Rescuing the Ambazonia Debacle in Cameroon

This short piece is intended to make two points:
1. Revolution requires a spirituality
2. A revolution does not mean war
I start with the second point first because I have read justifications for this aimless war that claim that we are in a revolutionary moment in Cameroon and a revolutionary moment means war. First, it is not clear that we are in any revolutionary moment because revolution is not so much about war as it is about a change of values. Noted figures who have created revolutionary conditions in the world hardly fought a war - Karl Marx, Jesus Christ, the Buddha, etc. A revolution is not a war even though a war has often been confused for a revolution. A revolution is more about changing people's values and imagination than it is about fighting a war. So we can legitimately ask if any values and imagination are being changed in Cameroon because of the ongoing senseless war in Cameroon. I must confess at this point that if there is any value being transformed in Cameroon it is one of increased suspicion between Anglophones and Francophones. Creating an atmosphere for people to hate each other may be revolutionary but it is hardly the kind of atmosphere we want to encourage.

This brings me to the first point above, which is that a revolution requires a spirituality. By this I do not mean that those who participate in a revolution need to believe in a god, gods, or spirits. Rather, what I mean is that those who participate in a revolution need to have higher values than immediate, material gain. Karl Marx had the value of a classless society, the Buddha sought to free people from the perennial problem of suffering, Jesus aimed at creating a loving and forgiving society. Each of these entail material benefit but these benefits were not the point of the formation around which each of these leaders organized their vision. Visions are often sabotaged because of the quest for immediate, material benefit. This has been the case with the Ambazonia debacle.

Those leading this war are seeking all kinds of immediate benefits than any clear vision for the people they claim to be fighting for. The corruption that now bedevils the whole process stinks to high heaven. And this should be not be surprising. The people leading this fight are people who have all been trained by Paul Biya and all the corrupt practices they imbibed working for Biya have now been transferred into the movement, including the murder not only of people they claim to be their enemies but also of other members of their group. The greed is manifested in the widespread embezzlement of funds. Ambazonia is not even a country yet but those fighting for it have already replicated all what they appear to be fighting against - including covert murders of aides, widespread corruption, etc. The fight for an Ambazonia now may be justly described as a hoax, as Biya's last election. It is only a way for some people to make money, beginning with the companies that sell arms and ending with those who are leading this war. Those hapless young people dying at the front lines and the general populace are just pawns in the process.

That is why we need a new leadership and a new purpose. By new leadership I am thinking of people like Kah Walla, Mancho Bibixy, and Agbor Balla. By new vision I mean the original vision of fighting against the marginalization of Anglophone Cameroonians and not the corrupt quest for a new country that replicates the very problems we are railing against the Biya junta for creating. That is my proposal, as we enter 2019. 

Rejecting Biya's Sham "Victory" in Cameroon

It was announced today that Paul Biya, Cameroon's dictator for the past 36 years, has "won" another sham election to impose himself on the people for the next seven years. His plunder of the country has gone from the rapacious to the demonic. Such blatant theft of the future of generations is strongly rejected and we join our voice to that of all those who are rejecting this sham "victory" and declaring this despot to be illegitimate.

2500 Days of Protesting Paul Biya's Murderous Dictatorship in Cameroon

Paul Biya of Cameroon (AFP)

Cameroon is a very small country in West-Central Africa and it may be best known for football (soccer) rather than much else. But the country has very talented and hardworking people who, but for their tenacity, would have been completely broken. Their hard work has however not paid off in the postcolony because the country is lead by a rapacious dictator who has been at the helm of the country for over 35 years now - Paul Biya. Under his regime, the country not only bowed to severe economic crisis which has killed many poor people, but the infrastructure of the country has far diminished. Cameroon is the site of ghastly rail and road accidents that are due to the dilapidated nature of the transportation system. The morality and morale of many people in the country have been almost destroyed as many young people do not appear to see a future for themselves in the country. The healthcare system is so broken that many women continue to die in childbirth and many people continue to die from little, curable diseases. Meanwhile, Paul Biya himself spends much of his time in France and other European countries, especially when he is sick, as he often does, given that is a very old man now.

