Armed conflict in NW, SW:
Ebam locals concerned over ‘suspicious’ visit by soldiers

A year after allegedly committing grave rights abuses in Ebam, South West region, Cameroon soldiers have once more visited the locality.

At the sight of the soldiers, locals are said to have fled into the bush for fear of the unknown.

While some say the soldiers may have visited the village to carry out investigations after the alleged abuses, locals say, they have a different thought, given the scary exchanges they have had with the forces.

“… We are not sure their mission was just for investigation. They could be planning an attack” says a local.

The soldiers, he says, “… came with somebody inside the vehicle and were on phone with another directing them which house to go into. They broke into some houses but the occupants had fled. Who or what they were looking for, we dont know”.

Like him, our source says “… many of the male youths have struggled and are still hiding in Mamfe”.

The Cameroonian army had denied any wrongdoing in Ebam, accusing Human Rights Watch which brought the accusations to light, of conniving with separatists to taint its image.

Ebam like many other villages in Cameroon’s North West and South West regions has had its share of violence and brutality in the last four years.

According to Human Rights Watch, soldiers raided the locality last year, and Committed several atrocities including the rape of about 20 women.

Mimi Mefo Info