A Cameroonian family has fled the country and is reportedly seeking asylum abroad after years of threats, intimidation, and near-fatal encounters linked to the ongoing armed conflict in Cameroon’s North-West Region.

Nyuyfoni Sidney Fonyuy, a senior staff of the Mobile Telephone Network (MTN) in Bamenda fled the country last year as his life and that of his family became uncertain.

The family’s ordeal, traces a steady descent into fear and displacement as violence between armed separatist fighters and government forces intensified in the English-speaking regions.

According to the account, the head of the family, Nyuyfoni Sidney Fonyuy was employed in a managerial role that required frequent movement across rural communities in the North-West. These journeys, once routine, became increasingly dangerous as armed groups imposed “ghost town” days, roadblocks, and violent reprisals against perceived defiance.

At one point, he was reportedly forced to travel nearly 15 miles on foot to avoid ambushes and was repeatedly warned that he was being monitored by armed fighters. Despite transfers to safer urban locations, including Bamenda, insecurity followed him as the conflict expanded into cities, targeting civilians, businesses, and public servants.

The situation worsened after his wife Micheline Timea Scott , a teacher, continued to work in a conflict-affected area where many schools had been abandoned. In April 2022, she narrowly escaped what the family describes as a deadly incident when a vehicle transporting teachers went missing amid clashes between separatists and security forces. Several passengers were reportedly feared dead.

The trauma left her severely shaken, with the family stating that only chance prevented her from becoming another casualty of the crisis.

Our investigation further reveals a series of violent episodes in Bamenda, including shootings of civilians, abductions, and extrajudicial killings that deepened the family’s fear. By 2025, with violence intensifying in the North-West, the family decided they could no longer remain in Cameroon.

With assistance from friends, they reportedly fled the region under cover of darkness, avoiding major checkpoints and hospitals out of fear of arrest or mistaken identity. The family eventually secured temporary refuge and later obtained visas that allowed them to travel to Canada.

The couple is known never to have supported separatist movements or engaged in any criminal activity. Instead, they ordinary citizens trapped between warring sides in a conflict that has displaced hundreds of thousands of Cameroonians since 2016.

Human rights organizations have repeatedly warned that civilians in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions face heightened risks, including targeted killings, kidnappings, and collective punishment, with professionals such as teachers, administrators, and business managers often singled out.

It is hoped that immigration authorities will consider the totality of their experience and grant them protection, allowing them to rebuild their lives in safety.

“We abandoned our jobs, our home, and everything familiar—not because we wanted to leave Cameroon,” they say, “but because staying meant risking death.”

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Reports from Bamenda, chief town of the North West Region of Cameroon say an Anglophone lecturer, Teke Johnson Takwa, noted for his criticising the Yaounde regime for the poor mistreatment of Anglophones in Cameroon especially Anglophone teachers and lecturers, has been arrested security and defense forces.

Teke Johnson Takwa is currently in custody at the military detention facility in Bamenda Up Station.

The arrest of Teke Johnson Takwa has complicated the lives and future of his wife and children, especially Teke Grateful Anwi a former vice publicity secretary of the University of Buea Students Union, UBSU, who is abroad for further studies.

Teke Johnson Takwa was arrested on Saturday August 2, 2025 at a mixed control checkpoint around Commercial Avenue in Bamenda. THE SUN gathered that the officers went through his phone and discovered messages confirming that his daughter, Teke Grateful Anwi, now abroad onetime worker in a bank at the  a Mobile Money department received money from abroad and sent to his father for onward transmission to separatist fighters and other groups to reinforce their objectives in clamouring for the restoration of the independence of Former British Southern Cameroons or the creation of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

It should be recalled that Teke Johnson Takwa had, at the dawn of the Anglophone crisis, been warned about his activism by joining other lecturers and teachers to protest against the transfer of French-speaking teachers to Anglophone colleges and Universities to teach Anglophone students.

His daughter played a frontline role in frequently organising student unrests as the vice publicity secretary of the University of Buea Student Union, UBSU, to manifest their grievances following government’s failure to keep to its promises since 2016. This caused her being arrested and later released by security officers sometimes in May 2021.

Sources say it is against this backdrop that the military initiated criminal proceedings against Teke Johnson Takwa before the Bamenda military court, and endorsed an arrest warrant against Teke Grateful Anwi, declaring her wanted.

As we went to press reports said while Teke Johnson Takwa is still in custody awaiting prosecution before the Bamenda Military Court, his wife, Timbu Caroline Acha, a teacher by profession, had gone underground, while Teke Grateful Anwi’s three siblings now live in trauma and fear and facing possible arrest by the military.

According to the Cameroon Penal code if arrested, they will face charged for acts of insurrection, hostilities against the state, and failure to report.