The flashpoint in the country now is the Cameroon Anglophone crisis which Paul Biya has totally been unable to address, with the country descending into civil war. Schools have closed in Anglophone regions but Paul Biya has been busy cutting the Internet there rather than seeing to it that children go to school. Spreading illiteracy in Anglophone Cameroon seems to be Paul Biya's primary goal now, as he continues to serve the interest of France rather than Cameroonians. His focus on serving France rather than Cameroon has led some to say that he is actually a Frenchman rather than a Cameroonian.
We here at FlourishingAfrica have been protesting this rapacity for 2499 days since Paul Biya rigged the last election. We will continue to do so until he is no longer the dictator of Cameroon. The man is now washed up and has no new ideas about how to move the country forward. Cameroonians deserve much better. Paul Biya has to go.

Sona Jobarteh for the Uninitiated - Magic

Southern Cameroons Crisis and the Coffin of Mancho Bibixy

When was the last time you heard the name Mancho Bibixy? That deafening silence you hear is the silence of forgetfulness created by the crisis of improvisation - making up things as we go - which is now the state of the crisis. But Mancho Bibixy is a name that is central to the uprising now rocking Anglophone Cameroon. He is now languishing in prison in Yaoundé, Cameroon, after his arrest in January 2017 and his sentencing to fifteen years in prison, in May 2018, for spearheading the call for a federal state in Cameroon. When Mr. Bibixy first came to the spotlight, he was standing in a coffin. He made his demand for the change of the status quo standing in a coffin, a powerful symbol that has been interpreted as representing the death of Southern Cameroons.

However, the coffin in which Mr. Bibixy stood says more than simply representing the death of Southern Cameroon. If Southern Cameroon were dead, Mr. Bibixy would not be standing, let alone standing in a coffin. Mr. Bibixy chose the coffin because it is the reality of many of those who dare to challenge the status quo in much of Africa. Those who have stood up against the machinery of power that wreaks havoc on the lives of many Africans, more often than not, end up in the coffin. Sometimes this coffin is a tight cell and other times it is placed in the ground. The coffin is a symbol of the overcoming of the fear that inhibits people's ability to stand up to the terror of the African state. It is a demonstration of the willingness to die for the cause, thus setting people free to rise up with abandon.

The coffin is also a more powerful symbol: it is the symbol of the person of peace. It may be surprising that a symbol of death may be a sign of peace but there is a long history of instruments of murder standing for peace, especially in the story of the cross of Jesus. Thus, when Mr. Bibixy stood in that coffin, he was not only announcing his willingness to die for the Southern Cameroons cause; he was also announcing his willing to die rather than take a life for the cause. And that is perhaps the main difference between Mr. Bibixy and the Ambazonia people who have taken up arms. But the difference is great. Killing for a cause debases the killer and jeopardizes the cause. Killing is the work of anger not fortitude, of revenge not determination. By standing in the coffin, Mr. Bibixy brings together fortitude and determination, doing more for the cause with less resources. His confinement today, even when it is rumored that there have been means for him to escape, is a powerful continuation of this willingness to lay down his life rather than take the life of others, even if his cause is just. Else, he could have escaped when the opportunity presented itself and join the ranks of those who have taken up arms with self-justifying righteousness, dancing the dance of death in Cameroon. Remember the name: Mancho Bibixy. He stood in the coffin and announced a new day. That new day belongs to people like him.

Factions of the Cameroon Anglophone Crisis

The brutal murders of Paul Biya's soldiers in Anglophone Cameroon and the Far North of the country and the murders, kidnappings, and wielding of weapons of the different factions of Ambazonia fighters seem to have given the impression that there are only two sides to the Cameroon Anglophone Crisis - the government and Ambazonia fighters. But nothing could be far from the truth. I will show below the different factions to the crisis and state where my sympathies lie, given that I have a dog in the fight and plan to continue to be part of any future to which this process may lead.

The first faction is of course the Biya junta which has been in the news recently for the war crimes and crimes against humanity being committed by its soldiers in both the Anglophone region and the Far North of Cameroon. Its goal is to see the status quo maintained, come what may. This goal is of course not tenable. The Biya junta has to go! The current elections it is organizing is a sham and should be boycotted by all. Given that the thing has already been rigged, the Biya junta will continue to be illegitimate, serving the interests of its overseas partners instead of the people of Cameroon.

