About 8,000 people have fled Cameroon to Nigeria in the two weeks leading up to Cameroon’s parliamentary and local elections held on February 9th, according to the UN Refugee Agency. The influx of Cameroonian refugees into Nigeria is a result of escalated violence between separatist militants and national security forces.
The current sum of Cameroonians who have fled to Nigeria has nearly reached 60,000, revealed the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). More are expectedly making their way from remote borders.
A VOTE BESMEARED BY VIOLENCE
Leading up to and after the elections, separatist militants have kidnapped, threatened, and harmed voters while security forces have been committing abuses of their own. The clashes have resulted in civilian deaths either by deliberate killings or accidental casualties. Armed separatists have chosen to target those involved in the elections, whether actual candidates, election facilitators, or activists. Prior to election day, many Anglophone candidates for various parliamentary and local government positions withdrew from the elections.
The conflict between separatists and security forces reflects century-long tension between Anglophones and Francophones in the country.
A COMPLEX BACKSTORY
Germany colonized Cameroon in 1884 until 1916. After World War 1, Cameroon became a mandated territory of the League of Nations, under the rule of France and Great Britain. The British mandate, a substantially smaller strip of land near the border of Nigeria (20% of the mandated territory), formed Northern and Southern Cameroons.
In 1960, French-ruled Cameroon gained independence. Following a referendum in February 11, 1961 to determine the fate of British-ruled Cameroon, Northern Cameroons joined Nigeria while Southern Cameroons joined Cameroon, though as an autonomous entity.
By this time, many Anglophones in resource-rich Southern Cameroons had made claims of maltreatment by the government, thereby sparking debates about secession in the region. In 1972, a new constitution was adopted which transformed Cameroon from a federal state into a unitary state and increased presidential powers.
Subsequently, Southern Cameroons lost its autonomy and became the Northwest Region and Southwest Region of the Republic of Cameroon. Various pro-independence groups from Southern Cameroons claimed that the changes to the constitution were made unconstitutionally and that Cameroon had illegitimately annexed Southern Cameroons.
Pro-independence rhetoric resounded. The people of Southern Cameroons called for secession as the Republic of Ambazonia.
In the 1990s, various Anglophone group representatives attempted to quell secession antics by calling for the restoration of the federal state. Eventually, these attempts shifted towards the pro-independence cause. Throughout this decade and in the turn of the century, raids, pro-independence arrests, and group killings by anti-protest forces occurred frequently.
These events led to the 2016-2017 protests and strikes by the Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium, consisting of teacher and lawyer trade unions in the Anglophone regions. They gathered to protest against the appointment of Francophone judges with civil law backgrounds in their Anglophone region, which practiced common law.
Tension between Anglophone and Francophone Cameroonians continues to destabilize the nation.
Marilyn is a qualified arbitrator, mediator and conciliator training to qualify as a lawyer in Nigeria. Her research interests include development, humanitarian law and dispute resolution.