Politics

President Donald Trump is expected to sign a new executive order on immigration Monday after a federal appeals court blocked his earlier order.

U.S. news reports say Iraq would no longer be a part of the list of Muslim-majority countries affected by a temporary ban on immigration and resettlement of refugees.

Trump's original order signed January 27 covered not only Iraq, but Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen. 

The ban caused chaos in airports around the world as immigration officials tried to figure out if it also affected travelers with green cards and pre-approved visas.

An appeals court upheld a federal judge's ruling suspending the Trump travel ban, questioning whether it is constitutional.

The administration argued the president has the authority to protect the U.S. from potential terrorism.

Although the president plans to make an amended executive order, the White House is still challenging the appeals court ruling, and legal experts say the entire matter could wind up before the Supreme Court.

Former Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff told VOA he hopes the president will come up with an order that “makes sense without getting people who shouldn't be caught in the net.”

“Obviously the first one was overbroad. Ideally we would get...a rule that is carefully targeted on people that are high risk, potentially being foreign fighters, without collecting people that are dual-citizens or may even be able to come to the U.S. that ought to be able to come without impediment,” Chertoff said. 

VOA

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Rita Akana

06.Mar.2017

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Cameroonian-born Joseph Ngwa Ngaling is currently in detention at the Kondengui Maximum Security Prison in Yaounde for having bought a newspaper last January.

Ngaling told Hon. Joseph Banadzem, MP for Kumbo Central Constituency in Bui, Northwest Region, during a visit to the prison on February 26, that he was arrested in a taxi on January 13 when he was seen holding a copy of The Post Newspaper.

“I was picked up in a taxi just because I was seen with a copy of The Post Newspaper. The paper had this headline on its front page: “As Ghost Town Looms: Anglophone Teachers, Lawyers, Battle With Government Over School Resumption,” he reportedly told the MP.

 “I remember very well because the taxi driver asked me about the content of the paper but I told him that I had not gone through the paper. I later told him that from the front page, it looked like the paper would be interesting. As we continued discussing about the paper, I was suddenly tapped by two plainclothes policemen who were sitting behind and from there I found myself in a cell,” Ngaling said. 

According to the native from Bafut, at the time of his arrest, he was five days old in Cameroon having come from the US to attend his sister’s wedding as well as to visit his mother who is sick.

After spending 20 days in Buea, Ngaling was transferred to Kondengui Maximum Security Prison on February 2, where he is currently in pre-trial detention.

Ngaling further said his attempts to explain to the officers in charge while in Buea  did not yield any fruits. His sisters who came with him had gone back to US while his mother who is sick knows that he is also back in the US.

“My sisters had gone back and my mother knows that I was with them. I told my sisters not to inform my mother where I was because her health may get worse if she got to know where I am now. My wife and children in US are seriously disturbed,” Ngaling reportedly told the MP.

This was one out of many pathetic stories, the SDF Parliamentary Group leader, Banadzem heard when he visited some 38 Anglophones at the Kondengui Prison, The Post gathered.

“I found them in varying, delicate and worrying situations. Their stories are pathetic and it calls for attraction because some of them do not even know why they are there. Some are sick and others look like they will die in the next coming hours. We have to unite and go towards them because they are psychologically disturbed,” Hon. Banadzem said after the visit.

While handing some foodstuff to the detainees, Banadzem urged them to be strong and courageous, noting that their plight is being handled.

“My brothers, I urge you to have hope because we will do everything to release you from here. It is not your fight alone but ours. Be strong and courageous because God is with you,” he reportedly told them.

According to the MP, “demonstrations are good indicators of any democratic state.”

He added that “every human being has the right to protest if things are not moving well. It should not only be an exception in Cameroon. People should not be detained because they were demonstrating. What is happening in Cameroon is painting the country black.”

Saluting the good will of Hon. Banadzem, Dr. Fontem Neba, who is amongst the 38, thanked the MP for thinking about them, promising to be strong and committed in prayers.

Going by Dr. Fontem, the story line of the problems raised by them has been transformed into what suits the authorities.

Fontem reportedly said the proposals raised during their last meeting with the Ad Hoc Committee have been streamlined leaving out some of the critical points they proposed.

The Post gathered that amongst the detainees who came to greet Hon. Banadzem was the former Secretary General at the Presidency of the Republic, Jean Marie Atangana Mebara, and former FECAFOOT President, Iya Mohammed, who are serving jail terms in the prison.

Atangana Mebara appreciated the move as sign of oneness.