The second faction is the group that calls itself Ambazonia and its fighters. Their goal is to see Anglophone Cameroon become a new country which they are to lead. Their diagnosis of the problem in Anglophone Cameroon is that things are the way they are because of the machinations of the Francophone-dominated government. Only separation from the Francophone part of the country would bring the requisite transformation they seek. I oppose this group for several reasons, including its diagnosis of the problem, its use of violence and its lack of clarity about how to strategically do so, and its connection of the fate of its hoped-for country to Europe and the United States. First, its diagnosis of the Anglophone problem. It is true that Anglophones have been marginalized in many important ways that have been discussed elsewhere, but to claim, as some Ambazonia sources have done, that economic matters have no role to place in the current crisis, is to give a superficial reading of the situation. One does not have to be a Marxist to know that the base of any war like this one is economic. Second, their use of violence throws away any moral high ground Anglophones had over Biya in their struggle against marginalization. The strategies they have used have been all over the place, showing profound lack of careful deliberation on the matter. The fact that they have closed schools in the Anglophone regions is despicable. How can the lost time in the classroom ever be recovered? Finally, the fact that they are relying on foreign help to create this new country they hope for just shows that the new country is going to be a client state of America or another European country, just as Cameroon is now a client state of France. I therefore do not see any difference between their new state and the current Cameroon.

The third faction is made up of Anglophones who are working in French-speaking region of the country. Some of them work for the Biya junta and so support Biya's vision. There are some, who support Ambazionia's vision and others who clearly do not. Some of the people in this third group are vocal about their stance but most are not. Some have chosen to remain neutral for strategic reasons.

The fourth group is those Anglophones in the Anglophone region of the country who support the status quo. A good example of this is the notorious mayor of Buea, Patrick Ekema, and his followers. They are whipping up the latent xenophobia in the south west part of Anglophone Cameroon to challenge Ambazionia vision of a united Anglophone front.

There is a fifth group made up of those Anglophones living in both the Anglophone and Franco-phone regions who clearly do not support Ambazonia's vision and they have made that known. There are many ordinary people in this group but the group is led by politicians. Joshua Osih, the SDF (Social Democratic Front) Presidential candidate and Anglophones who support him belong to this group. Kah Walla, the President of the Cameroon People's Party and her supporters belong to this group also. A significant difference between Kah Walla and Joshua Osih, however, is that Kah Walla has called for Biya to go and has refused to participate in the upcoming Presidential election. She holds that the Biya junta must go before a better future for Cameroon can be reasonably discussed.  She clearly rejects the violence of Ambazonia, and, like Osih, she has a vision for Cameroon as a whole rather than just part of it.

My sympathy is with Kah Walla's position. First, I hold that Biya and his junta must go before there can be any meaningful discussion of the future of Cameroon. Second, I strongly reject the idea that the Anglophone region should be a new country because I hold that the problem of our marginalization will not be solved by a new country. I say this with somber knowledge of the many refugees this crisis has created, the horrible deaths and destruction of villages, imprisonment and torture, that have been visited on many. But the fact that Biya is doing the same thing in the Far North tells me that the problem is the Biya junta and creating a different country to address the foibles of the Biya junta is not radical enough. Also, there are latent forms of marginalization among Anglophone Cameroonians that will not be solved by a new country. Further, given that the central economic problems are not even acknowledged by leaders of Ambazonia, it is not clear how they would prioritize it. Finally, my vision is that the African continent should become one country. Breaking the continent into separate, little countries cause more harm than good to the people of the continent, as Kwame Nkrumah saw over fifty years ago.

Based on these considerations, my position is that Cameroon should become a genuine federal state. 

