Nearly three weeks after a deadly military raid in Pinyin, a village in Cameroon’s North West region, serious questions remain unanswered. Six civilians were killed, and multiple young men were reportedly abducted. Despite mounting evidence, the Cameroonian government has failed to provide further clarification. There has been no communication from any government minister. Not even Atanga Nji Paul, who hails from the locality where the incident took place. This has left families in anguish and fuelled concerns of extrajudicial killings and human rights violations.
Official Acknowledgment but No Accountability
The Divisional Officer (DO) of Santa, Jules Roger Nkolo Voundi, confirmed to The Guardian Post that a special unit of security officers conducted the February 23, 2025, operation. He claimed that the six individuals killed were “Ambazonia separatist fighters. This is a label frequently used by the government to justify military action in the Anglophone regions. However, earlier reports from Mimi Mefo Info (MMI) contradict these claims, identifying the victims as unarmed civilians. Their names were listed in our initial report, providing crucial evidence that contradicts the government’s narrative. We also found that one of the victims was a man widely known in the community as a mental health patient.
Eyewitnesses told MMI that armed men, dressed in military-style uniforms, stormed a popular drinking spot in the Mamben quarter of Pinyin. The victims were reportedly selected and then executed by the roadside. A widely circulated video showed them lying in pools of blood. This method of operation, coupled with the fact that the victims were in a public setting rather than engaged in combat, raises serious concerns about extrajudicial killings.
Disappearances and a Growing Fear
Beyond those killed, MMI later reported that several young men were also taken by the military that night, including Formendu Derick Penn, a graduate from Polytech Bambili, and Muluh Ernest Mbuh. Their whereabouts remain unknown. Authorities have offered no explanations regarding these enforced disappearances. Families are left to search for answers in vain, as Cameroon’s security forces and the authorities maintain their silence.
This lack of communication has fuelled speculation that these abductions were not part of a counterinsurgency operation but rather an act of collective punishment. The military’s failure to release the identities of the victims, provide evidence of their supposed separatist ties, or acknowledge the missing individuals further erodes public trust. If these men were truly combatants, why has no proof been presented? Why has the government not addressed the fate of those taken?
A Possible Retaliatory Attack?
Adding to the lack of clarity to this incident is another event that took place just days before the military raid. On February 15, 2025, two individuals suspected of being separatist fighters were caught and killed by a mob in Pinyin. Reports indicate that they were beaten, dragged through the village, and set ablaze.
The timing of the military action raises troubling questions. Was the February 23 raid a retaliatory attack on the population of Pinyin for killing suspected separatists? If so, this would mark a disturbing shift in military strategy, where an entire community is punished for taking matters into its own hands. Rather than investigating the mob killings or working with local leaders to de-escalate tensions, security forces opted for deadly force. For a government that has claimed to be actively fighting against separatists and calling for information from the local communities, this action against the same community is puzzling.
The silence of the authorities makes no sense if this was a legitimate security operation. If these were truly combatants, their deaths should have been publicly accounted for with concrete evidence. Instead, we are left with a government that refuses to engage, a community living in fear, and families desperate for answers.
A Pattern of Human Rights Abuses
The killings in Pinyin are not an isolated incident. It is part of a wider pattern of violence in Cameroon’s Anglophone crisis, which has raged since 2016. Both government forces and separatist fighters have been accused of gross human rights violations,. These abuses include killings, kidnappings, and destruction of property. For instance, the military killings came in the same week during which Ambazonia separatist combatant Ngeh Cyprian, aka The Only Bro, attacked and killed five unarmed civilians in Bamessing. He labelled them ‘Blacklegs’, meaning they were working with the military. Among the victims was a nursing mother who reportedly left behind a two-month-old baby.
Despite ongoing conflict, little has been done to hold perpetrators accountable. The North West and South West regions remain in a state of war,. This is a case where civilians are caught between separatist violence and military crackdowns. International organisations have repeatedly called for independent investigations, yet justice remains elusive.
The Need for Transparency and Justice
If Cameroon’s government is serious about peace, it must immediately address the following:
- Disclose the identities of those killed and provide evidence that they were combatants.
- Confirm the whereabouts of those taken during the raid and allow their families access to information.
- Launch an independent investigation into the Pinyin raid and other military operations suspected of violating human rights.
- End the culture of impunity by ensuring that security forces responsible for unlawful killings are held accountable.
Until these steps are taken, the Cameroonian government’s silence can only be interpreted as an admission of guilt. The residents of Pinyin deserve answers, and the world must not ignore yet another instance of injustice in the Anglophone regions.
The February 23, 2025, killings in Pinyin demand more than silence. They demand truth, accountability, and justice. The refusal of authorities to acknowledge the full scope of what happened only deepens suspicions. It leads to the conclusion that this was not a counterterrorism operation but an act of state-sponsored violence. As long as the fate of the missing remains unknown and the truth is suppressed, Cameroon’s cycle of violence will continue unchecked.
