This is not the best time to live in Southern Cameroon, an area which has been part of the Republic of Cameroon since 1961. Since 1994, pressure groups in the Southern Cameroons claim there was no legal document (treaty of union) binding Southern Cameroon and French Cameroon together in accordance to UNGA RES 1608(XV) paragraph 5. Therefore, they are seeking to gain independence from the Republic of Cameroon. They renamed the area as Ambazonia on October 1, 2017. But its leaders remain operational from abroad.

Mr. Julius Ayuk Tabe, the first president of the Interim Government (IG) of the country was, before his arrest, living in Nigeria from where the council was arranging meetings. In September 2017, he called on the takumbengs – groups of older women protecting protesters from troops – to lead the processions. From Nigeria, Ayuk Tabe took the lead after Cameroonian authorities arrested lawyers and teachers. He also made several appearances on local and intern On Friday, January 5, 2018, Nigerian forces held him and nine members of his cabinet at the Nera hotel, where they were holding meetings. They were charged with terrorism and secession and then delivered to Cameroon’s Kondengui prison where they have been serving life terms since January 2018. Cameroon’s  military also responded with a crackdown, and rebels took up arms, claiming to defend the English-speaking minority. The International Crisis Group, an independent organisation based in Brussels working to prevent wars and promote peace, said the conflict has killed thousands of people and displaced 750,000.

Speaking in an online chat with The Nation, Ambazonian Vice President, Yerima Darbney, blamed the UN for the crisis in Southern Cameroon. He called the international organisation as a toothless bulldog. According to him, it is an institution created to run the imperialists agenda by making sure that there is over-exploitation and the complete destruction of the African continent, “the richest continent in the world.”

‘UN turns a blind eye’