2400 Days of Protesting Paul Biya's Murderous Dictatorship in Cameroon

Paul Biya of Cameroon (AFP)

Cameroon is a very small country in West-Central Africa and it may be best known for football (soccer) rather than much else. But the country has very talented and hardworking people who, but for their tenacity, would have been completely broken. Their hard work has however not paid off in the postcolony because the country is lead by a rapacious dictator who has been at the helm of the country for over 35 years now - Paul Biya. Under his regime, the country not only bowed to severe economic crisis which has killed many poor people, but the infrastructure of the country has far diminished. Cameroon is the site of ghastly rail and road accidents that are due to the dilapidated nature of the transportation system. The morality and morale of many people in the country have been almost destroyed as many young people do not appear to see a future for themselves in the country. The healthcare system is so broken that many women continue to die in childbirth and many people continue to die from little, curable diseases. Meanwhile, Paul Biya himself spends much of his time in France and other European countries, especially when he is sick, as he often does, given that is a very old man now.

The flashpoint in the country now is the Cameroon Anglophone crisis which Paul Biya has totally been unable to address, with the country descending into civil war. Schools have closed in Anglophone regions but Paul Biya has been busy cutting the Internet there rather than seeing to it that children go to school. Spreading illiteracy in Anglophone Cameroon seems to be Paul Biya's primary goal now, as he continues to serve the interest of France rather than Cameroonians. His focus on serving France rather than Cameroon has led some to say that he is actually a Frenchman rather than a Cameroonian.
We here at FlourishingAfrica have been protesting this rapacity for 2400 days since Paul Biya rigged the last election. We will continue to do so until he is no longer the dictator of Cameroon. The man is now washed up and has no new ideas about how to move the country forward. Cameroonians deserve much better. Paul Biya has to go.

The Missionary Use of Pictures in Cameroon's War

Anyone who has been following the war in Cameroon, either on Facebook or Twitter, should have seen many photos, including those of dead people, fighting between the so-called Ambazonian fighters and Cameroon's military, houses that are being burnt or already burnt, refugees who in Nigeria or in the forests of Cameroon, wounded people in hospitals, and others. In her work Picturing Pity, Marianne Gullestad shows how some European missionaries in Cameroon use pictures to appeal for help for their work in the mission field. Pictures were one of the ways missionaries from Europe helped the sending churches to see what they were doing in the mission fields so that they may continue to support the work there. However, in order to show that the mission was worth supporting, the pictures sent were those that showed the most miserable conditions to justify why missionaries should continue in the mission fields. In a sense, the pictures we see coming from the war in Cameroon is used for the same purpose - to show that the Ambazonian fighters are doing their work and that the Biya regime is responding in barbarous ways. We see that most of the gruesome pictures are coming from Ambazonia people, the sent ones, (not from the government of Cameroon) and circulated on social media mostly accessed by those in the diaspora. These pictures are therefore ways of motivating those in the diaspora and to ask for more financial help in waging the war. The pictures are often accompanied by brief messages explaining them, as missionaries often did.

The war in Cameroon is therefore a missionary enterprise. Some people have been sent to fight for what they see as the soul of their land, converting others to their cause in the process. Those who do not believe in the cause are demonized, as missionaries sometimes did to those who did not become Christian. Those who are not in favor of the war or the call for separation are the new heathens who are destined to hell. These are sometimes killed or their homes burnt down by Ambazonia people. Those who believe are added to the fold and the process of proselytization continues. The goal is to found a new kingdom. Those who sent the missionaries, as was often the case in the 19th and 20th centuries, are in Europe and the United States. In order to prove that the work for which they were sent is being done, the missionaries/fighters take pictures/films and post them online for all to see. The pictures, as missionaries often did, are always those situated in the middle of the combat, where worse things are happening. Such pictures drew pity for the poor, benighted people of Africa and opened the wallets of parishioners. The pictures Ambazonia fighters post online are often intended to for the same purpose - to open the wallets of those who sent them.

One difference with this war is that both the senders and those sent are Cameroonians (Africans) and the purpose is war. The fight is, however, still for the soul of a people and the senders are still in Europe and America. The pictures are still needed to prove the point of the war. Poor us!

Longue Longue on Colonialism and War in Africa

When Longue Longue made this number the wars were in other places in Africa. Now the war has come to Cameroon and so we may better appreciate this. Bad understanding of African history but point well taken,

Extraversion and the War in Cameroon

The French political scientist who has done much of his work in Cameroon, Jean-Francois Bayart, coined the term extraversion in African studies to describe African history as one that has focused outwardly rather than inwardly. In other words, what happens in the continent has much to do with outside influences and focus rather than the internal dealings of the people. This is especially so in what is happening in Anglophone Cameroon today where events are propelled by people who do not live in the country and for reasons that developed elsewhere.

