Civilians in the Anglophone regions of Cameroon face atrocity crimes due to widespread violence between government forces and armed separatists.

BACKGROUND:

In 2016 English-speaking lawyers, students and teachers in Cameroon began protesting their cultural marginalization by the Francophone-dominated government, leading to a violent crackdown by security forces. In October 2017 Anglophone separatists proclaimed independence and declared a new state of “Ambazonia” in the north-west and south-west regions, an area predominantly inhabited by the country’s Anglophone minority. Since then, armed separatists and Cameroonian security forces have clashed, resulting in widespread atrocities against the civilian population by both sides to the conflict.

More than 6,000 people have been killed as a result of the crisis since 2016. Security forces have perpetrated extrajudicial killings and widespread sexual and gender-based violence, burned Anglophone villages and subjected individuals with suspected separatist ties to arbitrary detention, torture and ill-treatment. Armed separatists have also killed, kidnapped and terrorized populations while steadily asserting control over large parts of the Anglophone regions. Since the beginning of 2022 the government has increased its operations against armed separatist strongholds, prompting separatists to step up their attacks against government security forces, using deadlier weapons and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).

Separatists have banned government education and frequently attack, threaten and abduct students and teachers, as well as burn, destroy and loot schools. These attacks, as well as strict lockdowns imposed by armed separatists, have robbed children of their education. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), only 46 percent of schools are functioning and 54 percent of students are enrolled for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Separatists and government forces have perpetrated targeted attacks on health facilities and humanitarian workers, restricting the delivery of vital aid and forcing various international humanitarian organizations to suspend their operations. According to OCHA, more than 1.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in the north-west and south-west regions. OCHA also estimates that at least 628,000 people have been internally displaced by violence in the two regions, while more than 87,000 have fled to Nigeria.

Despite the deteriorating security and humanitarian situation, the government of Cameroon continues to deny the severity of the crisis and has yet to take any meaningful action aimed at ending the conflict or addressing its root causes. The international community has also taken limited action in response to the situation. The Council of the European Union, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and others have appealed for an end to the violence and urged government action, while additional actors have previously offered to serve as mediators. The UN Security Council (UNSC) has held only one meeting on the situation in Cameroon, an Arria-formula meeting on 13 May 2019, which focused on the humanitarian situation.

RECENT DEVELOPMENTS:

On 20 January 2023 the government of Canada announced it would facilitate peace negotiations. The announcement came four months after President Paul Biya suspended the government’s participation in a Swiss-led mediation process. The government of Cameroon claimed it had not asked any country to mediate and denied its involvement in negotiations with Canada.

Attacks involving IEDs continue, with at least 20 incidents reported in February alone. To boycott National Unity Day on 20 May, armed separatists called for several lockdowns and warned that civilians would face consequences if they did not remain indoors. The National Unity Celebration parade in Buea was abruptly interrupted by the detonation of an IED, leading to an unknown number of casualties.

Separatist groups are also increasingly using kidnappings as a tactic. During May armed separatists allegedly abducted approximately 50 women in the north-west region for protesting against violence and illegal taxes imposed on them by separatists. Some of the women were reportedly tortured with guns and machetes.

ANALYSIS:

The international community often perceives the conflict in the Anglophone region as an insurgency by armed separatist groups against the Cameroonian government. However, the situation is much more complex. Although the Anglophone and Francophone areas of Cameroon have been unified since 1961, there is a long history of disputes over the extent to which access to government resources is controlled by the French-speaking majority. The current situation, which began as a political dispute, has evolved into a multifaceted security crisis and humanitarian catastrophe.

Civilian populations, particularly women and children, are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the devastating scale of destruction and unlawful killings, with far reaching consequences. The targeting of individuals based upon their cultural identity poses a direct threat to Anglophone civilians and may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The conflict dynamics in the north-west and south-west are changing as the crisis becomes increasingly financially lucrative, with separatist groups having expanded their sources of revenue through kidnapping and extortion. Ethnic communities are often targeted for their alleged collaboration with either side of the conflict. The fact that there is no unified armed separatist group, but rather an increasingly disorganized and competing collection of groups, makes the situation – and possible pathways to peace – extremely challenging.

The risk of atrocities will continue if the root causes of the conflict, including poor quality of government services, weak governance and marginalization of parts of the population by a highly centralized state, remain unaddressed.

RISK ASSESSMENT:

• • Past or present discriminatory, restrictive or exclusionary practices, policies or legislation against marginalized communities and persons belonging to minority groups.
  • Political and social instability caused by disputes over power and growing armed opposition movements.
  • Increased politicization of identity, past events or motives to engage in violence.
  • Policy or practice of impunity for – or tolerance of – serious violations of International Human Rights Law (IHRL) and International Humanitarian Law (IHL), atrocity crimes or their incitement.
  • Lack of capacity to ensure the security sector adheres to the highest standards of professionalism, international law and the protection of human rights.

NECESSARY ACTION:

Security forces must end all extrajudicial killings of unarmed civilians and ensure that the human rights of all Cameroonians are equally protected, regardless of cultural identity. Security forces implicated in violations of IHL and IHRL should be investigated and held accountable. Armed separatist groups must also halt attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure. Safe and unfettered humanitarian access must be restored and guaranteed. Foreign governments and regional organizations should suspend all military assistance to Cameroon until its security forces have made demonstrable progress toward upholding the human rights of all Cameroonians.

The government should hold an inclusive dialogue with parties to the Anglophone crisis, mediated by a neutral player on neutral territory. The government must also invest in programs that meaningfully address the root causes of inter-communal violence.

The African Union and Economic Community of Central African States should work with the government to prevent further deterioration of the conflict. Efforts by the UN’s Regional Office for Central Africa, including good offices, must prioritize finding a political solution to the violence and encourage inclusive dialogue. The UNSC should discuss the situation in Cameroon and urge parties to the conflict to end hostilities and find a peaceful solution to the multifaceted crisis.