Africa is home to 54 countries according to the United Nations, but in reality, there are a de facto number of 56 countries in the continent. The two unrecognized states are Somaliland and Western Sahara. However, in the deep south of Africa, there is another attempt at creating a country that most people are unaware of – the territory of Ambazonia.
What is Ambazonia?
The Federal Republic of Ambazonia, also known as South Cameroon, is an unrecognized breakaway state in West Africa. It claims the northwest region of Cameroon, although it currently controls almost none of the claimed territory. The latest Declaration of Independence was made in 2017, but so far, no country has formally recognized Ambazonia’s independence. The territory is currently the site of an armed conflict between Ambazonian separatist guerrillas and the Cameroonian military, known as the Anglophone crisis.
The Origin of the Anglophone Crisis
The source of the conflict and the desire for independence is directly related to the term “anglophone.” During colonial times and until 1961, the region that calls itself Ambazonia was a British colony called Southern Cameroon. When Europe began decolonizing Africa and it was time for independence, a referendum took place and voters in Southern Cameroon voted to join Cameroon as a constituent state of a federal republic.
However, over time, the power of the central government, dominated by francophones, expanded at the expense of the region’s autonomy. Many inhabitants of Ambazonia identify as anglophones and resent what they perceive as discrimination and efforts to eliminate anglophone legal, administrative, educational, and cultural institutions by the Cameroonian government.
The situation lasted for over 50 years until in 2016, a large-scale protest was met with a violent government response, escalating the situation. In 2017, a local group unilaterally declared independence as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.
The Flag of Ambazonia
The flag of Ambazonia was adopted as early as 1999 by the Cameroon National Council, an institution that has fought for the region’s independence since 1995. The flag is similar to that of nearby Liberia and takes direct inspiration from the flag of the United States. It presents nine horizontal stripes of alternating white and light blue with a dove surrounded by 13 gold stars on a blue field in the top left canton. There is no historical meaning or origin for the flag’s colors and symbols; they were chosen to represent unity and peace.
The Struggle for Recognition
Despite the latest Declaration of Independence being from 2017, the name Ambazonia is more usually associated with the separatists or independence-seeking faction, while the Cameroonian government and other official sources such as the United Nations continue to refer to it as the northwest region or Southern Cameroon.
The struggle for recognition and independence continues, with the ongoing armed conflict between Ambazonian separatist guerrillas and the Cameroonian military. The situation highlights the complexities and challenges of decolonization and the difficulties of creating a unified country from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Ambazonia is an unrecognized breakaway state in West Africa that is currently the site of an armed conflict. The struggle for recognition and independence is directly related to the term “anglophone” and the historical discrimination and efforts to eliminate anglophone institutions by the Cameroonian government. The flag of Ambazonia represents unity and peace, and the struggle for recognition continues.
I myself is a Cameroonian (from the french speaking part) and can tell it brought unrest in my country. As I acknowledge the government brutality in this matter, but the Biya regime has been the one that emphasized this confict by bringing tribalism to a whole other level, and not only marginalizing anglophones but other groups such as the Bamileke which are close to the population living in the North-West region as though being the largest ethnic group have been suppressed from the beginning of the state of Cameroon (Bamileke war). The French are undoubtely involved in this conflict as President Ahmadou Ahidjo had been selected as the first government of Cameroon for protecting french interests in the area, and since the oil rich South-West region could not be exploited by the french under the Federal Republic the pressured Ahidjo to put an end to the Federation. But the Biya regime was what mostly sparked this whole conflict as he has been in power since 1982 through clearly rigged election neglecting the Cameroonian people and further creating division between francophones and anglophones by enforcing french in every sectors such as administrative, schools, court etc giving priviledge to the francophones that are often not able to speak a word of English, eventhough French and English are mandatory and are of equal status. I believe that the intauration of a more democratic party (meaning kicking out Biya’s regime) and return to the Federal republic made up of 10 states would be better as even in the fench speaking area many are seeking autonomy from the highly centralised-Yaounde government like the West region, and this will permit the anglophones to gain back their autonomy. Maurice Kamto is the main opponent to the Biya regime and seeks to build back this identity of what it means to be a Cameroonian and to give equal opportunities to all. As I believe that united we are stronger of a people.
The union between the former French Cameroun and the British Southern Cameroons on October 1, 1961, to form the Federal Republic of Cameroon was a unique experiment in nation building and the struggle for independence in Africa. For instance, the Union des Populations du Cameroun (UPC), the first truly nationalist party in the former French trusteeship that advocated immediate independence and reunification with the British Cameroons, was banned in May 1955 by French colonial authorities because of its radical views, since France was still reluctant to grant its African colonies complete independence. For France, the choice of who and which party could lead the territory to independence depended on who French authorities thought could guarantee continued relations with France following independence. In the end, Ahmadou Ahidjo and his Union Camerounaise (UC) emerged as the best candidate to meet France’s objectives in a postcolonial Cameroun. On the other hand, because of the colonial arrangement that allowed Britain to administer its section of the former German colony as part of its colony of Nigeria to the west, the nationalist struggle took a different trajectory and was more against Nigerian rather than British colonial domination. In other words, for many Southern Cameroonians, the focus by the two major parties (Kamerun National Democratic Party (KNDP) and Cameroons Peoples’ National Convention (CPNC)) during the campaign leading to the plebiscite on February 11, 1961, was whether the territory should be part of the Republic of Cameroun, which was engulfed in violence and bloodshed following its independence on January 1, 1960, or face the threat of Igbo domination if Southern Cameroonians decided to become part of an independent Nigeria.
I grew up there – at Tiko to be precise, I attended St. Joseph’s Primary school. This unification was engineered by Mr. J.N. Foncha and his party. This is a sad situation because many of my friends in Southern Cameroons are trapped in this mess. A peaceful solution will be professed some day.
Cameroon originally was a German colony until 1916 when British and French occupied them, This is where the problems began since most of the territory is French-speaking while the northwestern part is English-speaking and the latter have fewer privileges than those already mentioned. I think that in general it should be a bilingual federal country but I do not think that the regime of the day allows it, especially with France meddling in the affairs of these countries.