First, The New York Times recently reported that many of those who are leading the Ambazonia army live in Europe and the United States. Far from the place of action, they urge war. Many of the supporters to the war live outside the country and much of the money raised in fighting the war is also coming from outside the country. This means that the people of Southern Cameroons can themselves not sustain such a war. It is not clear what other foreign powers may be sending help to Ambazonia fighters.

One of the arguments I hear from those supporting the war in Cameroon is that they want to remove themselves from being controlled by France. They rightly see France as source of many of the problems that the country faces today. It was recently reported that the position of France is that Cameroon should remain united and not be fractured, as the Ambazonia people want. When France says this, it is not only a verbal wish as it has battalions set up all over central Africa for just a time like this. It would therefore backup its position militarily but covertly.

France's interest in Cameroon, is however not for the benefit of the people of Cameroon but for the benefit of the French. Cameroonians stand on solid grounds when they decry French intervention in the country. However, since it is in Paul Biya's interest to keep Cameroon under France, he is eternally grateful for French intervention.

The Ambazonia people decrying French intervention, however, do not stand on good grounds because they are doing the same thing Paul Biya is doing and which J-F Bayart rightly saw - mortgaging the Southern Cameroons to foreign interests as well. Given that most of the leaders of this group are in foreign lands and working with foreign groups to see their vision materialize, if Ambazonia becomes independent, it will also be a client state to Western interests. In this light, Ambazonia will not be different from what is going on now in Cameroon. The extraversion will continue, to the detriment of the people. The only question appears to be what kind of extraversion one prefers - the current situation or what may emerge from this war?

Humanitarian Aid and the Refugees from Southern Cameroons

The continued brutality of the war between Ambazonia fighters and Cameroon's military has led to the flight of many from home and hearth that have in some cases been burnt to the ground. While many have fled to the French-speaking region of the country, others have fled into the forest, where they have made make-shift homes. Life in the forest has been unbearable due to the lack of basic means of sustenance. Food, water, and medicine are hard to come by. Women give birth in the forest in very dangerous circumstances. This situation of desperation has rightly pricked the consciences of many who are organizing supplies for those who are refugees in Nigeria and in the forests of Southern Cameroons. Thus, humanitarian aid have been flown from Europe and the United States and the Biya junta is also raising money it claims is intended to help the victims of the conflict.

Even though the humanitarian aids are quite worthwhile, it is also very important that focus should not be placed mainly on this aid as many Southern Cameroonians are doing. Several studies have shown that humanitarian aid may actually lengthen conflict. In other words, humanitarian aid in the context of the war in Cameroon may do more harm than good in that it may help fund the continuation of the conflict.

The provision of humanitarian aid, worthy as this may be, should be done in the context of other measures that are being taken to end the conflict. The best thing one can do for those who are now living in the forests is to bring them to a situation of peace. Those who are providing humanitarian aid should therefore be clear about the vision they have in mind. In other words, what is the purpose of the humanitarian aid. Is it just to sooth the words of the injured so that the war may go on or is it a strategy in a broader framework to bring about peace?

Given that the Biya junta does not even acknowledge that there is a war in Cameroon and Ambazonia people are vowing to fight to the last man or woman, there is no clear path to a state of peace at this point. Without such a clear path, humanitarian assistance is just a means to prolong the war as more refugees are being created each day. The goal of humanitarian assistance should not only be to provide temporary relief for those in agony. It should be to bring about a state of stability where the things that bring agony have been removed. Humanitarian assistance should not be about making war. It should be about making peace. If you are not working for peace, then what you are doing is not humanitarian.