The Anglophone crisis began in 2016 with strikes by teachers and lawyers, which later attracted the people of the two English-speaking regions of the country, as they expressed their accumulated grievances emanated from marginalisation by the majority French-speaking part of Cameroon, inequality in employment, adulterations of the Common Law judicial system and English subsystem of education.

The crisis has left thousands, both civilians and security and defense forces, dead, others internally displaced with some living in bushes, while over 30,000 have fled to neighbouring Nigeria where they are living as refugees.

Houses as well as villages have been razed to the ground with extrajudicial killings being regular occurrences.

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For over four years now the arm conflict in the North West and South West Regions have been raging on as separatist fighters and secessionist are still demanding for the restoration or total Independence of the former British Southern Cameroon and for a new country to be known as Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

As the war rages on unabatted, the government of Cameroon has made multiple efforts to fish out the perpetrators of the arm conflict both at home and abroad.

Parents and family members of suspected activists and frontline members of those abroad  clamouring for the creation of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia back home are constantly been brutalised, molested , tortured and detained under inhumane condition, in order for them to cause the extradition of their relatives abroad.

Reports hold that many suspected activists abroad who have visited Cameroon  since the Anglophone crisis metamorphosed into an arm conflict with separatist fighters and government forces involved in frequent sporadic cross fire at the detriment of innocent civilians, have been arrested and prosecuted at the military court on frame terrorism related offences.

Rights organisations have documented many evidence indicating that Cameroon is no longer a safe heaven in the Centre Africa Sub Region  as was the case 8 years ago.

Amongst the many activists abroad whose relatives at home are finding it difficult to escape constant military harassment, brutality  and detention is Nymbuh Neba Ericshu’s uncle Bana Nji.

Reports say because of the role played by Nymbuh Neba abroad in line with the Anglophone crisis, his uncle Bana Nji is reported to have escaped to the bush for safety. The military say he is one of the middlemen between Ericshu and the Separatist fighters.

It should be recalled that with the outbreak of the crisis, Nymbuh Neba Ericshu, joined others in the diaspora in September 2017  to  clamour for the total Independence of the people of former British Southern Cameroon. His name alongside others went into records when  a delegation of some Cameroon cabinet Minister’s led by Minister of Justice Laurent  Esso visited Europe to dialogue with Southern Cameroon/ Ambazonia community and were disgraced by the disgruntled Ambazonia community. Thi incident placed him and many others under security searchlight within the national territory.

Another Cameroonian who is facing tough times with the military is Kumba based Businessman, Simo Kameni Vincent. He has constantly been accused  by security operatives for sympathising with Anglophone Separatists.

He was arrested by the military after been  accused of using his nephew Touko Steve Loic who is abroad, for providing finance and logistics to the English speaking diaspora fueling the armed conflict in Cameroon.

Ever since the arrest of Touko Steve’s uncle, Simo Kameni  following the October 2020 attacked on a school in Kumba where several students were killed and others servely inqured, nothing has been heard about him and his whereabout remains cloudy.

Family sources have hinted that Touko is a target in the hands of the military since he regularly visits his uncle Simo, on vacation. His attorney  hinted that Touko is currently under military search light and will be persecuted and prosecuted if arrested within the national territory.

what is now known as the Anglophone crisis that started with the demands from Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers urging the government for shun the  marginalisation of Anglophone Cameroon by La Republique du Cameroun for a better Cameroon have  taken a different twist. For about five years now, the North West and South West Regions of Cameroon have remained restive.

The crisis has  metamophorsed into an arm conflict, with the emergency of Separatist fighters commonly known as ” Amba Boys” who have taken up   arms against the state in demand for the complete independence of former British  Southern Cameroon.

This move by the separatist fighters, met serious reprisals from government forces, and the death toll has been on the increase, with Businessmen, medicial professionals, politicians,  students and a cross section of individuals in different works of life bearing the greatest brunt.

Houses and villages have been burnt. suspected individuals, linked to separatist fighters and activists of the anglophone course have been arrested, molested, tortured by government forces, and some detained in very horrible inhumane detention conditions.  Others  have gone underground to unknown destination and  are currently  placed  under security searchlight. Government has openly declared them wanted, and will be persecuted and prosecuted any time they are arrested.

It should  be noted that Human Rights groups have in one voice condemned the extrajudicial killings by mostly on innocent civilians, including pregnant women and burning of houses and villages. Reports indicate that the about  4000 civilians’ lives have been claimed by the arm conflict and about 750000 person displaced, with many living in horrible conditions in  neighbouring Nigeria.

