A recent video circulating online has brought to light a disturbing situation in the Meme Division of the Southwest Region, where civilians face threats of summary execution by Ambazonia fighters. The footage portrays a scene of women, men, and children being coerced into positions of submission while facing the harrowing prospect of imminent death.
The video features a narrator self-identifying as the “King of the al-Qaeda court of Meme,” ominously declaring his intent to kill the civilians if they fail to reappear. The incident, purportedly occurring on May 1st at the Catholic Church in Banye Panya, unfolds as individuals are seen being forced to kneel in distress, their children crying out in anguish.
The supposed leader of the group accuses the civilians of illicitly obtaining birth certificates in preparation for the upcoming 2025 presidential elections. He alleges government complicity, claiming that the individuals were sent by authorities to acquire these documents.
“These are people who have come to make birth certificates because the elections are coming. The government has sent them to come and make the birth certificates,” the narrator said, justifying why he subjected them to punishment.
However, recent initiatives by the Cameroonian government and UNICEF aimed at providing free birth certificates as over seven million Cameroonians do not have these documents. This therefore, contradicts this narrative, highlighting a fundamental misunderstanding on the part of the militants.
Among those threatened with death are religious and elderly individuals, with the narrator asserting that the Catholic Church is complicit in the issuance of these certificates.
“They are making it in the Catholic Church,” he says. “If I were to burn down this church, I hope nobody would ask me a question.”
Among those forced into bent knees by a catechist. The armed-wielding men accused the catechist of being sent by the Reverend’s father to issue birth certificates. However, what is being issued, MMI has not been able to determine because the issuance of such documents is not the responsibility of the church.
The video could show some of the armed men gathering papers in the background. “Catholic Church Banya Pants is working with the government.” He said, “I want to inform everybody that if they don’t hear from these people, then I have killed all of them.”
This would not be the first time such videos have surfaced during the span of the ongoing Anglophone conflict. In many instances, civilians have been summarily executed by the separatists, when accused of similar offences.
The militants’ insistence on associating themselves with the name “al-Qaeda” underscores their penchant for violence and intimidation, mirroring the tactics of the infamous terrorist organisation.
This incident is part of a troubling trend of violence and intimidation in the region since the onset of the Anglophone conflict. Calls for de-escalation have been made by individuals like Capo Daniel, yet some fighters persist in terrorising innocent civilians, perpetuating the cycle of fear and unrest.
Are the civilians in the video still alive, or have they been killed? This is the question that has yet to be answered.