Critiquing the Ambazonian Theology of Father Jerry Jumbam

I first read the book Independence or Nothing by Father Jerry Jumbam over a month ago and twitted about it. At the time, I did not know that the book had been circulating among Anglophone Cameroonians, especially among those in the diaspora. When a friend of mine drew my attention to the book again today, he indicated that the book might have inspired a movie that will be out in July. This led me to believe that the book was becoming more popular among Anglophone Cameroonians who no doubt read it as baptizing their independence. Even though the book clearly disavows violence, those using violence to gain independence are popularizing it. Because the book gives theological backing to the independence of Southern Cameroons, I thought I should respond to the book from the perspective of someone who does not embrace the vision of the book.

Before I proceed, I should note that I find it quite heartening that an Anglophone priest is reflecting theologically on the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon. I admire the passion he puts into his reflection and his desire to be a prophetic voice on this matter. I pray that many more members of the clergy would speak out clearly about the issue as Father Jumbam has done in this book. In times like this, it seems important that members of society, especially members of the clergy who hold influence in society, should speak up clearly about where they stand. This is not a time to sit on the fence. Father Jumbam demonstrates good command of the history of the problem and the importance of reflecting on it theologically. His theology of independence, which he calls a theology of self-determination is, however, a problematic theology at best.

It is problematic theology, first, because of its uncritical reading of history, which sees God as working through the machination of Western colonial powers to eventually bring independence to Southern Cameroons. And so the history he narrates becomes a history of how the British and the French established two systems that are based on two different cultures, which are supposed to be separate, pointing to the future independence or self-determination of Southern Cameroons. This vanished history elides the cruelty of colonial history, focusing instead on the processes that would have led to the independence of Southern Cameroons, as if God intended the history of colonialism in that region to serve the eventual independence of Southern Cameroons. Thus, God sent colonialists to oppress us, so that two cultures may emerge that would one day lead to the independence of Southern Cameroons. This uncritical theological reading of history is only compounded by his view of historiography as a transparent moment of exposing truth rather than a battlefield of ideologies.

A second problem with the theology of independence is the connection it makes to the founding of the state of Israel. He sees the founding of the state of Israel as harbinger of what will happen in Southern Cameroons, apparently oblivious to the problematic nature of the state of Israel. Rooted in a theology of land that is contested, the state of Israel has been in constant violence with Palestine since its founding. This state of perpetual violence between the state of Israel and Palestine, should give one pause about using the founding of the state of Israel as harbinger of great things to come in Southern Cameroons.

Finally, the question of identity. Father Jumbam has many identities, including being a man from Nso, a Roman Catholic priest, and an Anglophone Cameroonian. However, it is his identity as an Anglophone or "Ambazonian" that he prefers to defend. One would expect that a Catholic priest would have a universal vision of the people of God because that is the very nature of the church. One would expect a Catholic priest to be an ambassador of reconciliation rather than fanning sectarianism. One would hope that a Catholic priest would speak truth to power rather than separate one people from the other. But based on the tribalism that is common in Africa, one should perhaps not be surprised that the call to tribalism is coming from a priest. During the genocide in Rwanda, a Hutu priest was seen ordering the massacre of his parishioners who were Tutsi. When he was asked why he was doing that, he said that there was a time for everything. That was in reference to Ecclesiastes 3. Such sectarianism coming from priests shows how much work the church still needs to do in its formation of priests, let alone the ordinary Christian. 

The Poisonous Seed of Violence in Southern Cameroons

The dangerous situation in Southern Cameroons is not so much the violent conflict that is presently taking place there but the nature of this conflict. Brutal images that have surfaced on social media show how people are being killed on both the sides of the conflict - on the side of Cameroon's military and on the side of those dubbed "secessionists" or "terrorists". This is disturbing and dangerous enough. However, the dangerous situation being invoked here is the fact that those who are called "secessionists" or "terrorist" do not necessarily see eye to eye on issues of strategy and ultimate goal. Different groups pop up on social media, claiming to be fighting for independence, without any apparent connection to any other group in Southern Cameroons. There doesn't appear to be any central command. That is at the core of the danger. No one can call for an end to the violence right now. There is no single person in Southern Cameroons respected enough to call an end to the violence, even if the goal of independence is achieved or any other viable solution proposed. Those so-called leaders of Ambazonia do not know all the groups that are fighting and do not control them. Many of the groups are now acting on their own, often oblivious of what is happening in other places.