International organisations and Western powers have called on the government to address the root cause of the crisis through dialogue. French President Emmanuel Macron have recently promised to exert ” maximum pressure” on the President Paul Biya of Cameroon , to end Cameroon’s  intolerable Human Rights Violations. Many how ever  hold that Cameroon is unsafe for anglophone activists  home and abroad.

Cameroon that used to be a peaceful country in turbulence CEMAC zone is now engulfed by war in the North West and South West Regions and the hope for peace to return is only when they will be a meaningful, genuine  and inclusive dialogue.

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Factions of English-speaking Cameroonians came out last Friday October 1, 2021 commemorating the supposed restoration of their independent state, Ambazonia. The said statehood restoration was declared October 1, 2017, by the self-proclaimed president, Sisiku Julius Ayuk Tabe, who is currently serving a life jail term alongside nine other separatist leaders who were arrested in Nigeria and extradited to Cameroon in January 2018, before being sentenced for charges like secession and hostilities against the state.

Hitherto celebrated by Southern Cameroon National Council (SCNC) and involving mostly older men and women, who were usually placed under house arrest prior to the supposed Independence Day or arrested to released only after October, the dynamics have changed since October 2017. Separatists leaders and fighters, who took up arms to consolidate their independence some 4 years ago following the declaration of war by President Paul Biya, are now the ones setting the pace on how the supposed independence day is celebrated. While they have resorted to declaring weeks of lockdown before and after the Independence Day, the Cameroon Government uses this period to intensify crackdowns on separatist fighters, activists, and leaders.

Ahead of this year’s celebration of the event, some factions of the Ambazonia leadership abroad, declared a-2-week lockdown, an action which according to Paul Nilong of the Ambazonia Interim Government, was necessary to tell the Yaoundé Government that they are in control. The government on its part, deployed troops and sophisticated weapons to crackdown on activists and fighters, they term ‘terrorists’.

Despite the heavy militarization of the Anglophone regions, amateur images still emerged on the social media with the blue and white flag flying at some strategic spots in the regions, alongside videos of separatist fighters marching and singing freedom songs in some parts of the regions. This show of bravery undoubtedly provoked the Cameroon defense forces leading to a number of clashes. Reports hold that there was a serious battle between the Government forces and Ambazonia restoration forces in Nkambe, North West Region of Cameroon with two soldiers and two separatist fighters said to have been killed.

Then SUN also gathered that the day was characterized with random home-to-home search, arrest and torture of suspected ambazonia supporters and activists. Most of the homes visited where either those located in close proximity to where the Ambazonia flag was hoisted or belonging to activists on the “Wanted List” of the Cameroon Government. The SUN has it on good record that the arm-to-teeth government forces visited the home of a UK-based newly elected SCNC Chairman, Robert Tamanji, alongside other members like: Ivo Kuka, Catherine Yambo, Omawah Elenor Charlotte Oyebog, Alain Bougan, and Meulla Kamgang Armand.

In Ekondo Titi of the Ndian Division of Cameroon, there were report of fierce clashes between Government forces and separatist fighters. The Sun gathered that, after these clashes, the military set out in mad search of a certain 29-year old Noel Sangu Jato, believed to be the one sponsoring separatist activities given that their family house at the periphery of Ekondo Titi has been usurped by separatist fighters as host. The SUN gathered that the arm-to-the-teeth security forces visited the main family residence of Noel Sangu Jato, who has since 2019 been declared wanted by the military and had left the country under unclear circumstances, leaving behind his mother and siblings who are said to be seeking refuge in Nigeria. Clashes between the military and separatists fighters in the Ndian Division has been very rife since the start of the Anglophone crisis, and has led to the death of  Pa Jato.

As we went to Press, family sources hinted that government forces, who came looking for Noel Sangu last Friday October 1, 2021, vowed to spare no efforts at tracking him down. Apart from the few clashes between separatists fighters and government forces, and crackdown, the general atmosphere in the two English-speaking regions of Cameroon during this Independence Day was calm, with ghosted streets as many remained indoors for fear of the unknown.

The 2021 edition of the Ambazonia Independence Day has come and gone but there are no signs of the arm conflict ending soon. While the Cameroon Government has intensified the deployment of the military and heavy weapons, the separatists are bent on consolidating their independence come what may.

Meanwhile, Cameroon is now considered unsafe by many Anglophones in the diaspora who fear arrest or death if they return to the country. While the Anglophone crisis continues to escalate, International Organisations and other Western powers have called on the Government to address the root cause of the crisis through dialogue. Also, prominent Anglophone lawyer and Human Rights Activist, Barrister Nkongho Felix Agbor Balla, has called on the Government to dialogue, and to release all Anglophones unlawfully detained and imprisoned. Recently French President Emmanuel Macron promised to exert “maximum pressure” on President Paul Biya of Cameroon, to end Cameroon’s intolerable Human Rights violations.