Cameroonpost

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Rita Akana

06.Mar.2017

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Decades ago, Dr. John Ngu Foncha, then Prime Minister of Southern Cameroons, was rebuffed by Britain and the United Nations when he asked for full independence for Southern Cameroons. He later advocated for a federation of two equal States into which Southern Cameroons and La Republique du Cameroun entered in 1961. Events of May 20, 1972 and 1984 would emasculate the federation. Thereafter, Foncha made several “declarations to the effect that only federalism as an option…” Today, as the Anglophone crisis rages on, federalism has become taboo, and ‘secession’ in the minds of some compatriots. Was Foncha right then to campaign for federalism to ensure peace, honesty, unity, justice, freedom and democracy, as he strongly believed?

Find the answers in an article penned by late Dr. John Ngu Foncha’s family highlighting his vision for a unified Cameroon.

 

Late Dr. John Ngu Foncha’s Vision of “The Anglophone Problem”

by the FONCHA Family

Dr. John Ngu Foncha’s

“THAT TRUTH SHALL PREVAIL”

The persistent impasse over the strike action called by the Teachers’ Trade Unions and lawyers in the Northwest and Southwest Regions of Cameroon even after four “accredited” members of these unions signed an agreement to call off the strike, is indicative of a serious, deep-rooted problem that needs to be urgently addressed to get our children back to school, the lawyers back to the courts and the economy in both Regions back on its feet. It is an ill wind, and the continuous delay in resolving it is running down the image of the entire country, not just the Anglophones.

Bone of Contention

The stated bone of contention is the “Demand for a Return to the Federal System of Government,” on the basis of which Southern Cameroons and La Republique du Cameroun agreed to come together in 1961. This is the crucial point at which the Foncha Family feels compelled to reiterate the principles which guided the vision of late Dr. John Ngu Foncha.

As the Architect of Reunification, Dr. Ngu Foncha undertook that momentous decision on behalf of the people of Southern Cameroons who, by the 1961 Plebiscite, crushingly gave him their unwavering mandate. Even though he was the elected leader of the Southern Cameroons nation, Dr. John Ngu Foncha was a patriarch who, both within and outside the family, stood unflinchingly for peace, honesty, unity, justice, freedom and democracy; qualities which guided his entire life. Finally, these virtues were encapsulated both in his personal and political life, in theory and in practice, by the motto: “That Truth Shall Prevail”.

The Crucial Question On Many Minds

The crucial question on many minds and ours is what late Dr. John Ngu Foncha would have done in the present circumstance with the ongoing strikes and the civil action of Ghost Towns which are causing such enormous economic and social hardship on the populations of the two Regions. Even more noteworthy, is the imponderable support by the masses for these measures initially called by educators and lawyers who represent the very “soul” of Southern Cameroonians. This is ample proof of the people’s readiness to endure these hardships even to the point of sacrificing limb, life and property as the prize for the peaceful change which they ardently yearn for. What would have been the reaction of our father?

The Government response, particularly in the use of deadly force, the arbitrary detention of elected union leaders of civil groups and the punitive severance of internet connections with the outside world, specifically targeting the Anglophone territories, is causing untold havoc on the economy, banking and financial sectors. Furthermore, this selective severance of internet connections by the Government is tantamount to the collective punishment of a peaceful population, an act which is inadmissible in today’s civilized world. These are certainly actions the late Dr. John Ngu Foncha would have condemned with the uttermost vehemence.

Historical Perspective

As newly elected Prime Minister of Southern Cameroons, then still under British administration, Dr. John Ngu Foncha went to the United Nations to formally request the independence of the territory. That was intended to be the first step in the process of reunification, a process he and his followers were aware would be long. However, the Administering Authority, Britain, and the United Nations refused to consider the option of independence before reunification, which he asked for, instead imposing the options which are commonly referred to as “The Two Alternatives”:

    Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent federation of Nigeria?
    Do you wish to achieve independence by joining the independent Republic of the Cameroons?

Faced with the imposed options, Dr. John Ngu Foncha (and his party) insisted that only a federation of two equal States, backed by a constitution that will permanently protect the interests of the smaller population of Southern Cameroons, would bring about the peaceful and harmonious reunification they aspired for.

Federalism Misunderstood

Dr. Foncha’s stand on the crucial issue of federalism as the most acceptable and workable system of administration for the reunified Cameroon in 1961, never wavered and was unshakeable in his mind till he drew his last breath in April 1999. The ambushes of 20th May 1972 and 1984 were unconstitutional, and, as he characterised them in a letter to the United Nations in 1994, those events were “…. the total abrogation of all the terms of unification, agreed by the parties concerned, including the UN General Assembly …”

While the continuous vilification by government officials of proponents of federalism is unfortunate, it is outright alarming when high-level government officials equate “federalism” with “secession”, a linkage which Dr. Foncha, as shown in his various memoranda and letters, never made. He and the masses he led were democrats and federalists to the core. 