I recently saw a film of a group of ragtag fighters wearing amulets in a forest somewhere in the North West warning that there is another group which is in danger of being bribed so that it may abandon the cause of independence. It is not clear which group is being accused of this. Herein lies the danger - the violence that has been initiated into Cameroon has led to different fighting groups which apparently now seem to be in competition. The problem with this is that if the goal of independence is achieved, there will be different groups in the country with guns, demanding their own share of the spoils of war. Given that they won independence through violence they would now be even more convinced that violence is the way to get what one wants in life. Thus, instead of having political parties, as should be the case in a civilized democracy, we will have armed factions, as is the case in South Sudan today. From where things stand today, the most possible future of any independent Southern Cameroons is South Sudan.

The only issue now is how to prevent this from happening. The poisonous seed of violence which has been planted in the country will not go away any time soon. For this we have two groups to thank - the Biya junta and the people who call themselves Ambazonia.

2300 Days of Protesting Paul Biya's Murderous Dictatorship in Cameroon

Paul Biya of Cameroon (AFP)

Cameroon is a very small country in West-Central Africa and it may be best known for football (soccer) rather than much else. But the country has very talented and hardworking people who, but for their tenacity, would have been completely broken. Their hard work has however not paid off in the postcolony because the country is lead by a rapacious dictator who has been at the helm of the country for over 35 years now - Paul Biya. Under his regime, the country not only bowed to severe economic crisis which has killed many poor people, but the infrastructure of the country has far diminished. Cameroon is the site of ghastly rail and road accidents that are due to the dilapidated nature of the transportation system. The morality and morale of many people in the country have been almost destroyed as many young people do not appear to see a future for themselves in the country. The healthcare system is so broken that many women continue to die in childbirth and many people continue to die from little, curable diseases. Meanwhile, Paul Biya himself spends much of his time in France and other European countries, especially when he is sick, as he often does, given that is a very old man now.

The flashpoint in the country now is the Cameroon Anglophone crisis which Paul Biya has totally been unable to address, with the country descending into civil war. Schools have closed in Anglophone regions but Paul Biya has been busy cutting the Internet there rather than seeing to it that children go to school. Spreading illiteracy in Anglophone Cameroon seems to be Paul Biya's primary goal now, as he continues to serve the interest of France rather than Cameroonians. His focus on serving France rather than Cameroon has led some to say that he is actually a Frenchman rather than a Cameroonian.
We here at FlourishingAfrica have been protesting this rapacity for 2300 days since Paul Biya rigged the last election. We will continue to do so until he is no longer the dictator of Cameroon. The man is now washed up and has no new ideas about how to move the country forward. Cameroonians deserve much better.

Ambazonia as New Religion or Why Christians Should Reject Ambazonia

It was the theologian Paul Tillich who declared that religion should be understood as ultimate concern, as that to which people pay ultimate allegiance or loyalty. Even though this view has been critiqued for being to amorphous to capture the complexity of what might be called "religion", there is hardly denying the fact that religions demand allegiance and loyalty from its adherents. It is because of this demand for loyalty that the theologian William Cavanaugh has seen the state as the new religion in that it demands ultimate loyalty. Like religions that require adherents to sacrifice themselves for the cause, the state also requires adherents to offer themselves in defending it. Not only does the state demand loyalty, it also gives those it claims a new identity. Ambazonia is attempting to create a new identity for people who once knew themselves differently, all the while claiming that it is only attempting to go back to an older identity. It is now demanding loyalty. It is also requiring people, especially the young, to sacrifice themselves for its cause.

Most people in southern Cameroons have understood themselves as Bakweri, Bayangi, Santa, Bafut, Babalang, etc. In addition to these, they have also known themselves as Christians, Muslims, traditionalists, or as belonging to other religious traditions. In the last sixty years, they have understood themselves as being part of what is now known as Anglophone Cameroon and the state called Cameroon has demanded their loyalty. Now Ambazonia is the new game in town, working on constructing a new way for the people to think about themselves - as belonging to a thing called The Federal Republic of Ambazonia, complete with a state house, a president, ministers, and spokespeople. Every day videos are posted on YouTube or WhatsApp purportedly containing statements from a minister of this or that, bringing a message of liberation to "fellow Ambazonians." Just like every state, they are imposing a new identity on people who once did not think of themselves in those terms, demanding the ultimate loyalty and sacrifice - just like religions do. Thus, young men and women are called upon to pay the ultimate prize to serve an ultimate purpose that is hardly clear.

