In the early hours of Wednesday January 14, armed Ambazonia separatist fighters launched an ambush on the Mbororo community in Gidado, a small village wedged between Ndu and Ntumbaw. At least 12 people, mostly women and children, were killed in the deadly assault. This comes just weeks after the Cameroon army worked with other Mbororo allegedly brought in from Nigeria, to coordinate with and kill Ambazonia separatists operating in the area.
This exploitative tactic by the Cameroon government is not helpful in an already tense and volatile situation. Clashes between the Mbororo and local Wimbum people have been happening for years, way before the outbreak of the Anglophone Conflict. Instead of resolving these grazer-farmer conflicts, the Cameroon army chose to exploit them for its own political gains. While the government has the right to restore peace, doing so at the expense of local peace is certainly not wise. It is rather pitiful to see sides against each other. Donga Mantung Division, where Gidado lies, is on the border with Nigeria, where similar clashes have drawn the ire of the United States.
Wednesday’s attack on the Mbororo people of Gidado is wrong because they were civilians who were not involved in any fighting. It is just as wrong just the same as the military using Mbororo to spy for them was wrong – putting the lives of untrained civilians in danger by exploiting their ignorance in a complex situation. In the end, the Cameroonian soldiers deployed by Yaounde will retire to the safety of their homes across the Mungo, while the local Wimbum people will be left fighting senselessly because of flames fanned by the very Yaounde. The Wimbum and Mbororo communities, despite the lingering tensions, can, will, and must find a way to live together, and if authorities in Yaounde won’t help, at least they shouldn’t use one side to fight the other.
This is why the root causes of both the farmer-grazer conflicts in Donga Mantung Division must be solved, and it is even more urgent for the root causes of the Anglophone Conflict to be addressed to put an end to the insecurity that breeds the violence and murder of fellow Cameroonians, as we saw today in Gidado. Our hearts go out to the families of those who were killed in today’s attacks, and we call on both sides to desist from attacking civilians. The government should embrace dialogue that discusses the origins of the conflict and the form of the state. Ambazonia fighters should be ready to also embrace dialogue, be ready to drop their arms, and negotiate with Yaounde.
The Volatile Situation in Ndu Calls for Urgent, Prudent Intervention
