Cameroon: Government uses terror on English Speaking Cameroonians

Cameroon is fast becoming a state of terror to English Speaking Cameroonians.Unconfirmed reports talk of a mass grave in Soa, a locality around the Yaounde neighborhood where citizens arrested in the English speaking minority regions are reportedly being killed and buried.

The tense situation in the country does not allow journalists nor human rights activists to carry out independent investigations to verify this information. Considering the fact that government has in the past used such methods, and especially looking at the recent brutal killings, maiming, and torture inflicted on denizens of west Cameroon, it is very likely that those who have died either in detention or during their arrest must have been buried somewhere in the Centre province. The Biya regime has decided to use every means possible to crackdown on Anglophones Cameroonians whom they now regard as 'les ennemis de l'etat'.

Fear is gripping even those who support the CPDM party because the regime does no  longer trust its citizens from West Cameroon.  Anglophones were arrested in Yaounde(Damas) last week, while some magistrates were arrested in the South West regions. These arbitrary arrests are happening almost on a daily bases now in Southern Cameroon. Citizens have no choice than to contact media outlets or bloggers(for those who still have access to internet) to report cases of arrests and disappearances. The case of Awah Vanessa  a University of Bamenda student arrested last week for wearing a T-shirt bearing the name of Hon. Wirba, and that of Armstrong Fombi also arrested in Bamenda were reported to some media outlets. Some citizens have been arrested in remote areas like Akwaya, Ekona, Mbengwi, Jakiri, Wum, Batibo, Muyuka etc and deported to Yaounde or those who are lucky, released after being tortured for some days.

The De facto state of emergency in the South West and North West provinces makes it difficult for volunteer lawyers who are trying to investigate these arbitrary arrests. 'Its now a lawless state' said one lawyer in Mbengwi who claimed some youths were deported to Bamenda last week. The government will never give an accurate account on the number of those arrested or killed, so it is imperative for amnesty International to independently investigate these claims and bring out a list of all those in detention and those who have disappeared. If the regime can intimate renowned journalists and lawyers, then it is obvious they are ready to go the extra mile to eliminate every one who is supporting Southern Cameroonians in their struggle for self determination. Today, in a press conference in Yaoundé, the terror regime detained and confiscated the equipment of Mr. Randy Joe(BBC Journalist)