In order to create this new system, like some religions, it needs a new enemy or a new past that it opposes. Thus, La Republic du Cameroun (instead of the government) has been cast as this new enemy and the people are promised that they are moving to a new promised land. Thus, a people who used to interact with each other without animosity are now taught to hate each other. And while churches in Anglophone Cameroon are addressing the matter daily - largely because they have to - churches in Francophone Cameroon are largely silent.

And here is why Christians in Anglophone Cameroon ought to reject the pretensions of Ambazonia. First, it teaches Christians to hate each other as states often do. Christians living in different states tend to see each other as foreigners, contrary to the vision of Jesus Christ. Christians are people who should be united and should care about each other rather than seeing each other as enemies. Christians should not be warring against each other as Ambazonia is calling on Anglophone Christians to do, and as states do. Ambazonia is giving Christians the impression that the problem with Cameroon is the marginalization of Anglophones without seeing the bigger context in which this problem is situated - the context of criminality in government. Leaders of Ambazonia are themselves people of very doubtful character. Thus, Ambazonia has instead chosen to contribute in making Cameroon a crime scene characterized not only by economic criminality but also the murder of the innocent. As people whose ultimate loyalty is in the God of Jesus Christ rather than to a state, Christians should refuse to shed blood as the Biya junta and Ambazonia is calling on them to do. There are better alternatives to challenging the rapacity of the Biya regime than to contribute in making the country a crime scene.

Why Ambazonia And the Biya Regime Should Be Rejected

Ambazonia and the Biya regime should be rejected by all peace-loving Cameroonians. By Ambazonia I mean those who have been described as secessionists and who are currently waging a kind of gorilla warfare in the English speaking region of Cameroon. We speak of Ambazonia and the Biya regime in the same breath because both have chosen the road to violence. Biya's violence against Cameroonians has been going on for over 35 years and can be seen to be the root cause of the emergence of the violent impulses which Ambazonia has mimicked. In a sense, therefore, the violence of Ambazonia may be justified. However, such justification would not carry weight because there are many ways to resist oppression - violence being just one of them.

Of all the African countries that have been involved in civil war, I can find none that has led to the peace and prosperity of the people. This is especially the case given that those who often mount these wars are hardly fighting for the people they claim to be representing. At the end of the day, they are found to be just as rapacious as the group they were fighting to throw out of power. The case of South Sudan is a very recent example. Ambazonia's case is made even more frightful by the fact that the leadership is mired in dispute and there is no clear vision of what will happen to Southern Cameroons if their fight is successful. Their activities so far have been so amateurish that one finds it hard to see how this group can lead a people. The recent arrest of the leadership of the group in Nigeria is an example of this amateurism. Any group mounting such operation should know that the leadership of the group should never gather in one place at the same time.

Further, Ambazonia is fighting for a cause that should be national (or even continental) rather than regional. It is true that Anglophones have been marginalized in the experiment that is Cameroon. I am among those who was educated from primary to high school in the English-speaking region but had to go to the university in French-speaking Yaoundé and mostly taught in French. We spent most of our time in Yaoundé protesting, leading to the establishment of the University of Buea. However, Cameroon as a whole is in a state of dilapidation. Francophones fare no better than Anglophones, In fact, the Biya regime has been not so much about empowering the Francophones as it has been about empowering the Beti people. That is why his government is populated not by Francophones as a whole but by Beti people. The Anglophone crisis is therefore a Cameroonian crisis. When Patrice Nganang noted that "one day we will be Anglophones," he was saying more than he meant. He was saying that the struggle in Cameroon is more than the Anglophone experience. The fragmentation that Ambazonia is banking on is therefore not the point of the struggle. Instead of fighting to protect a culture that is British in origin, we should be struggling to create an identity that transcends the colonial baggage to create a new, peaceful and prosperous future for our people. That future is hampered by the violence of both the Biya regime and Ambazonia and should be rejected by all peace-loving Cameroonians.