Cameroon went on strike in October 2016 to protest government’s attempts to annihilate the Common Law practice in a constitutionally bilingual and bi-jural Cameroon. The strike lasted for over a year.

Anglophone teachers in the country joined the strike on November 21, 2016 to uphold Anglo-Saxon values under threat in Cameroon’s two English-speaking regions. Same day, Mancho Bibixy staged a coffin revolution at Liberty Square in Bamenda to protest against the marginalisation and economic deprivation of Anglophones.

Matters came to a head on Thursday, December 8 when the population of Bamenda took to the streets to denounce the politicisation of a strike action they consider genuine and borne of longstanding grievances.

Days of ghost town have since been observed throughout the South West and North West Regions of the country.

On January 17, 2017, Barrister Nkongo Felix AgborBalla and Dr.Fontem Neba, leaders of the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium (CACSC) were arrested moments after the consortium had been banned along with the SCNC.

President of the self-styled state of Ambazonia, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe, was arrested in Nigeria on January  8, 2018 along with nine other members of his cabinet including Tassang Wilfred, Nfor Ngala Nfor and Barrister Eyambe Ebai.

As we went to press, a trusted source in the police informed us that plans were far advanced for the arrest of an alleged activist – 35-year-old Mukete Iya Diwo.

The lady, our source said, has been earmarked for arrest as a result of the crisis with the state counsel issuing an arrest warrant in her name.

There is apparently no hiding place for the activists of the Southern Cameroons National Council, SCNC, and sympathisers of the Ambazonia self-proclaimed state – not even suspects are spared.

The regime in power is bent on arresting them and to a greater extent, hand them heavy jail sentences for acts of treason, terrorism, secession, propagation of false news, rebellion against the state and sponsoring of the Anglophone crisis.

Our security source said Mukete Iya Diwo had jumped bail. She had been arrested in Buea on January 15, 2018 for being in possession of tracts that fuelled the teacher strike. She was bailed days after by Barrister Nganje Shedill. The lawyer claims that she was molested and sexually exploited while in detention.

The staff of CIMA International Cameroon sarl is said to be the daughter of a teacher who died in June 2018. She was again arrested along the Buea-Kumba road on June 4, 2018. Sources said her phone was full of propaganda messages relating to the struggle, reason why she was held in custody under inhumane condition.

The SUN learnt that she was granted bail on December 20, 2018 but her counsel alleges that she was raped twice by an officer, a claim we have not independently verified.

Officers are said to have stormed their Buea residence on several occasions including on January 7, 2018 during which they raided the family home. Mukete Iya Diwo was nowhere to be found during the security visit, but her parents were shocked and frightened by the presence of the gun-toting uniform men. Her father, Mukete Charles, is said to have suffered a high blood pressure attack and died in hospital later that day.

Mukete Iya Diwo was absent at her father’s funeral. Her whereabouts remains in doubts, but a warrant for her arrest remains very much valid to be executed.

Ako Formen Randolf Maxwell is another activist with a similar plight. His ordeal with the regime started in 2017 after thousands of protesters went across the streets in Anglophone Cameroon, demanding for independence of Southern Cameroons better known as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia. This protest demonstration landed Ako in numerous detention cells as many protesters were arrested including Denning Epie Njumbe. Reports hold that Ako Formen Randolf Maxwell and Denning  Epie Njumbe were among those subjected to inhumane treatment at the Mobile Intervention Unit (GMI5)  of the police in Buea. It has since been a tale of intimidation and arrests.

Government’s crackdown on Anglophone activists has since intensified with arbitrary arrests, detention, torture and extra-judicial killings becoming the new normal.

The fate of many remains precarious as security forces battle separatists. President Paul Biya has since taken a tough position on the crisis in the two-English speaking regions. Guns have since taken the place of dialogue and peace.

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