By Rebecca Tinsley*
Is President Paul Biya of Cameroon more afraid of the weapons in the hands of Anglophone separatists or the words of civilians seeking peace? It appears that rational calls for a fair constitutional settlement, wielded by moderate figures, are a greater threat to the 90-year-old ruler of the conflict-torn Central African nation.
In Biya’s new-year-2022 address, he encouraged armed separatist fighters to surrender and join the DDR (disarmament, demobilisation, and reintegration) process or else be “relentlessly tracked down” to “face the full force of the law.”
This month his government claimed that close to 1,000 separatists have laid down their arms, preferring to return to normal society.
Yet, at the same time, President Biya’s administration continues to arbitrarily arrest and detain nonviolent figures. Some of those languishing in prison are accused of separatist affiliations without any evidence, investigation, or trial. Among them are peaceful civil society leaders, human rights defenders, and journalists. If the Yaoundé regime forgives the men with bullets while persecuting peace-makers, then civilians will continue to distrust and resent their rulers.
Four years ago on the occasion of the Major National Dialogue Biya released 333 detainees. Now is the moment to break the Anglophone Crisis stalemate by releasing more of those who have no place behind bars.
A central element of many peace deals in the world’s trouble spots has been the release of prisoners. In Apartheid South Africa, President F. W. de Klerk laid the basis for negotiations in 1990 when he released Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners, in addition to unbanning the African National Congress movement. De Klerk’s gesture removed the barriers standing in the way of dialogue, demonstrating his flexibility, building confidence, and winning the trust necessary for talks to begin.
In Northern Ireland, the prospect of releasing more than 400 paramilitaries over the course of two years was essential to bringing all sides to the negotiating table to stop decades of conflict.
In Uganda, the government offered amnesty to Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) fighters if they left the long-running bush war to enrol in the DDR process. Promising a normal life to the battle-weary, it was successful in shaking the morale of Joseph Kony’s followers. The remaining LRA rump duly abandoned their cause and left Uganda.
In Cameroon, “Amba Boys” took up arms in 2017 following the disproportionately harsh response of the Cameroon government to peaceful demonstrations by marginalised English-speakers. These armed separatists claim they are fighting to form an independent country they call “Ambazonia” from the Anglophone regions. They are criticised by reputable international rights monitors, as well as the population, because they brutally harm, persecute, and extort civilians who resist their ruthless tactics to control communities. Government forces and separatist fighters alike have committed well-documented crimes against humanity during the six-year-long conflict.
Yet, many English-speaking prisoners held in Cameroon jails or other detention facilities chose not to take up arms. They have been detained because they attended a peaceful protest, wrote a media piece critical of the regime, spoke at a meeting about the historic and continuing marginalisation of the Anglophone minority, or revealed corruption of government officials, for instance. Cameroonians are being punished for using words, not arms, treated more harshly than the Amba fighters, some of whom have chopped off the hands of children who defied their orders not to attend school.
Amnesty International and others have highlighted cases of nonviolent Anglophones in detention such as TSI Conrad, MANCHO Bibixy, Abdul Karim ALI, Dorgelesse NGUESSAN, and Israel GIYO, to no effect. Hundreds more suffer in deplorable conditions, denied even a trial, subject to charges that change, month by month, as the regime searches for increasingly far-fetched reasons to imprison them. These include dozens of youths from Matoh who were mass-arrested in March. Katika237.com lists the names of 1,576 in detention due to the Anglophone Crisis.
One can only conclude that Yaoundé fears words more than weapons. While Cameroon rehabilitates those in DDR centres, it should also release a significant portion of nonviolent political prisoners being held due to the Anglophone Crisis. By doing so, the government would make good its claim that the end of the crisis is in sight. It would be a step toward a peace process to heal the country by building trust with the Anglophone community.
In November, the United Nations will conduct its Universal Periodic Review of Cameroon. The following month, the United States will decide whether to extend Temporary Protected Status for Cameroonians. Now might be the right time for some goodwill from the Biya regime.
*Rebecca Tinsley is the author of When the Stars Fall to Earth: A Novel of Africa.
