Violence, that has been on-going in Cameroon is becoming a major disruption of life. People have resorted to leaving the country after hundreds of armed separatists and the military were involved conflicts that left a lot of bloodshed on Tuesday. This happened in five towns and villages leaving approximately 15 people dead.
The army was slow in responding to attacks by the separatists.
There was intensive shooting between an unknown number of armed separatists and about 50 soldiers of the Rapid Intervention Battalion, BIR, as well as an elite corps of Cameroon’s military that is going on at Mile 16, Bolifamba, a neighborhood in the southwestern town of Buea.
In the midst of this, residents have been forced to run to nearby bushes as a means of escape from the shootings.
Businessman Peter Bongkiyung, 24, says he saw two corpses including that of a soldier and does no longer feel safe in the town.
“I am still believing that come what ever I have to go,” he said.
Similar attacks have been reported in four other villages in the Northwest and Southwest regions including Bamenda, Mamfe and Wum.
The current unrest began in Cameroon in November 2016 when English-speaking teachers and lawyers demonstrated against the overbearing use of the French language. The Separatists took over and started demanding the independence of the English-speaking people from the French-speaking regions of the bilingual country.
300 people including 130 policemen and the military have been killed, hundreds of thousands have fled for their lives to the bushes and towns in the French-speaking regions. At least 20,000 have crossed over to Nigeria, according to United Nations reports.