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The Anglophone crisis, which started in 2016 with a strike action by Common Law Lawyers and Anglophone Teachers against marginalisation and attempt by the Cameroon Government to assimilate Anglophone education and judiciary systems, has now turned bloody with innocent youths, women, children, drivers, business persons and others bearing the greatest brunt.

Separatist fighters popularly known as “Amba Boys, who took up arms when the Head of State, President Paul Biya, declared war on them in November 30, 2017, have been engaged in deadly confrontations with government forces. This has kept the death toll on the increase with several innocent civilian population, drivers, medical professionals, politicians, students and a cross section of individuals in different walks of life incriminated.

Houses and villages have been burnt and suspected individuals linked to separatist fighters and activists of the Anglophone course arrested, molested, tortured and detained by government forces in very horrible inhumane detention conditions. Others have gone underground to unknown destination and are currently placed under security searchlight.

The government is said to have launched a fresh hunt to bring to book all those suspected to be linked or facilitating the activities of separatist fighters both at home and abroad. Amongst those in the list is a popular businessman, Tabe Boris Eyembe, from Kumba, and a renowned driver, Ebwekwene Adille Joel, from Bangem, who plies the Kumba-Buea road.

The SUN gathered that, just like many other civilians in the two restive regions who are suspected to have a link with the separatist fighters, Joel who is said to have smuggled himself out of the country, has gone through a bitter experience with the military. The SUN has it on good record that Joel fell sick while in detention due to continuous torture and inhumane treatment, and almost dropped death but for the timely intervention of his family.

The Kumba-Buea driver was transporting passengers from Kumba to Buea, April 3, 2021 when he was stopped at a mixed military control checkpoint during one of his trips, with some passengers identified as separatist fighters, family sources confirmed. The SUN gathered that all attempt by Ebwekwene Adille Joel to vindicate himself was futile as the military accused him of collaborating with separatist fighters, and ferried alongside five others and placed incommunicado in draconian inhumane detention conditions for 10 days.

Trusted sources disclosed that the 23-year-old driver was about being transported with several others to the Yaounde maximum security prison when his family intervened. Given Joel’s depleting health condition, the military permitted his family to take him for medical attention on the condition that he will be produced for prosecution as soon as he recovers.

Reports later emerged that Adille Joel’s family smuggled him out of the country. This caused security operatives to issue an arrest warrant against him. As we went to press, Joel’s close friends and neighbours disclosed that the search for him by the military has intensified, with his parents still on the run as government forces mount pressure for him to be produced.

As tension rages the government is sparing no effort at tracking down those they consider agents of the destruction of Cameroon with secessionist tendencies. They still consider the fighters and activists as terrorists and any one caught is usually tagged with numerous trumped up charges like rebellion, revolution, secession, and insurrection amongst others. Even those abroad considered as activists and preaching against the marginalisation of Southern Cameroons by the Yaoundé regime have equally been declared enemies of the State of Cameroon, and have been tagged for persecution.

Recent statistics by civil society organizations shows that about 300 villages have been burnt down in the two regions and some 500,000 people internally displaced. A good number of English speaking Cameroonians have also assumed refugees status in Nigeria. Meanwhile a good number of those on the run have been declared wanted with warrants of arrest issued against their names.

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The Ensemble Cameroon Project and partners have wrapped up a series of training on Digital right in Cameroon.

The project sponsored by Internews had as major partners, Youth Education and Economic Development and AfroLeadership while technical expertise was provided by Paradigm Initiative. Between May 2 and 5, 2018, two workshops were organized with 25 participants per workshop whose objectives was to confer, share ideas, and equip themselves with reliable and sustainable ways of improving their advocacy skills on internet rights and digital access in Cameroon.

The Sun is informed that the workshops was in line with a one-year project, dubbed ‘Ensemble Cameroon Project which in itself is aimed at “building a coalition of people and groups/CSOs from Francophone and Anglophone Cameroon, who can advocate for digital rights, with special focus on people’s rights of access to the internet.”

Participants were drilled on policy instruments and laws, introduction to advocacy, communication skills, use of media, community and social mobilization, analysis of the Africa Report on digital rights, and the Africa Net Rights Coalition the Digital Rights and Freedom Bill and ICT Policy in Cameroon.

In-depth notes and lessons included what digital rights meant and instruments of same which individuals to access use, create, and publish on digital media or to access and use computers, other electronic devices, or communications networks.

Participants also had the possibility of sharing best practices in internet and digital rights in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Zimbabwe.

Practical group-work and networking sessions with groups coming out with advocacy projects around internet freedom during upcoming elections in Cameroon were also part of the workshops.

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