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In Cameroon, nearly 80 students were reportedly abducted by separatists. They want to build their own state. This is the first mbad kidnapping of this magnitude in the African state.
By Stefan Ehlert, ARD Studio North West Africa
After the kidnapping of 79 students and three adults at a school in northwestern Cameroon, a suspect named Bekennervideo emerged. As a result, separatists badume responsibility for the crime. The unverified video is available for the AFP news agency. He said that the perpetrators of these acts wanted to open their own schools and fight for their own state called "Ambazonia".
In the clip, according to AFP, several of the kidnapped students would appear in front of the camera saying their names and would have been kidnapped by the "Amba boys", that is, the militant separatists. They should have already attacked public schools. But never before in Cameroon, there had been a mbad abduction similar to that of Bamenda, the capital of the North West Province.
Approach reminiscent of Boko Haram
The practice is known from neighboring Nigeria. Members of the Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram kidnapped more than 200 girls in 2014. Many are missing all traces so far.
In what circumstances exactly the Cameroonian insurgents managed to remove more than 80 people, this remains to be determined. Most of the 79 children and teenagers should be boys, some sources suggest the director of Presbyterian High School, a teacher and a driver. The school claims to have 700 students. Ethnic, religious and linguistic, the school is mixed.
The Cameroonian government has announced that it will mobilize all its forces to search for the hostages. The UN coordinator for Cameroon, Allegra del Pilar Baiocchi, condemned the hostage taking as unjustified. She added that once again, children are victims of a crisis of which they are not responsible.
The minority aspires to independence
The conflict between the representatives of the English – speaking minority in Cameroon and the security forces has intensified for more than a year. According to non-governmental organizations, 400 civilians and 175 members of the police and army were reportedly killed in 2018 alone. The United Nations estimates that there are approximately 200,000 refugees.
The English-speaking part of Cameroon in the northwestern and southwestern provinces accounts for about one-fifth of the total population of 22 million inhabitants. The minority deplores the systematic discrimination and contempt of the government of President Paul Biya. He had repeatedly said that he wanted to quell the movement for independence with a strong hand. He rejects the negotiations.
The kidnapping took place one day before Biya, 85, was sworn in for her seventh term. He won the elections in early October with 72% of the vote. But the dramatic kidnapping of so many students will not give rise to any festive atmosphere during the solemn oath of office of the president.
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