Eyewitness Recounts How Separatists Executed Unarmed Man in Muea

By Tata Mbunwe

It has been nearly two years since gunshots and killings were reported in Muea, a once-embattled neighborhood in Buea in Cameroon’s South West Region, where an armed conflict has raged since 2017.

But relative peace was shattered again on Tuesday, July 8, when armed men believed to be Ambazonia separatist fighters publicly executed a man in the locality.

An eyewitness said the armed men accused the victim of violating separatist orders not to operate his off licence business on Mondays, a day often marked by shutdown of schools, business and transport activities in most parts of Cameroon’s English-speaking regions.

The man, MMI learned, was a resident of Wonya Mokumba, a village in the Muea Court Area. He was reportedly abducted from his home that morning, brought on a motorbike to the roadside at a place called Chief Street, and shot dead in front of horrified onlookers.

Eyewitness described the execution as horrific, but few were willing to recount details for fear of reprisals. One eyewitness, however, spoke on the condition of anonymity.

“They came on five motorbikes. One of the bikes was right in front, clearing the way for the four others,” he began.

“They were heavily armed with guns and could readily shoot anyone who stood in their way. It was very frightful. We did not realize when they had entered already. Some people started running,” the eyewitness recounted.

“The boys dropped the man who was sitting on one of the bikes in the middle of the convoy. He was begging them not to kill him and promised to give whatever amount of money they asked for. But before he could finish talking, they opened fire on him. They also shot in the air and immediately the military guys who were at the checkpoint around Lysoka entrance responded with gunshots. We did not even know when the Amba Boys had vanished. They took a different road from the one they came.”

The victim is the latest case of dozens of civilians executed for violating separatist-imposed lockdowns.

Just a week earlier, gunmen believed to be separatists attacked Mile 16 Bolifamba in Buea, killing a driver and burning four taxis reportedly for operating on a Monday.

Locals in Muea say the man killed last Tuesday had received repeated warning messages against working on Mondays.

He reportedly operated a drinking spot at Wonya Mokumba.

Separatist fighters have a long record of targeting civilians who do not align with their cause.

On October 4, 2023, they released a video showing the public execution of two unarmed men in Guzang, Batibo Subdivision, in the North West Region.

Such acts of brutality have often been used to enforce compliance with their agenda.

Ghost towns, which are now enforced with brutality, were first introduced in Cameroon’s English-speaking regions in 2016 as a peaceful protest tactic by lawyers and teachers opposing the marginalisation of Anglophones.

But as armed separatists hijacked the movement, ghost towns became a weapon to disrupt state events, public celebrations, and civilian life.

In 2019, the UN reported over 6,000 deaths linked to the conflict, though observers say the toll may have doubled since then.

No official database exists on casualties, which continue to grow as violence persists.

Organisations like the Center for Human Rights and Democracy for Africa, which have been documenting atrocities committed during the conflict, have repeatedly condemned the targeting of unarmed civilians as a war crime.