Scott Morgan at the Canadian Parliament: The Crisis in Cameroon is Linked to Nigeria's

By Scott Morgan

On June the 13th, a briefing took place for the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Human Rights of the Canadian Parliament, in Ottawa. The topic was the situation in Cameroon.

One of the questions asked: is there any direct links between the Nigerian and Cameroonian Governments as both nations face several crises affecting them at the same time?

There is a direct military link. Both nations are part of the Lake Chad Basin Initiative. This is an effort by several countries in the region to conduct operations against the Boko Haram insurgency. Besides Nigeria and Cameroon, the other nations that are part of this effort are Niger, Chad and Benin. A multinational effort to defeat this insurgency took root especially after the kidnapping of the Chibok School Girls in May 2014. One student Leah Shirabu still remains in custody of the kidnappers.

That being said, there are areas of concern along the border of these countries. Often the border between them have been closed due to attacks by Boko Haram. The previous Nigerian Governments have often accused Cameroon of not doing enough to deter the efforts of the Militant Group which has often attacked within Cameroon as well.

After the reelection of President Buhari, earlier this year, the Cameroonian Government sent an estimated 40,000 Refugees from Nigeria back home just a mere hours after Mr. Buhari was declared the victor.

There was little outcry over this move from within Nigeria or Cameroon.

Another potential point of contention is actually a court decision on March the 1st. On that date the Nigerian High Court ordered that a total of 57 people - including 10 senior Anglophone Independence leaders - be returned to Nigeria after determining that their rights were violated when they were arrested in Taraba State and sent back to Cameroon. The people in question are to receive compensation of between 200,000 Naira and 5 Million Naira.

To this date, there hasn’t been any reported efforts of the Buhari Government to abide by and address this decision of the Court.

There are several simmering tensions between these neighbors that are overshadowed by the Boko Haram Insurgency. It can be seen that as long as the militants are active then both Governments and International Donors can focus on the main issue that is visible instead of potential issues that lurk below the surface.

The Nigerian-Cameroonian Border - thought to have been solved by a joint commission back in 2003 - is showing signs of possibly heating up again. But is being overshadowed by other issues in both countries.

(Image: Map of Cameroon and Nigeria - Google Images)

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