Cameroon: Faith leaders call on stakeholders in peace talks to be God-fearing

Catholic, Muslim and Protestant leaders in Cameroon have called for prayers as well as work on confidence-building measures to bring an end to the protracted English-speaking crisis in the country.

Responding to the Canadian government’s January 20 announcement of peace talks between some of the separatist factions in the war-torn northwestern and southwestern areas of Cameroon, the religious leaders released a statement. Canada had accepted the mandate to facilitate the peace process, as part of its commitment to promote peace and security and advance support for democracy and human rights.

“Having been first hand witnesses to the ravages of war and the evils that have come with the armed struggle in these two regions of Cameroon and as frontline advocates of peace, we, the religious leaders of the north west and south west regions welcome this statement as a major step towards the search for true, sustainable, and lasting peace in these two regions,” the religious leaders said. 

The religious leaders, who included heads of the Catholic, Anglican, Baptist, and Presbyterian churches in Cameroon, said they are “thankful to God that a hopeful corridor is beginning to open for inclusive dialogue.” “As religious leaders, we remain independent and sovereign – the voice of the voiceless and therefore we wish to appeal to all the stakeholders in this peace process to be honest, God-fearing, sincere, humble, and patriotic throughout the entire announced peace process and let the spirit of God assist them in their deliberations,” they said.

The faith leaders in their January 23 statement signed by Catholic Archbishop Andrew Nkea Fuanya of Bamenda, the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon, the Imams of the Buea and Bamenda mosques, the executive president of the Cameroon Baptist Convention and the representative of the Anglican Church, expressed the hope “that all the parties will keep aside their personal and/or political or other exclusive interests, but will sincerely and determinedly work for the common good, inspired by truth, justice, love, and equity.” 

They called on “everyone who believes that the Almighty God of peace can resolve any and every conflict amongst humankind, to join us in prayer that the devil and his agents (both human and otherwise), may not destroy this peace process.”

Hope for a lasting and sustainable political settlement

Canadian foreign minister Mélanie Joly had in his statement pointed out that civilians are bearing the brunt of the ongoing crisis in Cameroon, with more than 6,000 people having lost their lives since 2017 and nearly 800,000 people have been displaced and 600,000 children unable to access education as a result of this crisis. 

“The agreement to enter a formal process is a critical first step toward peace and a safer, more inclusive and prosperous future for civilians affected by the conflict.We commend all parties for engaging in substantive dialogue. We encourage all stakeholders to support and work with the parties to advance and contribute to an inclusive process to reach a lasting and sustainable political settlement,” read the Canadian statement. 

The 27 million inhabitants of Cameroon speak English and French as their official languages and this linguistic division between the two groups has since 2017 led to conflict, with the English-speaking parts of the country believing that the Francophone majority has sidelined them. The problem has been exacerbated by English-speaking militias fighting government forces in an effort to establish the breakaway state of Ambazonia, in a country already struggling with extremist Boko Haram organization. Cameroon was formed in 1961 through the union of a British and a French colony. 

The Catholic Church under the late Cardinal Christian Tumi, had worked hard to help his native Cameroon try to resolve the Anglophone Crisis, mediating between the English-speaking separatists and Cameroon's government, and working with religious leaders to create a framework for dialogue between all the stakeholders in the conflict.