Anglophone crisis:
Military Kills Two At Funeral Ceremony In Balikumbat

By Timfuchi Aaron

A squad of soldiers is reported to have Sunday February 6 shot to dead two persons at a funeral ceremony in Bamukumbit, Balikumbat subdivision, Ngohketunjia division of Cameroon’s volatile North West region.

The soldiers are said to have been dispatched from Mbouda in the neighbouring West region. Mourners are said to have been left confused as the soldiers sniffed life out the two.

One of the persons who dropped dead after soldiers opened fire was said to be a separatist fighter. The Amba fighter was said to be in of an automatic pistol and ammunitions in his bag.

He is said to have joined the death celebration in Bamukumbit and was killed while eating corn served at the funeral. He was also said to be consuming beer when soldiers killed him.

According to Langmi Joseph, an eye witness, it was a sad thing to witness such an incident at a funeral ceremony. “We had just finished lowering our brother who died in Bamenda and we had no choice than to take the risk and transported his mortal remains home. Just when the grief was at its peak, we heard two gunshots few meters to the burial ground, before we could realized what was happening, the military was all over the place” he narrated.

Some mourners narrated that, everyone was searched multiple times, bags ransacked and suspected mourners simply carted away at gun point to unknown destinations.

According to anther mourner, Stella Kisu, who witnessed the event, the military went overboard. “We were already in a great moment of grief. To make it worst, you still come, shot dead someone, cause fear and traumatise everyone by forcing us to go and look at a corpse with fresh blood oozing out, “Kusi said.

Mourners said, they abandoned the funeral ground for fear that separatists fighters active in the area might come for retaliation. They are said to have escaped abandoning food and drinks brought from Bamenda for refreshment to waste.

The bereaved family is also said to have been abandoned. Those who left the funeral ground in panic said they met another corpse just after Bamali Junction. They said fresh blood was still oozing from the corpse. They claimed, soldiers also killed the person.

According to unconfirmed information from Bamukumbit, the executed separatist fighter is a son from the Bamukumbit Palace. He was said to be the only child of the parents resident in the United States.