Unfinished Business

The growing resort to Secession by compatriots is an imposition arising from the intransigence and swaggering superiority complex of many government officials. In a country that arrogates that it is a STATE of LAW, in all fairness, responsibility for the present situation cannot belong with the anonymous public. A good part of the responsibility also lies with those high-ranking Anglophones who know the truth and choose to suppress it.

Dr. Foncha consistently made declarations to the effect that only “federalism as an option” reflects the genuine hopes, aspirations and desires of Southern Cameroonians; the most notable being his “Statement of Withdrawal from the Constitutional Consultative Committee,” which refreshes memories and puts the concept in its proper perspective. In the statement, he cited the blatant omission of any mention of “federalism as an option” in the proposed constitution submitted by the President of the Republic to the Consultative Committee, despite the serious efforts and submissions on federalism made by thousands of Cameroonians in conferences which include the Tripartite Conference in Yaoundé, the “Larges Débats”, and most significantly, the All Anglophone Conference, spanning the years 1991 to 1994.

The undaunted resistance of the people, who have repeatedly been ditched in the past, can be understood within this context. It is actions such as this that are hurting the masses and hardening their resolve, conscious that they are not being hearkened to. The Federal Republic of Cameroon was never intended to be a transient hoodwink to be used and discarded as it pleased those at the helm of power and authority.

Dr. Foncha, in his later years, foresaw the now growing call for secession, and wrote numerous letters to the United Nations and to President Paul Biya, in attempts to contribute and guide the return to the form of federalism that would result in the harmonious reunification of the Cameroon territories which had so far eluded the country. It is a fact that the entrenched intransigence on the part of the President and the administration on this important issue of federalism contributed to the evolution of his views and the desire for the renegotiation of the terms of reunification.

Our Belief

Federalism, crafted with the support of a strong constitution was Dr. Foncha’s chosen path to achieving the goal of a peaceful, prosperous and unified Cameroon. The present stalemate does not bode well for that vision. Denial of the problem at hand, pretence that the country is in a state of normalcy, making and implying incorrect assertions, intransigence by government officials, only serve to strengthen the resolve of the population of Southern Cameroons to seek their self-determination.

We believe, like our Father, that dialogue is the way to lasting peace and reconciliation. Dialogue cannot fruitfully proceed without freedom, and freedom is only assured when there is true forgiveness and justice.

The unconditional release of the civil leaders, students and the others detained during this crisis, the demilitarization of Northwest and Southwest Regions, holding accountable those responsible for the abuse of the civil rights of citizens and the restoration of internet services in Anglophone Regions are gestures within the power of government. These are the first steps in the process of restoring true dialogue, bearing in mind that forgiveness is not weakness, but a demonstration of fortitude, an attribute we all seek in our government. This, Dr. John Ngu Foncha fought for, never compromising his values of integrity, honesty, justice and maintenance of peace. “That Truth Shall Prevail” was, and remains a powerful motto which we, his family, will always embrace.

The Foncha Family, February 2017

Cameroonpost

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Rita Akana

06.Mar.2017

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Internet browsing might sooner or later become a ‘cybercrime’ in the Southwest Region as police intensify a clampdown on people hungry for Internet connection.

Those exceptionally in need of Internet connectivity and who are forced beyond endurance to hunt for the high-tech communication technology in Fako now have to contend with stalking police.

A hide-and-seek game of sorts between the police and Internet browsers has thus materialised in the vicinity of the tollgate at New Bonako just a few minutes’ drive from the Mungo Bridge.

Apparently, Government, in its swiftness to stem the flow of rather rancorous and radical postings and viral streams on social media, severely misjudged the strength of the aftershock of shutdown of the Internet in the Southwest and Northwest Regions, sparking an information crisis.

“At the tollgate and beyond towards Bekoko, you can see people, especially youths, milling about sometimes at the roadside. They are browsing but they have to take off as soon as the police appear,” said one Internet browser.

Sometimes, the browsers are arrested and their cellphones confiscated. 

“The police just grab your phone and that is the end of your relationship with your phone,” said a young man who narrowly missed parting with his mobile phone.

The Internet stoppage has not just slowed down some businesses but actually shut them down with associated heavy financial losses. Users, however, had succeeded in getting connection even it means braving the bushes.

“Recently, we discovered a hot spot somewhere in Woteva, a village in Buea on the slopes of Mt. Cameroon. As soon as we settled down to business a police van appeared from nowhere, and the police asked what we were doing?” a young entrepreneur told The Post.

Reports also say students and lecturers of the University of Buea whose courses depend heavily upon the Internet are at a loss.

