Cameroon: Tensions on the rise in Anglophone regions

Event

Six English-speaking schools in Cameroon's two Anglophone regions (Northwest and Southwest) were set on fire between August 17 and August 24. The attacks are indications of intensifying tensions in Cameroon's English-speaking regions. Meanwhile, an ongoing general strike in the area has entered its tenth month; businesses and educational establishments are expected to remain closed for three out of every five working days. Staff and students at the targeted schools have reportedly not been participating in the strike, angering some activists.No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the attacks.

A government official in the Northwest region has stated that law enforcement officials do not have the resources to police every Anglophone school and that the arson attacks have prompted calls for the creation of self-defense militias.

Further violence is possible in the coming days and weeks as tensions in the Northwest and Southwest continue to simmer.

Context

Tensions between English- and French-speaking communities have risen considerably over recent months. English-speaking lawyers and teachers supported by Anglophone protesters have carried out a number of demonstrations that have paralyzed the Northwest and Southwest regions since November 2016. Security forces have brutally cracked down on theses rallies, killing and arresting hundreds.

Protesters are denouncing what they consider to be the marginalization of the Anglophone community - e.g. the use of French in courts and public schools in English-speaking areas - and are demanding that judges and teachers in those regions be able to read, write, and understand English. French and English are both official languages of Cameroon, however English is predominantly spoken in the country's northwest and southwest. The Cameroon Anglophone Civil Society Consortium is also demanding the organization of a referendum for the establishment of two federal states in Cameroon. More radical activists belong to the Movement for the Restoration of Independence of Southern Cameroons advocate the creation of an independent English-speaking state called Southern Cameroons (or Ambazonie).

Advice

Individuals in the abovementioned regions are advised to monitor the situation and avoid all public gatherings as violence may flare up with little notice.