“I don’t know what to tell you to do,” a lecturer is quoted as telling his students.

Cameroonpost

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Rita Akana

06.Mar.2017

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One of the challenges facing my parents’ generation was the reunification of our native country of Cameroon following its breakup at the end of the First World War.  When Germany was vanquished at the end of that war, Cameroon, one of its African colonies, was seized and partitioned by France and Great Britain, two of the wartime allies.   Mandated by the League of Nations in 1922, Cameroon was divided into three regions, East Cameroon, Northern Cameroons and Southern Cameroons. The mandate decreed that France preside over East Cameroon, while Britain, already an established colonial power over Nigeria, would govern Southern Cameroons—the area whose population today identify themselves as “Anglophones” —and Northern Cameroons, as integral parts of Nigeria.

That 1922 Division, which tore apart Cameroonian families, friends and tribes, stirred up sentiments for reunification from all sides of the divide. But so strong were the voices for reunification in Southern Cameroons that, in February 1961, following a plebiscite (in which the two British-controlled regions of Cameroon would each choose either to be fully integrated into Nigeria or to merge with the newly independent East Cameroon), Southern Cameroons voted overwhelmingly to reunite with East Cameroon.

Having triumphed over the plebiscite, John Ngu Foncha, Southern Cameroons Prime Minister at the time—and its colossus for the reunification campaign—then met with El Haji Amadou Ahidjo, East Cameroon’s president, at the Foumban Conference in July, where they agreed to form what became known as the Federal Republic of Cameroon. The FRC, like modern day Canada, was envisioned, based on its colonial experiences with France and Britain, to be one country but with two separate government systems. (At the end of the conference, the minority English-speaking Southern Cameroons and the majority French-speaking East Cameroon each had their own separate government within the Federation.)

One of the hallmarks of the FRC’s Constitution was that Southern Cameroons, which was renamed “West Cameroon” following the Conference, was guaranteed to retain its inherited British institutions in education, judiciary, and legislature.

President Ahidjo’s East Cameroon majority, his strong-arm tactics at the July Conference, and having led East Cameroon to independence in January 1960, were all factors that propelled him into the presidency of this new Federation.

Considering the raging civil wars that were ripping apart several African countries in the 1960s following their independence, reuniting their old country—as President Ahidjo and Prime Minister Foncha did almost 40 years after it was sliced into parts—was hailed in many quarters as a masterstroke.  

The New York Times, in an article dated January 30, 1970, lauded the impact of these two leaders’ effort at nation building. In the article “Cameroon Young but Mature”, they stated, “While neighboring countries—Nigeria and the Congo—have been wracked by regional and tribal strife, the Cameroon has become a model for African unity.”

The Times further singled out Ahidjo for high praise, saying, “The Cameroonian chiefly responsible for pulling the federation together and playing down tribal frictions is Ahmadou Ahidjo, a calm northerner who as President has gained strong southern support.”

Today, however, the reunification experiment, whose bilingualism was once touted as a “hidden asset in Cameroon’s trade growth”, is in ruins. Anglophones are aghast at what they see as their marginalization within the country.  They also allege that Cameroon’s central government is pursuing assimilationist policies that target Anglophone institutions, citing, for example, French-trained Cameroonian bureaucrats being posted to their region to run schools, cities, colleges and the judiciary.

I was in middle school in the fall of 1982, when the current president of Cameroon, Paul Biya, came to power. He promised, during a much-heralded visit to the Anglophone region, that he’d find a way to bridge the chasm that had emerged over this issue during his predecessor’s reign.

But just two years into his presidency, Biya’s orders to arrest and imprison Gorgi Dinga, an Anglophone human rights lawyer following Dinga’s publication of “The New Social Order”, an indictment of Biya’s government over the Anglophone issue, sent chilling signals to the Anglophone people. However, with the lifting of press censorship in the 90s, Anglophones are now Biya’s most rabid critics within the country. They’ve also borne the brunt of his reprisals, including the 1992 siege of Bamenda—a city noted as Anglophones’ arsenal of democracy.  

Today’s so-called “Anglophone Problem” dates back to 1972. In that year, Amadou Ahidjo surreptitiously called for a referendum that abolished the Federation, replacing it with the “United Republic of Cameroon”, a strong, central system of government in which Ahidjo wielded enormous presidential powers.  Anglophones felt conned and betrayed by Ahidjo’s action.  The referendum fueled their rage, which was made worse in 1984, when the subsequent government of President Paul Biya—oblivious to the Anglophones’ long quest to remain separate in a federation—imposed educational reforms that many felt undermined their institutions.  

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Joseph M. Ndifor

03.Mar.2017

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Rita Akana

03.Mar.2017

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